As the vehicle maintenance world twirls, more and more of us are working longer and longer hours.

There’s more work to be done because there’s fewer people to do it as companies "right size."

As my brother Steve - a veteran sales and marketing professional - is fond of preaching: "It is what it is, and you do what you have to do."

True enough, but consistently putting in too many long hours could be affecting our brains - and there’s research that makes that case. (Not that I’m building a case to present to my boss about my working less or anything like that.)

I just happened to come across a British study that discovered, when compared with working the typical 40-hour week, middle-aged workers who put in more than 55 hours per week had significantly lower performance on a series of mental skills, reasoning and vocabulary tests.

More disturbing, the research adds to the increasing evidence that establishes a link between cognitive impairment and dementia in later life.

"Cognitive functioning between employees working long hours and those working normal hours is similar in magnitude to that of smoking, a risk factor for dementia," stated the study.
In short, it seems that long hours aren’t just bad for our health, they’re also bad for our performance.’

You might want to share this blog with your boss when you leave the office - on time - today. (Let me know how it goes.)

The number of deaths related to transportation was reduced by almost 10 percent in 2008 compared to 2007, with fatalities from crashes involving medium and heavy trucks falling nearly 16 percent.

This is the third year in a row that transportation deaths have decreased.

That was among the preliminary figures released recently by the National Transportation Safety Board.

The Board reported that overall, transportation fatalities in the U.S. were 39,397 in 2008, down from 43,384 in 2007.

Highway deaths, which account for more than 94 percent of all transportation deaths, decreased from 41,259 in 2007 to 37,261 in 2008. The number of medium and heavy truck fatalities fell from 805 to 677 in 2008.

Some of these improved statistics can be credited to the continuing safety improvements made to vehicles. Some can be attributed to fleets hiring safe, professional drivers and doing continual driver training.

I maintain the reduction in transportation related injuries and deaths is also due to regular and effective preventive maintenance and proper vehicle service and repair.

I say this because superior preventive maintenance and vehicle service and repair help to keep equipment operating safely. That can substantially reduce accidents caused by brake, tire, steering and other mechanical failures.

There are other benefits as well, with reliably and efficiently topping the list.

Effective vehicle maintenance and proper service and repair minimizes work schedule interruptions and keeps equipment working as much as possible, and at maximum efficiency.

There’s also improved driver morale. Drivers tend to take pride in equipment that is kept in top operating condition. They are more likely to drive safely and take better care of their vehicles.

And let’s not forget the public relations element. Vehicles are traveling billboards that represent a company. How does it look when one of its vehicles is broken down alongside the road, on the end of a wrecker or involved in an accident?

There is a national appreciation week for truck drivers, teachers, animal control officers, public assistance workers, students, national code enforcement officers, animal shelters, child nutrition employees, and the list goes on.

Perhaps it is time for a nationwide pat on the back to America’s vehicle service professionals to acknowledge their contributions toward highway safety.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

While some say the economy is improving, the reality for service providers and others is that they still face reduced work and profits, furloughs, layoffs and other hardships. Going to work isn’t as enjoyable as it once was.

Nevertheless, there are measures you can take to weather economic storms. It begins with not fearing down business conditions.

Challenge yourself to find the positive aspects and opportunities that lie within change.

Change your attitude and view change as a challenge and an opportunity. This, in turn, will help change results.

Invest in training. With the battle for customer dollars getting even fiercer, you need every tool in your business toolbox to stay ahead of the competition. One way to achieve this is by investing in training - for everyone.

Yet frequently, training is one of the first things to get hacked when a company’s budget gets squeezed. Wrong move. Trained and energized employees are just what any operation needs to stimulate growth and problem solve in the lean times.

What’s more, training places value in you as an employer because employees tend to look at education as a sign that their company cares about them.

Increase marketing. The marketing budget is another area that quickly gets lacerated when business slows. Another wrong move. Marketing expenditures ought to be increased.

Cutting back on marketing your operation makes it much more difficult to reach customers. Think about it. As business falls off, don’t you have to work harder to reach customers in order to generate more business?

Join a trade or industry organization. Membership can provide you with a number of benefits. Many organizations offer members discounts on vital products and services. They also make available valuable training and education opportunities, and that can help you stay competitive.

Pay attention. Keep up on news, developments and trends in your business areas and industries. And be sure to talk to your customers and prospect customers about their maintenance and service issues. Ask them insightful questions to elicit good intelligence. Doing so will arm you with good information so you can be proactive in capitalizing on business opportunities.

Fearing change is natural. It’s a very strong emotion that creates a lot of energy in a person. This energy, though, tends to be negative.

I’m strongly suggesting that you turn fear into positive energy by changing your attitude, viewing change as a challenge and opportunity and managing your business to not just survive, but thrive.