Profit is a thing that some people are much too embarrassed about or scared to think about, and it’s also a thing that some other people make too much of. I drafted this post over a year ago, I sat on it for a long time for whatever reason…now I want to put profit in a clear context.
I’m a big fan of Ice Road truckers. This is a show about truckers moving supplies in the frozen far north of Canada, in temperatures as low as minus 34 centigrade.
One thing that truckers need is diesel. Not just for the simple reason of getting their trucks from A to B. The reason ice road truckers need diesel is to run the heater in their cab. If they run out of diesel, the heater goes off. If the heater goes off, they die. It’s minus thirty four. So no heat, they die.
Ice road truckers devote time and effort to ensuring they have enough diesel. It’s a major concern for them. Because if they run out, they die.
Profit for a business like ours is rather like diesel for ice road truckers. It’s not the aim of the game.
The aim of the game for an ice road trucker is to get the goods from A to B, safely and in good time. It’s customer service, solving the customer’s problem, meeting or exceeding expectations; businesses have the same goals the world over. Our aims are no different.
We need profit in the same way a trucker needs diesel. We don’t seek it for its own sake, but we have to have it, otherwise we die. That’s why we spend time and effort making sure we have enough. We’ve always had profit and we intend to keep it that way.
For truckers, the business of maintaining diesel levels requires five simple steps: get large tanks on the truck, fill them up before starting a job, check the levels often, be vigilant for leaks, and take measures to fix leaks immediately. Five simple steps. Then they get on with the job of solving the customer’s problem, getting from A to B and providing service.
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And because no blog post is complete without some truck pictures…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tth91722/3414501485/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/naturallight/142953959/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gr8_pics_4_u/4379003289/
