The Business Side
Business Planning for Expediters Part XVII
By Phil Madsen, Editor
Sep 8, 2009 - 8:27:09 AM

In part two, we encouraged you to consider this question: who do you think you are and what do you think you are doing? If you have not thought this through, re-read part two and answer the question. Doing so will help you describe the type of business you are in.

When describing your business type, do not assume people know what you are talking about. If someone asks what you do for a living, you may answer, "I'm a trucker." If the person you are talking to is not a trucker, what you mean by "trucker" and what the person hears are probably quite different.

Have you ever had it happen that a non-trucker learns what you do for a living and then says something like "breaker one nine" or "ten-four?" When you say "trucker," you have your profession in your mind and your life and work on the road. When some people hear "trucker" they have very little in mind because they know little about trucking. Not knowing much about trucking, they tend to fill in the blanks on their own. They have seen truckers talk on the CB in the movies, so they say "breaker one-nine" to you.

Anyone who has been on the road for a while knows what it is like to be discriminated against because of the negative stereotype many people have of truckers. When you describe your business to others, it is important to do so in a way that pierces through that stereotype and raises the opinion your reader has.

It is even more important to describe your business in a way that raises your opinion of the work you do. Presenting yourself as just a poor slob who is trying to make a living may gain you some acceptance among others at the truck stop lunch counter. If you actually believe it, you doom yourself to be nothing more.

It has been said that if you want to be respected, you must first respect others. That's crap. If you want to be respected, you must first respect yourself.

When asked if they respect themselves, most people will say yes. It is an instinctive response. Try it on yourself. Do you respect yourself? If the answer is yes, and you really mean it, that's good. It will help you describe your business type — your life and work — in a way that honors the self you respect. If the answer is no, you already know you really mean it, and that is also good. It is good because it brings you to a moment of truth.

In writing the business type section of your business plan, the task is to describe your life and work. Note that this series is not entitled Business Planning for Poor Slobs Who Are Just Trying to Make a Living. It is Business Planning for Successful Expediters. If you are not a successful expediter, or if you are down on yourself for any reason, that's OK.

In fact, it may be exactly perfect. A written business plan is not a document that keeps you in place. It is a document that moves you from where you are to where you want to be. Describing your business in writing may be exactly what you need to do to focus your efforts and develop self respect.

If you don't like what you see in your business now, describe the type of business you want to have. Once you have it in writing, you may discover that you are not so far from it as you may have previously believed. If you already respect yourself and believe you are a success, describing your business type in writing will help you think your business through anew.

Whatever your starting point, the process is the same. Describe your business with positive and uplifting words. As an expediter, you have a head start. You could say you earn your money by hauling freight. You can also say you transport expedited freight. Poor slobs do not transport expedited freight. Dedicated professionals do.

When you use the words "transport expedited freight," you know exactly what that means. People who think they are speaking your language when they say "breaker one-nine" do not. Indeed, many truckers know little about expedited freight. Don't leave it to chance for people to understand your business. Spell it out for them, and for you.

After you have done it a few times, or a few hundred, it may seem like no big deal to pick up car parts at an automotive plant and deliver them to another. Be careful about understating the obvious. What is obvious to you is not obvious to others. Do not sell yourself short. You know full well that if you do not hold up your end, an assembly line may shut down because the parts were not delivered safely and exactly on time. Other people do not, so spell it out.