Time Off

Time Off

Today I was working on one of the many spreadsheets I have created to keep track of our business numbers. This particular spreadsheet keeps track of the miles we have driven this year as well as how many days we were on the road. Because we are a team I keep track of each of us in separate columns and then have another column for the combined total of miles driven. I also have the spreadsheet separated by month so I can see how many miles we drove per month. Finally, there is a grand total of all miles driven in the year. Do you keep track of the miles you have driven in a month or year? Do you keep track of how many days you are out per month or year? Why does it matter?

Let's break it down here. Oftentimes we hear the saying, "know your numbers". Knowing your miles driven is just one part of knowing your numbers. If we didn't know how many miles we have driven in any given month or year, we have no way to track how much we are making per mile. Knowing how many miles we are driving guides us in deciding what rate we need in order to be profitable. Also, we would have no idea how many days we were on the road to know how much per diem we can write off on our annual taxes. This could add up to many dollars saved in taxes paid come March 15 for our business filings and April 15 for our personal filings.

Looking back over the year I noticed that we took a lot of time off this year. Some of the time off was a personal choice while some of the time was unplanned and unexpected. This prompted a conversation about how we will handle how much we will drive next year. The biggest lesson learned is that we cannot take days off for granted. In other words, we have learned that we should drive as much as possible because there might come a time when we cannot. Whether it be for our own reasons or that our family needs us to be home for them, we need to work while we can so that when unexpected things pop up we can be off the road to attend to the needs of ourselves or others.

Analyzing the numbers helps us to make better decisions from month to month as well as from year to year. The numbers give us permission to take time off when needed or necessary. The numbers also give us insight as to whether or not our business is profitable. Let me suggest that you keep track of your miles driven and days on the road. You do not need fancy spreadsheets. Write the numbers down on a calendar. At the end of the month total up your numbers. Divide your revenue by miles driven and you will know what your average rate per miles is. Keep it simple. Just do something.

Here's to millions of safe, profitable and RELAXING miles.

Kelly Plumb