The Three Keys to a Successful Business Bruce Outridge has been in the transportation industry for twenty five years. He now operates Outridge Consulting Services helping create professional drivers for the transportation industry. For more details please visit www.outridge.ca.
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ou’ve heard me talk in the past about stepping up to the plate when you’re going into business for yourself. In fact I think you should step up to the plate when becoming a professional driver in general. Just when you think people are starting to get it I read an article or hear a story about how foolish people can be. I just finished reading an article on how to dress and operate when going through a road test and interview at a company that again was going over the basics of how to dress, and how to act. Have we not beat that horse to death already, have people not got the message? Apparently not or we wouldn’t be talking about it. The same thing happens in business, eventually you have to get the message. Eventually you have to decide if you are going to be in business or be a statistic for failure. Now before I get all kinds of comments I realize that businesses fail for much more reasons than not operating business like or taking themselves too seriously. Those aren’t the businesses I am talking about here. There are many factors that determine if a business stays profitable or not. That being said I do believe that through an entrepreneurial view and Owner Operator standpoint many people getting into business today take it seriously until they have to do the work. So what am I getting at here? Evaluation, operation, and dedication are the keys to success as
a business owner or Owner Operator. For those of you that are new Owner Operators you will get good and bad information on the industry, certain companies, and the life of an Owner Operator from others. That advice however may not be from sources that are interested in seeing you succeed in this industry. To succeed in this industry and be one of the successful instead of one of the statistics takes working with the keys of a successful operation. The three keys listed above if used
correctly will go a long way to helping you have a successful business whether it be as an Owner Operator or other business arrangement. Evaluation is the first one however these aren’t in any particular order. Evaluation of your business is the key to creating a successful business. I remember when I started out in business I thought I was on the right track, but the drive for success, and the will to take on some risks for rewards down the road kept me evaluating each success and failure. The failures were turned around as learning
curves and either revised or trashed so they will never happen again. As I look back down the road if I hadn’t been evaluating my business, if I hadn’t kept pushing the envelope for new opportunities we wouldn’t be in business today. It is important to keep your eye on the big picture. Operation is an area that many people get lost in especially Owner Operators and entrepreneurs. They get overwhelmed in the many tasks and duties expected of them and end up doing all of them badly or some not at all. Bookkeeping and taxes come to mind in this area. You need to keep fine-tuning your operation, making sure the important areas are being taken care of by qualified people not just someone looking to make an extra buck. It is vital that you keep evaluating what works and how to make your operation run smoothly. Go through a tax audit and you will quickly learn what information is required. Dedication is the final key and when you signed on the dotted line, or you left your job to open a business, or you decided to make this your life’s work, you went into dedication mode. Be dedicated to being successful in your business by thinking like a business owner, getting advice from professionals, evaluating your operation on a regular basis. Doing that will go a long way in helping you become a success rather than a statistic.
[Information Tools[ Name
Contact Numbers
Website
CAA South Central Ontario
1 800 268 3750
www.caasco.com
Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators
613 736 1003
www.ccmta.ca
Canadian Trucking Human Resources Council
613 244 4800
www.cthrc.com
Industry Canada
1 800 328 6189
www.ic.gc.ca
Ontario Ministry of Transportation
1 800 268 4686
www.mto.gov.on.ca
Ontario Trucking Association
416 249 7401
www.ontruck.org
Road Today Magazine
905 487 1320
www.roadtoday.com
Transport Canada
613 990-2309
www.tc.gc.ca
Workplace Safety & Insurance Board
1 800 387 5540
www.wsib.on.ca
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ROAD TODAY FEBRUARY 2012