They say that moving is the third most stressful thing that a person can do in their lifetime. And it’s not any less stressful for the movers and moving company owners either.
Do you feel stress often in your moving business?
Is your health failing because of the stress?
You’re not alone.
I know that I personally felt a lot of stress in my moving business especially when I was new and didn’t know my ass from floor runner.
Even the big boys have stress…their stress is just different.
What is Stress?
I found that stress comes from 4 different things:
- Time
- Money
- Incomplete actions
- Disorganization
And disorganization is the chief of all of them.
When you don’t have your organization in you’ll find that you’ll be scatterbrained which thus leads to incomplete actions. As those incomplete actions stack up you’ll find that you have less and less time to do the things that you need to get done, and while your time is used up on the things that don’t make you money you’re losing the very same money…leading to no time and no money!
So obviously the answer to handling stress is right in front of your face.
How to Manage Stress in the Moving Business
1. Get Organized
Organization is the key to relieving the stress of the moving business. This is key. When I talk with a moving company owner that is stressed out it always comes down to one thing: lack of organization.
Everything really stems from that fact alone. So get in the organization.
The Best Way to Get Organized
And the best tool to get organized is a good moving company CRM software. Of course, I am biased and recommend Movegistics. But there are many good CRMs out there.
At one time I even recommended Move It Pro…and you can see the video that I did on them here.
Get in Time Management.
Part of organizing is organizing your time. Managing time is essential.
You have a business and personal life and you have to balance both. And you have to make sure that while you are doing your business during business time you need to make sure that you manage the time so that you can have a personal life.
If you’re finding that you cannot do everything you need to do during work hours and it’s encroaching into personal time, then you need to hire people to take those actions off your plate.
Get in Money Management.
Nothing causes you more stress than when you don’t have enough money. And if you don’t have enough money usually comes from not knowing where the money is coming or going. And of course, that comes from no money management.
A good CRM will do a lot for you in keeping track of your money, payroll, and bills, but they are limited in what they can do for you, that’s why I recommend a good accounting software like Quickbooks.
2. Complete unfinished Business.
A major symptom of disorganization is unfinished business. Things that are left undone does more to overwhelm you than almost anything else.
You have plenty of time and you can always make more money. Yes, they add considerably to your stress levels, but it is incomplete cycles of action that will give you a stroke.
Your desk is littered with paperwork that has not been filed. That hasn’t been fully completed. You have things that you have started but never finished. Like writing those reports. Entering in your figures into your Quickbooks. You haven’t paid that bill.
These are all incomplete cycles of action that need to be done BEFORE you can ever get organized. But without organization, you’ll ever be able to finish those actions that need to be completed. It’s a vicious Catch 22.
Setting up Rules and Processes
I’ve mentioned this in other videos that I have done. You can see that video here.
A big part of making sure that you complete every action that you are supposed to, and have your guys finish everything they are supposed to, then you need to set up rules and procedures.
Taking every action and listing out each step from start to finish will go a long way in creating an ordered work environment…not only for you but your employees as well.
Then setting rules and enforcing those rules is essential (we’ll talk about this next.)
3. Get in Discipline on Yourself and Company.
I can’t mention how vital this step is. Without this step, you’ll never get organized and you’ll be constantly stressed out beyond belief.
And when I say discipline I mean more than having the will to complete cycles of action or putting in the organization…I mean putting ethics in company-wide…including you!
If you have guys talking bad about you or your company, causing strife with other workers, being late, stealing, not doing the job they were hired to do…everything will go out the window anyway.
So it is key that you put in ethics.
And you do that with creating rules and processes that can be monitored and tracked so you know who is causing and doing what.
Organization and discipline are the two sides of the same coin.
4. Exercise and Physical Exertion.
Studies have proven that physical exertion and/or exercise will help alleviate stress.
When you get that feeling everything is overwhelming then that is a good sign that you need to step back and get in some physical exercise.
Go to the gym and work out, or get on the truck for the day and do some moving with the crew. Your crew will like and they have greater respect for you because they’ll know that you can and will do the same job as them.
Getting out on the truck every now and then helps get rid of stress and also increases morale within the company.
You have to Eat Healthy too.
Part of doing exercise is also eating healthy.
Our foods are filled with so many chemicals that disrupt and alter moods that it is unfathomable.
Try adding organic foods to your diet. Eat the right fats. Cut down on salt. And consume more vegetables, especially green veggies.
Get yourself educated on what is healthy. Eat better. Exercise and relieve stress.
5. Delegate.
You have to be able to pass off jobs/hats to others if you ever have a chance of relieving stress or even being successful.
If you are of the mind that you don’t want to hire anyone because they can’t do the job as good as you then know this:
- You’re absolutely right
- You’ll NEVER grow
- You’ll never grow your business or be successful
Delegation is vital to not only growing your business so that you can step away from it one day, but it is also vital to having a stress free lifestyle.
PERIOD!
When you Hire someone.
When you hire someone to do a job for you you are hiring them to solve problems. They are solving the problem where you don’t have enough time in the business day or you have a lack of knowledge.
When you hire someone or delegate a job for someone to do, make them solve the problem and never present you with a problem unless they too have a solution.
When employees or contractors only present problems and never a solution to the problem then you might as well just do the job yourself anyway.
You hired them to solve problems. To take the stress off your plate. Make them do it.
This goes back to Step 3 above.
Stress Kills…
Every doctor in the World will tell you that too much stress will kill you.
People often joke that stress takes years off their lives. That is an old wives tale that just so happens to be true.
I’ve laid out 5 steps here in this article that will help or will eliminate much of your stress. They’re easy steps to take. And much of it will seem like common sense…
But if it’s so simple and common then why aren’t people doing the steps?
It’s because they are so bogged down in their own stress that they can’t even think. So, if you have a friend that is stressed out do them a favor and hand them article.
Or…
If you’re the one stressed out…read this article carefully and apply the steps above.
They work for me, and I know they’ll work for you too.
Thank you. Go and do something great today!