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I know there are praying people here. I am about to close my business on Dec 31. My family will be in a rough transition from self-employment to the daily grind. I haven't worked for anybody since 1996 when I left the Air Force, and knowing the boss's side of the equation makes me cringe whan I apply it to today's companies.

Our company has been shrinking steadily for the past 5 years, and the profit is finally going the way of the buffalo. I've been hanging on to complete a truck lease, but even that isn't going to work out.

The undercut pricing from large companies is too low for me to compete with. They are charging now what the rest of us were getting in the mid 90's, and are taking all the customers. Of course, a little loyalty to the local haulers, instead of jumping on a dollar a month savings would help. Yes, a dollar a month. Unfortunatley, we haven't been able to raise for years, and the big companies have, once they take the customer. Then people just stay with them, as they are still a little cheaper (a dollar a month). We are closing the gap, but there isn't time enough to get there before we go broke.

If I'm a stranger here for a while, please keep us in your prayers, as I see a pretty tough time ahead. We live in an area where jobs using my education and military experience are few and far between. That's why I went into business in the first place. I didn't know this would be the wrong one to go into.

It's been a long, hard nine years...going from 285 customers, to 2300 residential, and 120 commercail, back to 350 today. My body is suffering from the work, now that I do everything alone...and have for the last 4 years. From 850 to 350 in that time. That means 1400 stops /week down to about 650...all by myself, doing all the work. It's time to do something that leaves me able to play a little, too. Even my riding has dropped off dramatically this year for all the pain and suffering my body is in. I was riding about 600 miles per week a year ago. I haven't even ridden 200 miles in November...only 500 miles since september!


So..please pray a prayer for me and my family, that life can return to normal. Hard work is no problem, just need different work. Thanks, folks!

Whilst not a religious man myself, I really do hope this all works out well in the end, and you land on your feet.

Good luck
Andy

Like nibblet99 I'm not a praying man myself... but I do empathize with your plight. I will think good thoughts for you. I believe that a smart, honest and hardworking man will always find a way. Good luck!

Ron
Faith is tested most when circumstances seem unjust, and the outlook is unknowable. But remember that there is no power in heaven or earth that can separate you from the love of God. I hope that, like Job, you will one day look back on this time in your life and marvel at the outcome.

Sometimes we have to reach the end of our rope, having exhausted all means of success in our own strength to realize fully how dependent we are (and always have been) on God's provision. And if He wants you to go in a totally new direction in life, this may be the crisis to open your eyes to that possibility. I consider it a privilege to pray for you.

On a personal note, the last three years have been an absolute nightmare for me: physically, emotionally, mentally, etc. I can (and will) retire next June. Though I once wondered what lay ahead for me, I wonder no longer. My wife and daughter got me involved in several charities over the past several years, and now I'm looking forward to spending the rest of my life helping others. The personal satisfaction of making a life-changing difference for others is worth more than everything I've done in my entire career.

Bob DeViney

good luck.having worked in the same industry for 5 years i know the long hours and hard work involved.i cant think of any other vocation you could get into that wont be easier.sometimes it seems to suck but whatever happens is supposed to happen.i never look back.

im in a different business... i sell ice in the summer i can sell ice to eskimos, but now that winter is hitting i cant sell it to the jamaicans even. im just a college kid but it really sucks to drive all day from customer to customer and get paid only half what i got two months ago. luckily i work for a big company and get minimum wage on bad days, but i feel the pinch and im sorry for you because i know yours is 100 times worse.

Best of luck to you, Ron. I hope that all will work out for you in the end - don't forget you have many friends here rooting for you.

That does bite, Ron. I can relate, having been through the same thing myself(and rapidly getting there again), and you are probably doing the right thing. Beating a dead horse and all that..... sucks to admit defeat and fold your cards, but a guy's got to eat, right?

Hope you can find gainful employment that don't suck the life out of you there. I'm at the piont of re-locating to resolve my own misery(so might as well re-locate someplace warmer with roads that bend ). Hopefully you won't have to uproot the homestead to make a decent living......

As a fellow Christian and no stranger to life challenges myself, my prayers are with you, Ron. Thing is, sometimes these things happen for a reason. God may need you to move on now and you've been reluctant to do so or the message just wasn't getting through. But remember, there are no endings...just new beginnings. It sounds sappy and doesn't help a whole helluva lot now, but it's just another thing to reflect upon later.

Good luck and God bless!

-Roger

Not a christian, so I won't cheapen this by saying me prayers are with you. But I know for a fact that the whole forum is behind you. If there's anything we can do to help out let us know.

I hope you find a job that you love, or failing that, one that pays what you're worth.

Best of luck