KEN'S KORNER - JUNE 2005

TIME AND MONEY
By Author, Educator and Big City Driver Ken Skaggs

There are two things that drivers need more of - time and money. These two things have to be managed wisely too. You only get so much of each, so make them work in your favor. Easier said than done, I know, but true nonetheless. Learning to manage them is an ongoing task and a constant learning curve. The more you do it, the better you get. But sometimes it seems that the more you learn, the more you realize that you have a lot more to learn. I’m not going to lecture you here on how to manage your time or money - I’m still trying to figure that out for myself. Maybe one day I’ll find the time to do it!

Throughout my life, it seems I’ve always had one (time or money), but never both at the same time. When I’m working long and hard, I’ll be rolling in the money. But then, of course, I’ll have no time to enjoy it. And when I’m not working, I have plenty of time, but no money to play with. Sometimes you have to choose one, time or money. You can’t always have both, unless you are on vacation (and that’s only temporary). In fact, I would say that you’re lucky to get either one. Unfortunately, money is a necessity. Well, time is too, but you have more control over money. One day when I do have both, I’ll write a book about how I did it.

I’ve read dozens of books about how to get rich (I still haven’t been able to make that happen, but that’s another story). I do remember reading somewhere that there’s one thing all rich people have in common - they all wear a watch and they all use their time wisely. And, the opposite is true for people who aren’t rich - they often don’t wear a watch and they almost always don’t use their time wisely. I always thought that I would get rich. In fact, I still believe it. It’s just that it hasn’t happened yet. But, I am starting to realize one thing (which my mother tried telling me twenty years ago but I wouldn’t listen) - it isn’t going to happen overnight. You have to take small steps in the right direction. Plant seeds that return a little something, and the more you plant, it starts adding up after a while. Learn to save a little money (something else my mother tried to tell me twenty years ago but I was slow to grasp) and invest it in real estate, or stocks and bonds, or more trucks - something that will make you some residual income.

They say time is money, but I disagree. I think time is far superior to money. When you’re young or broke (or both), money may seem more important, but as you get older, or wealthier, or wiser, you begin to realize that you only get so much time. Money comes and goes, but time is only there once. You never know when your time will run out, but you can pretty much see it coming when your money does. No, time and money are not equal to me, not by a long shot. After all, it’s better to be alive and broke than it is to be dead and rich. Don’t you agree? Some say, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” Not me. I say, “He who spends his Grandchildren’s inheritance and enjoys it wins.”

Bruce Williams, the famous talk-show host and entrepreneur once said that he would gladly give up all he owns for a chance to be young and broke again. I love listening to his talk-show. He owns dozens of businesses and dozens of properties. On his radio show, he talks about how he did it and takes calls from people from all walks of life and answers their questions about business and real estate. Almost any kind of business you can think of, he’s either been there and done that, or is currently doing it. You can find him on the AM dial everywhere across the country. Check out www.brucewilliams.com for more on him, he’s awesome. You can even listen to him live on the website from 7-10 pm (Eastern). One of his techniques is to start a business from scratch then hire someone to run it, which gives him more time to start another business and hire someone to run that, etc.

When you’re driving, time is of the essence. So many drivers, myself included, sacrifice this precious commodity (time) when we drive over-the-road. Anybody who has done it for any length of time knows exactly what I mean. It’s one thing to work every day and go home every evening, but many truckers out there are lucky to get home weekly, or even monthly, and even then, just for a day or two. In this case, we give up our time for money. If you are an owner operator, you can hire a driver to do all the work for you, but then you’re giving up money for time, because you would have to give most of your money to the driver. It’s a catch-22 situation. But, you can do like Bruce Williams teaches and buy another truck, which you would drive until you could hire another driver, then buy another truck, and so on.

They say you can make time. This is debatable. But, I know you can make money. In an effort to “make time” some drivers will speed and weave in and out of traffic. If they do this for several hours, they feel as though they have created five or ten minutes per hour. And though mathematically that may be true, you also have to take into consideration the amount of time you lose when you get pulled over by Smokey Bear. Then, if you do get a ticket, you’ve lost money too. That’s why I say you can literally save time and money by driving legally. Too often, I’ve seen drivers pass me, then stop at a rest area. Then, five minutes later they pass me again. Then, ten minutes after that, I pass them again at another rest area or truck stop. Slow and steady will beat them every time. You can only save so much time while driving. You can save much more time by watching how much of it you spend when you stop.

This entire article may seem like it was written by a guy with too much time on his hands (and that may be true). I wish I could say the same thing about my money (too much on my hands). I will one day, I’m sure. But until then, I had better keep on trucking. I’ll keep listening to Bruce Williams and reading my get-rich-quick books and visualizing that resort/ranch in Belize I want to build some day. But until that day comes, I’ll be planting my little seeds everywhere I can. Thanks for listening and please check out www.bigcitydriver.com if you can spare the time. Hey, at least it won’t cost you any of your hard-earned money!

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