Fuel for Thought

The Secret of Success

If you are considering transitioning from a company driver to an owner operator, or if you have already taken the leap to ownership, please do your due diligence and research the new role you are undertaking. Sure, you can learn a lot about driving a truck as a company driver, but did you consider all the new hats you will be wearing as an owner operator?
There are so many things your company does for their drivers that will now be your responsibility. If during your time as a company driver, you tracked your truck's fuel cost, maintenance costs, MPG and performed your own trip planning, that's a great start. Now to learn about all the back office requirements. Money management. Profit and loss. Taxes. Emergency funds. Maintenance funds. Regulations. Bookkeeping. Finding customers. Securing customers. Retaining customers. Time management. Compliance. These are just to get you started.
Do your research to help insure your business success.
Company drivers often see owner operators and think they can just buy a truck and be a successful owner too. There is so much more below the surface that is rarely seen from successful owner operators that is required to be done.
No one wants to fail nor is every driver meant to be a business owner. Assess your priorities, your commitment and your goals, then make the right decision based on your own situation.
The decision to become an owner operator should not be taken lightly, the stakes are too high and the liability is too great for the unprepared.
This is not to discourage anyone, but rather to encourage them to do their due diligence, preferably before committing to a business venture only to fail. Success as an owner operator can certainly be achieved, many have done it and continue to succeed, even during bad economies.
Businesses fail all the time for a myriad of reasons. If you try your hand at ownership and it fails, it does not mean you cannot try again, only the next time it will be with experience of what does not work. Build on past experiences to find the formula for your own version of success.
If you decide to become an owner operator and leave company driving behind, also leave behind that company driver mindset. Running a successful business is not easy and definitely not for the faint of heart. It will require a lot more of your time and effort to succeed. As a business owner, you will always be “on the job” to some extent. If done successfully, all of your time and effort will be rewarded.
The secret of success is value. When you have value, success will find you.
Keep striving.

There are people who make things happen, there are people who watch things happen, and there are people who wonder what happened. To be successful, you need to be a person who makes things happen.
-  Jim Lovell

See you down the road,
Greg