#138. Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle

Haulin Assets

"Many a Mickle Makes a Muckle" is an old Scottish phrase. It was popularized in the United States by George Washington, but he actually got the phrase wrong. I'm not going to explain how here, to learn about his mistake, listen to the episode. The phrase basically means many little things make a big thing, or many little changes will have a big impact. If you want to hear the phase being said with a Scottish accent, click here.

What To Expect From Episode 138

I think this is a great episode with some really good wisdom. I hope you like it as much as I do. Many a mickle makes a muckle is probably more true in the trucking industry than any other. Money is made from pennies on the mile. Lots of pennies and lots of miles add up to something big.

If you have been following the financial episodes, you know that the last several months have been a real financial struggle for Haulin Assets. There is no silver bullet to solve this problem. Fixing it is going to take a lot of little tweaks and changes that together will have a big impact on our bottom line.

Over the last couple of months we have been working on making those tweaks. Here are some of the little changes we have been or will be making to realize the big impact we so desperately want to have.

Changes we are already making:

• Regular visits to customers
• Shaving costs off our fuel expense
• Management driving more often
• Revisiting how and where we get tires
• Getting our vendors on 30-day terms to improve cash flow
• Being more deliberate about all our expenses
• Load analysis
• Following up on warranty claims
• Staying on top of our A/R

Changes we are are in the process of implementing:

• Reducing the down days of our trucks (I hope this will be on the larger side of an impact)
• Getting some direct shipper backhauls
• Being more efficient in the office, maybe use a TMS (Transportation Management System)
• Doing minor repairs and maintenance ourselves
• Constantly reevaluate all we do
• Consistently find time to work on the business, instead of just in the business

We have a bigger change that is likely to happen in the not too distant future, but there are some pieces that need to fall into place before we are ready to make an announcement. Stay tuned!

Making lots of little changes is hard. It requires patience, dedication and a willingness to be deliberate in all you do. That is not easy, but people who are willing to do that are usually the people who are successful. Jump on the wagon with us, let’s go down this path together and work diligently on solving this problem.

Impact Tip

Go find many mickles. Lots of little changes can have a big impact on your business. Go find a bunch of little things you can do to improve; that together, will have a big impact.