1 00:00:01,762 --> 00:00:03,766 Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to the Bootstrapper's Guide to 2 00:00:03,806 --> 00:00:06,432 Logistics, the podcast highlighting founders doing it 3 00:00:06,451 --> 00:00:08,134 the way that doesn't get a lot of attention. 4 00:00:08,134 --> 00:00:11,067 We're here to change that by sharing their stories and 5 00:00:11,106 --> 00:00:12,570 inspiring others to take the leap. 6 00:00:13,699 --> 00:00:16,228 Speaker 2: It's a roller coaster ride that you might ultimately 7 00:00:16,248 --> 00:00:16,449 fail. 8 00:00:17,100 --> 00:00:19,068 Speaker 1: That's when I kind of knew I was on to something. 9 00:00:19,068 --> 00:00:20,646 It was very hard. 10 00:00:20,646 --> 00:00:23,068 It truly is building a legacy. 11 00:00:23,068 --> 00:00:26,289 The more life you live, the more wisdom you have. 12 00:00:26,839 --> 00:00:29,106 Speaker 2: Because we are where we're supposed to be kind of 13 00:00:29,248 --> 00:00:30,251 answering the call. 14 00:00:30,780 --> 00:00:33,209 Speaker 1: Don't shoulder entrepreneurship on your own. 15 00:00:33,209 --> 00:00:35,155 I'm your host, Nate Schutz. 16 00:00:35,155 --> 00:00:38,203 Let's build something together from the ground up. 17 00:00:38,203 --> 00:00:43,811 Hello everybody, and welcome back to the show. 18 00:00:43,811 --> 00:00:46,015 We are mid-2025. 19 00:00:46,015 --> 00:00:50,369 We are past the 100-episode mark on sharing founder stories 20 00:00:50,409 --> 00:00:54,365 and supply chain and logistics, and this week we get to stay in 21 00:00:54,386 --> 00:00:55,990 the Midwest, which is always special to me. 22 00:00:55,990 --> 00:00:59,168 I'm born and raised in Minnesota, if you can't tell by 23 00:00:59,209 --> 00:01:02,844 my accent already and we're going to be spending some time 24 00:01:03,685 --> 00:01:07,914 in Omaha this week with the founder of Able Transport, Liz 25 00:01:07,974 --> 00:01:08,233 Wayne. 26 00:01:08,233 --> 00:01:09,965 Liz, good morning, how are you today? 27 00:01:10,381 --> 00:01:11,486 Speaker 2: Good Nate, how are you? 28 00:01:12,381 --> 00:01:13,365 Speaker 1: I'm doing fantastic. 29 00:01:13,365 --> 00:01:19,447 I love to find stories that resonate with me and founders 30 00:01:19,527 --> 00:01:24,272 whose stories are appealing on a human level, not just a 31 00:01:24,733 --> 00:01:28,201 logistics level or on a business level, and there are several 32 00:01:28,341 --> 00:01:33,433 elements of your background that I find really compelling, and 33 00:01:33,472 --> 00:01:35,081 so I want to, if you don't mind. 34 00:01:35,081 --> 00:01:37,911 We're going to go back to the beginnings of Able Transport, 35 00:01:38,180 --> 00:01:43,388 unpack part of your journey, and I'd love to draw out a couple 36 00:01:43,408 --> 00:01:46,272 of themes that really stood out to me, which means we're going 37 00:01:46,293 --> 00:01:47,834 to peel the onion a little bit. 38 00:01:47,834 --> 00:01:51,887 But before we go to that, would you mind just explaining what 39 00:01:51,986 --> 00:01:56,234 Able Transport is and a little bit of your own background? 40 00:01:57,340 --> 00:02:01,370 Speaker 2: Yeah, so I have been in the industry for about 23 41 00:02:01,411 --> 00:02:06,009 years now, worked at an asset-based shop, everywhere 42 00:02:06,129 --> 00:02:11,145 from accounting to dispatch, and I found ABLE. 43 00:02:11,145 --> 00:02:15,501 Well, 11 years ago, you know, as an agent on my own, and I 44 00:02:15,561 --> 00:02:16,425 started hiring staff. 45 00:02:16,425 --> 00:02:19,268 It'll be 10 years next month. 46 00:02:19,268 --> 00:02:22,343 We're having our big ABLE anniversary, so looking forward 47 00:02:22,383 --> 00:02:22,746 to that. 48 00:02:22,746 --> 00:02:25,848 So ABLE is very niche focused. 49 00:02:25,848 --> 00:02:31,530 We are an open deck broker, so 95 plus percent of our freight 50 00:02:31,550 --> 00:02:34,320 is going to be open deck heavy haul specialized. 51 00:02:37,306 --> 00:02:38,367 Speaker 1: And so 10 years. 52 00:02:38,367 --> 00:02:42,174 In first of all, not a lot of companies make it to the 10 year 53 00:02:42,174 --> 00:02:43,342 mark, so congratulations. 54 00:02:43,342 --> 00:02:47,530 That's a huge milestone in and of itself, especially if I look 55 00:02:47,610 --> 00:02:52,024 at the last four years, the number of businesses that have 56 00:02:52,966 --> 00:02:57,644 folded or are struggling to survive, so just longevity by 57 00:02:57,704 --> 00:03:00,592 itself is something to be celebrated, so congratulations. 58 00:03:00,592 --> 00:03:04,469 I'd love to help promote and share when you have your 59 00:03:04,991 --> 00:03:08,159 anniversary party and help you celebrate. 60 00:03:08,159 --> 00:03:12,388 So one of the things that you mentioned in starting the 61 00:03:12,427 --> 00:03:15,353 business in 2015 was that you wanted to reinvent the freight 62 00:03:15,372 --> 00:03:27,584 broker reputation more positive reputation than they do now, 63 00:03:27,604 --> 00:03:29,007 with a lot of the double brokering and freight fraud and 64 00:03:29,026 --> 00:03:33,776 the less attractive element that has worked its way into the 65 00:03:33,816 --> 00:03:34,236 industry. 66 00:03:34,236 --> 00:03:39,125 So what do you remember about freight brokerage reputations 10 67 00:03:39,125 --> 00:03:40,447 years ago versus now? 68 00:03:42,710 --> 00:03:45,554 Speaker 2: is is interesting to me because I've never thought 69 00:03:45,593 --> 00:03:46,435 about it that way. 70 00:03:46,435 --> 00:03:51,528 Um, because I don't put the fraudsters in the category of, 71 00:03:51,610 --> 00:03:52,532 like, the good guys. 72 00:03:52,532 --> 00:03:56,004 So when I say reinvent the freight broker's reputation, 73 00:03:56,085 --> 00:04:00,234 that's, you know, the goal there was really like from the 74 00:04:00,340 --> 00:04:01,443 shippers perspective. 75 00:04:01,443 --> 00:04:05,740 So one of our things that able was, you know, and still is, we 76 00:04:05,780 --> 00:04:10,610 don't give loads back, so we're going to honor our quote, we're 77 00:04:10,651 --> 00:04:13,562 going to provide a truck, you know, and the shippers might not 78 00:04:13,562 --> 00:04:18,514 understand that ultimately, brokers who honor their price 79 00:04:18,860 --> 00:04:20,120 are gambling every day. 80 00:04:20,120 --> 00:04:25,084 Um, you know, and when we win, more often than we lose, we can 81 00:04:25,125 --> 00:04:26,605 build a sustainable business. 82 00:04:26,725 --> 00:04:30,648 But at the end of the day, for the most part, when we provide a 83 00:04:30,648 --> 00:04:33,329 price to the shipper, we don't know what we're going to pay the 84 00:04:33,329 --> 00:04:33,711 truck. 85 00:04:33,711 --> 00:04:38,934 And so it was just kind of like provide a more reliable 86 00:04:38,994 --> 00:04:41,235 experience for the shipper. 87 00:04:41,235 --> 00:04:45,598 When you used to make calls to sell freight brokerage services, 88 00:04:45,598 --> 00:04:49,886 like the first question would be you know, are you an asset 89 00:04:49,925 --> 00:04:50,708 based broker? 90 00:04:50,708 --> 00:04:55,245 Or you know, I don't work with brokers, and so I think that the 91 00:04:55,245 --> 00:04:59,557 industry as a whole has leveled up since 2015, because that is 92 00:04:59,637 --> 00:05:03,266 no longer shippers first question, like they are more apt 93 00:05:03,266 --> 00:05:07,401 to work with a broker than they were 10 or 15 years ago, and I 94 00:05:07,461 --> 00:05:13,350 think that's because our reputation is evolving and I 95 00:05:13,411 --> 00:05:15,439 think we've leveled up as a whole. 96 00:05:15,500 --> 00:05:20,951 Speaker 1: To be honest, Well, I remember trying to describe 97 00:05:20,990 --> 00:05:24,305 what a paper rate was to somebody outside of the industry 98 00:05:24,305 --> 00:05:24,305 . 99 00:05:24,305 --> 00:05:24,867 Now, what do you mean? 100 00:05:24,867 --> 00:05:25,629 What's a paper rate? 101 00:05:25,629 --> 00:05:29,069 You would give somebody a price and then charge them something 102 00:05:29,108 --> 00:05:29,911 different later. 103 00:05:29,911 --> 00:05:31,783 Isn't that wrong? 104 00:05:31,783 --> 00:05:35,141 And I'm like no, it happens all the time, cause I've been on 105 00:05:35,161 --> 00:05:38,851 the shipper side and the 3PL side and trying to explain that 106 00:05:38,959 --> 00:05:42,730 contract rate doesn't actually mean there's a contract that's 107 00:05:42,790 --> 00:05:43,531 enforceable. 108 00:05:43,531 --> 00:05:46,949 And to people outside of the industry they're like I don't 109 00:05:47,088 --> 00:05:47,389 get it. 110 00:05:47,389 --> 00:05:48,846 Why would that be that? 111 00:05:48,846 --> 00:05:50,547 Why does the industry operate that way? 112 00:05:50,547 --> 00:05:55,088 And to be able to say, yeah, here's my price and I'm 113 00:05:55,129 --> 00:06:00,488 committed to it, no matter what happens down the road, is a 114 00:06:00,550 --> 00:06:00,870 shift. 115 00:06:00,870 --> 00:06:05,211 Even today it's still a shift for some mindsets. 116 00:06:06,261 --> 00:06:09,548 Speaker 2: It's funny what you just shared and as a shipper, 117 00:06:09,608 --> 00:06:12,901 from that perspective, we just had this conversation in my 118 00:06:13,002 --> 00:06:18,331 office yesterday, so working on some kind of like account 119 00:06:18,372 --> 00:06:22,165 development with that team and just kind of trying to pour some 120 00:06:22,165 --> 00:06:26,000 of our I've got a president with, you know, 25, 30 years of 121 00:06:26,040 --> 00:06:28,927 experience like myself, so we're really trying to take this 122 00:06:29,026 --> 00:06:32,562 group that's sort of newer to their role and just pour this 123 00:06:32,642 --> 00:06:34,045 experience into them. 124 00:06:34,045 --> 00:06:38,060 And you know, um, and it's funny because what came out 125 00:06:38,120 --> 00:06:42,728 yesterday in the meeting was just that was shippers don't 126 00:06:42,867 --> 00:06:45,031 always look at a price as a truck. 127 00:06:45,031 --> 00:06:46,874 So but we do, you know. 128 00:06:46,874 --> 00:06:50,286 So when my guys are quoting something, it's like, hey, you, 129 00:06:50,528 --> 00:06:53,103 you take this, you're going to have a truck like that, and we 130 00:06:53,144 --> 00:06:54,329 don't, you know, we don't fail. 131 00:06:54,329 --> 00:06:57,427 And it's like they take it so seriously, actually to the point 132 00:06:57,427 --> 00:06:59,136 , that it's kind of like they don't understand how the 133 00:06:59,175 --> 00:07:00,781 industry totally operates. 134 00:07:00,781 --> 00:07:05,571 Um, because of this kind of just operational mindset that 135 00:07:05,630 --> 00:07:07,882 we've instilled in them, which is great, Like I'm not 136 00:07:07,922 --> 00:07:12,591 complaining, but it's funny because it's like, you know, we 137 00:07:12,632 --> 00:07:15,706 challenged them last week to, you know, when you get a good 138 00:07:15,766 --> 00:07:19,302 price in on something, call them and say, hey, how's my price? 139 00:07:19,341 --> 00:07:22,589 Look, you know, do some followup , and so they had great success 140 00:07:22,651 --> 00:07:23,072 with that. 141 00:07:23,072 --> 00:07:26,824 And it was kind of like how's that, How's that work, why is 142 00:07:26,884 --> 00:07:27,045 that? 143 00:07:27,045 --> 00:07:30,259 And we came to the conclusion the shippers don't just believe 144 00:07:30,360 --> 00:07:34,269 that a number equates to a truck , Like when they hear, hey, I've 145 00:07:34,269 --> 00:07:37,002 got a truck 30 miles out ready to rock. 146 00:07:37,002 --> 00:07:41,511 It really closes the deal in a way that just the number on its 147 00:07:41,610 --> 00:07:42,552 own isn't going to. 148 00:07:42,552 --> 00:07:45,454 So I don't want to sidetrack, but it's just funny because 149 00:07:45,834 --> 00:07:48,076 literally we ended the day yesterday with that whole 150 00:07:48,115 --> 00:07:48,836 conversation. 151 00:07:48,836 --> 00:07:51,336 So it's funny that you share that perspective as a shipper. 152 00:07:52,478 --> 00:07:54,240 Speaker 1: Well, it would be interesting, I think, for 153 00:07:54,401 --> 00:07:58,944 everyone to spend a week in everybody else's shoes, from a 154 00:07:59,004 --> 00:08:05,091 broker to a carrier to a shipper , and begin to appreciate what 155 00:08:05,112 --> 00:08:10,264 it actually takes to move cargo around the country or around the 156 00:08:10,264 --> 00:08:14,708 world, and a deeper understanding of shippers aren't 157 00:08:14,708 --> 00:08:19,288 thinking like freight brokers, they're thinking about products 158 00:08:19,629 --> 00:08:22,081 and they're thinking about customers, and transportation is 159 00:08:22,081 --> 00:08:24,088 a necessary step in that transaction. 160 00:08:24,088 --> 00:08:27,908 And oftentimes the shipper doesn't recognize the sale of 161 00:08:27,927 --> 00:08:30,473 the goods until it has left their facility. 162 00:08:30,473 --> 00:08:34,710 And so a warehouse is not just holding product, it's also the 163 00:08:34,750 --> 00:08:39,466 cash register and that truck that's 30 minutes out. 164 00:08:39,466 --> 00:08:44,144 If it doesn't show up, then the sale doesn't happen, oftentimes 165 00:08:44,144 --> 00:08:47,842 until the next day, and so it's not just hey, I have to pay 166 00:08:47,943 --> 00:08:50,668 overtime to somebody to stay late that evening until the 167 00:08:50,707 --> 00:08:53,812 truck can make it after the facility is closed, and there's 168 00:08:53,851 --> 00:08:56,054 an assessorial charge or something along those lines. 169 00:08:56,054 --> 00:09:02,352 It is a revenue recognition for the shipper community is part 170 00:09:02,393 --> 00:09:04,967 of it, and then their commitments to their customers, 171 00:09:04,988 --> 00:09:07,154 for the shipper community is part of it, and then their 172 00:09:07,174 --> 00:09:10,225 commitments to their customers, and most product-based shippers 173 00:09:10,246 --> 00:09:12,100 are thinking about those types of things not. 174 00:09:12,581 --> 00:09:16,422 I wonder how many trucks are within two hours of us on a 175 00:09:16,542 --> 00:09:20,494 Thursday afternoon and that's the value that freight 176 00:09:20,533 --> 00:09:24,841 brokerages provide is thinking of all of those variables and 177 00:09:25,561 --> 00:09:29,865 what a dynamic market looks like , so that a shipper can focus on 178 00:09:29,865 --> 00:09:32,668 growing their business, which is not a transportation business 179 00:09:32,668 --> 00:09:33,207 at its core. 180 00:09:33,207 --> 00:09:39,312 And and the deeper I get into my own career, the more 181 00:09:39,352 --> 00:09:43,816 appreciation I have for what it actually takes on the ground. 182 00:09:43,816 --> 00:09:47,697 I worked at a carrier when I was in college and then 14 years 183 00:09:47,697 --> 00:09:53,883 as a 3PL and then about a decade on the shipper side that 184 00:09:54,062 --> 00:09:58,926 know their subject matter better than anybody else is a 185 00:09:58,966 --> 00:09:59,505 superpower. 186 00:09:59,505 --> 00:10:01,947 It's what makes commerce happen . 187 00:10:01,947 --> 00:10:06,135 So if you haven't heard from a shipper in a long time how much 188 00:10:06,216 --> 00:10:08,480 your work is appreciated, just know that it is. 189 00:10:09,062 --> 00:10:13,578 Speaker 2: Yeah, no, I love the antidote there and thinking 190 00:10:13,619 --> 00:10:15,263 about the warehouse like a cash register. 191 00:10:15,263 --> 00:10:18,874 I'm going to share that with my team because, you know, I think 192 00:10:18,874 --> 00:10:20,996 we all feel it at the end of the month or the end of a 193 00:10:21,057 --> 00:10:24,541 quarter, but it's a it feels like a really good way to help 194 00:10:24,600 --> 00:10:25,682 them understand why. 195 00:10:25,682 --> 00:10:29,426 That is why they experienced those, those spikes at that time 196 00:10:29,426 --> 00:10:29,426 . 197 00:10:30,649 --> 00:10:31,291 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's not. 198 00:10:31,291 --> 00:10:34,475 Um, transportation is a part of a shipper's business, but it is 199 00:10:34,475 --> 00:10:38,200 not their business, and that's something I try to remind uh 200 00:10:38,561 --> 00:10:40,302 other participants in the industry about. 201 00:10:40,302 --> 00:10:42,346 Is you're thinking about trucking all day? 202 00:10:42,346 --> 00:10:43,932 Most shippers aren't. 203 00:10:44,897 --> 00:10:45,097 Speaker 2: Yeah. 204 00:10:45,169 --> 00:10:47,317 Speaker 1: They're thinking about products and customers. 205 00:10:47,317 --> 00:10:54,816 I'd like to go back to a little bit of your early days. 206 00:10:54,816 --> 00:10:59,001 Me that, when you were young, you had a bunch of different 207 00:10:59,903 --> 00:11:04,095 paths that you were considering, in that you had new ideas every 208 00:11:04,095 --> 00:11:06,600 day about what you wanted to be when you grew up. 209 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:08,312 What were some of the things you wanted to be? 210 00:11:09,333 --> 00:11:12,081 Speaker 2: Well, I remember when I was really young I thought I 211 00:11:12,140 --> 00:11:13,384 could be everything. 212 00:11:13,384 --> 00:11:18,265 So it was like, oh, I'm going to be like a firefighter for a 213 00:11:18,326 --> 00:11:20,220 month, and then I'm going to be a banker for a month, and then 214 00:11:20,240 --> 00:11:22,013 I'm going to be a banker for a month, and then I'm going to be 215 00:11:22,052 --> 00:11:22,654 a teacher. 216 00:11:22,654 --> 00:11:24,821 Maybe I could give that a whole school year, I don't know. 217 00:11:24,821 --> 00:11:27,837 And then so I thought you could , just the world was my oyster. 218 00:11:27,837 --> 00:11:31,313 I thought you could just do all the things all the time. 219 00:11:31,313 --> 00:11:37,985 So I do remember very vividly, like planning out my 200 careers 220 00:11:37,985 --> 00:11:38,311 , you know. 221 00:11:38,311 --> 00:11:41,419 So that's when I was really, really, probably like under 10 222 00:11:41,460 --> 00:11:42,551 years old, I suppose. 223 00:11:44,355 --> 00:11:45,879 Speaker 1: And as an entrepreneur, you probably get 224 00:11:45,918 --> 00:11:46,480 to be all. 225 00:11:46,480 --> 00:11:49,494 You are a banker and you have to put out fires all day and you 226 00:11:49,494 --> 00:11:50,475 have to teach other people. 227 00:11:50,475 --> 00:11:53,643 So maybe you, you've actually achieved it. 228 00:11:54,051 --> 00:11:54,772 Speaker 2: Yeah, for sure. 229 00:11:54,772 --> 00:11:57,517 I mean I think this entrepreneurial journey is just 230 00:11:57,557 --> 00:11:57,797 that. 231 00:11:57,797 --> 00:12:04,033 It's like getting to wear a hundred hats and I mean, you 232 00:12:04,073 --> 00:12:06,899 know, you've heard a lot of people in logistics just say 233 00:12:06,941 --> 00:12:08,182 they have ADHD. 234 00:12:08,182 --> 00:12:10,739 I mean, I've never been diagnosed, but I probably do, 235 00:12:11,059 --> 00:12:14,250 and I think that's a superpower for entrepreneurs really, 236 00:12:14,291 --> 00:12:19,119 because, um, you know, if you look at it that way, it's like 237 00:12:19,559 --> 00:12:22,065 we get to do different things all of the time. 238 00:12:22,065 --> 00:12:24,514 I think, you know, yesterday on that call, I was probably 239 00:12:24,575 --> 00:12:27,200 complaining about it, as I do sometimes, because there's a 240 00:12:27,259 --> 00:12:33,139 burden to wearing all the hats, but also what a privilege, you 241 00:12:33,179 --> 00:12:33,981 know, you never get bored. 242 00:12:36,123 --> 00:12:40,205 Speaker 1: So what is it about the idea of, or when was it that 243 00:12:40,205 --> 00:12:45,287 the idea of entrepreneurship for you started to not just be a 244 00:12:45,287 --> 00:12:48,567 random idea, but an actual path ? 245 00:12:51,370 --> 00:13:05,571 Speaker 2: You know, I think it really so when I set out, it 246 00:13:05,591 --> 00:13:06,715 wasn't really to build the company that I have today. 247 00:13:06,715 --> 00:13:08,099 So now I am excited to build a bigger company than I have today 248 00:13:08,099 --> 00:13:08,099 . 249 00:13:08,099 --> 00:13:10,446 But you know, 11, 12 years ago or whatever, when I quit my last 250 00:13:10,446 --> 00:13:12,250 job, that wasn't necessarily the goal. 251 00:13:12,250 --> 00:13:18,519 Um, I wanted to be a freight agent for more flexible hours 252 00:13:18,879 --> 00:13:23,611 and I built myself a home office and I had babies at home and 253 00:13:24,452 --> 00:13:30,503 well, oh, yeah, okay, I was expecting one when I quit my 254 00:13:30,543 --> 00:13:33,232 last job I'm just trying to think through exactly how old 255 00:13:33,253 --> 00:13:37,543 the kids are, but it was really in like a, my husband and I had 256 00:13:37,562 --> 00:13:40,285 a real estate brokerage and so it was really like for 257 00:13:40,326 --> 00:13:45,038 flexibility and to be able to do the work from home and not 258 00:13:45,078 --> 00:13:48,071 commute, go straight upstairs to the kids, and it would allow us 259 00:13:48,071 --> 00:13:50,996 to multitask and work on the real estate business. 260 00:13:50,996 --> 00:13:56,975 Um, so that was the plan, was just really for myself and my 261 00:13:57,054 --> 00:14:03,567 family in the beginning, and then it quickly turned into like 262 00:14:03,567 --> 00:14:08,063 this is a 24 seven gig and that is kind of not what I uh, cause 263 00:14:08,063 --> 00:14:10,773 I had always worked, you know, with small teams and offices 264 00:14:10,832 --> 00:14:12,958 where like, yeah, there's on call, but you're rotating it. 265 00:14:12,958 --> 00:14:17,715 Or you have, um, you know vacation days, or you know 266 00:14:17,774 --> 00:14:19,817 Saturdays, Sundays, and it just got to be. 267 00:14:19,817 --> 00:14:23,202 You know the trucking doesn't stop, and so I didn't 268 00:14:23,243 --> 00:14:28,053 necessarily want it to be the person um on call 24, seven. 269 00:14:28,114 --> 00:14:32,442 And so I also, at the same time, sort of had been working on a 270 00:14:32,543 --> 00:14:33,630 few um. 271 00:14:33,630 --> 00:14:37,599 I had been working on one big opportunity for like six months 272 00:14:37,940 --> 00:14:40,183 a long, slow, large sale. 273 00:14:40,183 --> 00:14:44,114 Big opportunity for like six months, a long, slow, large sale 274 00:14:44,114 --> 00:14:44,114 . 275 00:14:44,114 --> 00:14:46,217 Who's still my biggest customer 10 years later? 276 00:14:46,217 --> 00:14:48,481 Um, and simultaneously another um really large customer just 277 00:14:48,702 --> 00:14:51,878 happened to walk in my front door, uh, walk in their dog at 278 00:14:51,918 --> 00:14:55,451 my first office space, my little three or 400 foot office space, 279 00:14:55,451 --> 00:14:59,501 and so at that time looked around and it's like, okay, I 280 00:15:00,364 --> 00:15:04,693 with these couple of accounts, I can support some payroll and 281 00:15:04,813 --> 00:15:09,484 with some help I can get some relief from this 24-7 thing. 282 00:15:11,033 --> 00:15:13,620 And so that's when kind of the vision turned into having a 283 00:15:13,700 --> 00:15:19,142 small office and then to go from , you know, to kind of scale 284 00:15:19,182 --> 00:15:19,823 from there. 285 00:15:19,823 --> 00:15:27,221 It was all about the customers, like they needed a company like 286 00:15:27,221 --> 00:15:27,462 us. 287 00:15:27,462 --> 00:15:31,700 The construction job site had been left behind by 288 00:15:31,740 --> 00:15:36,236 transportation, and so once I started to kind of realize that 289 00:15:36,879 --> 00:15:39,974 growth was really easy and really fun, you know, until here 290 00:15:39,974 --> 00:15:42,253 , post COVID freight recession, it, it. 291 00:15:42,253 --> 00:15:46,621 It's been a little less fun lately, but it's um, so it was 292 00:15:46,642 --> 00:15:47,532 sort of an evolution. 293 00:15:47,532 --> 00:15:50,139 I didn't just set out to have able as it is today. 294 00:15:51,865 --> 00:15:54,072 Speaker 1: And what have you learned about yourself in that 295 00:15:55,335 --> 00:15:56,297 period of going Well? 296 00:15:56,297 --> 00:15:58,682 First of all, I also love to understand what is it like to 297 00:15:58,743 --> 00:16:02,732 have small children and be a mom while starting a company, and 298 00:16:03,533 --> 00:16:04,934 how you would keep your sanity. 299 00:16:04,934 --> 00:16:05,775 I have no idea. 300 00:16:05,775 --> 00:16:10,298 I'm responsible for people and I have to shape and mold them. 301 00:16:10,298 --> 00:16:26,890 Think about processes. 302 00:16:26,890 --> 00:16:29,697 Did that come naturally to you, or was that a place in your 303 00:16:29,738 --> 00:16:32,062 journey where you had to adapt quickly? 304 00:16:34,691 --> 00:16:36,613 Speaker 2: You know partly both. 305 00:16:36,613 --> 00:16:44,144 I think I'm definitely process oriented, so like it was not 306 00:16:44,244 --> 00:16:48,836 ever hard for me to identify the best way to do something and to 307 00:16:48,836 --> 00:16:51,984 want that for myself, my team, my company. 308 00:16:51,984 --> 00:16:56,159 Now getting results through other people, though that's you 309 00:16:56,220 --> 00:17:04,550 know, um, that's you know. 310 00:17:04,550 --> 00:17:05,673 Um, as a leader, I can be impatient, I definitely you know 311 00:17:05,673 --> 00:17:05,673 . 312 00:17:05,673 --> 00:17:07,356 You only sort of know like you spend your whole life in your 313 00:17:07,436 --> 00:17:10,671 own head, right, and so you don't know what other people 314 00:17:10,730 --> 00:17:13,557 don't know, and I think that's you know. 315 00:17:14,097 --> 00:17:17,555 At some point along the way I started kind of taking opening 316 00:17:17,615 --> 00:17:21,050 day training and stuff like way back to the beginning, because, 317 00:17:22,173 --> 00:17:25,840 um, you just it's hard to remember every little thing 318 00:17:25,861 --> 00:17:28,314 you've took in over all of these years and you bring somebody 319 00:17:28,433 --> 00:17:30,901 new in, and so I think that's where I could have done better 320 00:17:31,029 --> 00:17:34,884 is probably, um, I don't know if it would have been like 321 00:17:34,983 --> 00:17:38,015 management training or leadership training or that for 322 00:17:38,055 --> 00:17:38,616 myself. 323 00:17:38,616 --> 00:17:43,252 Um, because I just kind of expected everybody to tick like 324 00:17:43,353 --> 00:17:47,001 me and be motivated in the same way and by the same things that 325 00:17:47,102 --> 00:17:50,696 I am, and that's just not the case, and nor should it be. 326 00:17:50,696 --> 00:17:51,719 It's not their business. 327 00:17:51,719 --> 00:17:55,255 You know what I mean, and so kind of it all takes time. 328 00:17:55,255 --> 00:17:55,817 You get better. 329 00:17:55,817 --> 00:18:00,740 I think today I'm the best leader that I've ever been, but 330 00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:03,132 I still have a long way to go on my journey. 331 00:18:03,132 --> 00:18:03,834 You know what I mean. 332 00:18:05,277 --> 00:18:07,863 Speaker 1: What are you most proud of, then, in your own 333 00:18:07,903 --> 00:18:08,202 growth? 334 00:18:10,391 --> 00:18:15,018 Speaker 2: You know, I guess just probably that I think in 335 00:18:15,058 --> 00:18:19,490 the like I was in a leadership role at the last company I 336 00:18:19,510 --> 00:18:23,901 worked for and sometimes I think back and I'm like what was he 337 00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:24,762 being my boss? 338 00:18:24,762 --> 00:18:26,076 Like what was he thinking? 339 00:18:26,076 --> 00:18:31,772 He let me treat people like that or he let me Um, and so I 340 00:18:31,834 --> 00:18:34,101 think I'm proud of that. 341 00:18:34,101 --> 00:18:38,301 I bring um just a more sort of like love. 342 00:18:38,301 --> 00:18:39,554 He called me as bulldog. 343 00:18:39,554 --> 00:18:42,853 You know, like that's the energy that I took to situations 344 00:18:42,853 --> 00:18:46,439 back then and I think today I bring a more level head. 345 00:18:46,439 --> 00:18:52,895 You know, it's just like there's, I think, when you, if 346 00:18:52,915 --> 00:18:56,063 you're not a good leader or manager or whatever the case, 347 00:18:56,170 --> 00:18:59,435 it's like just that pound your fist and that gets stuff done 348 00:18:59,536 --> 00:19:02,801 and so like, if it gets enough done, you don't really evolve 349 00:19:02,862 --> 00:19:03,442 past that. 350 00:19:03,442 --> 00:19:04,605 But for me that's what it's been. 351 00:19:04,605 --> 00:19:07,659 It's just kind of moving past that and finding you know better 352 00:19:07,659 --> 00:19:08,000 ways. 353 00:19:09,530 --> 00:19:11,996 Speaker 1: I like the way you said that evolve past that. 354 00:19:11,996 --> 00:19:18,637 When I've had leaders in my career that expressed anger or, 355 00:19:18,657 --> 00:19:21,786 you know, really big frustration about a situation or about a 356 00:19:21,846 --> 00:19:27,317 moment, I remember thinking to myself ooh, that's a potentially 357 00:19:27,317 --> 00:19:29,743 dangerous way to make change happen. 358 00:19:29,743 --> 00:19:34,380 I've since come to look at it as it's just information. 359 00:19:34,380 --> 00:19:39,030 If somebody's really frustrated , it's hey. 360 00:19:39,030 --> 00:19:41,892 Can I ask are you upset with the situation and we need to 361 00:19:41,912 --> 00:19:46,153 work on that, or are you upset with me and we have something to 362 00:19:46,153 --> 00:19:46,772 talk about? 363 00:19:46,772 --> 00:19:54,279 And that simple filter helped me understand, manage up better 364 00:19:55,041 --> 00:19:57,968 when you needed to neutralize a difficult situation. 365 00:19:57,968 --> 00:20:01,000 And then, as I made all the mistakes you can make in 366 00:20:01,041 --> 00:20:05,358 managing people myself early in my career, I'm able to now 367 00:20:05,500 --> 00:20:09,653 reflect back on it and say there's no way I could have 368 00:20:09,712 --> 00:20:12,941 grown without somebody pulling me aside and saying, yeah, you 369 00:20:12,961 --> 00:20:16,616 can use force sometimes, there is a place for it. 370 00:20:16,616 --> 00:20:19,376 But if that's the only note, you know how to play. 371 00:20:20,299 --> 00:20:22,685 You're going to create a culture of fear and then people aren't 372 00:20:22,705 --> 00:20:25,144 going to have ideas that they're willing to share, they're not 373 00:20:25,203 --> 00:20:28,155 going to take risks, and you'll surround yourself with people 374 00:20:28,175 --> 00:20:31,163 that just agree with you, not because they agree with you, but 375 00:20:31,163 --> 00:20:35,820 because they're afraid of you, and that was a one of my own aha 376 00:20:35,820 --> 00:20:40,730 moments of I thought being in charge was the goal, like I 377 00:20:40,954 --> 00:20:42,157 thought that's all it took. 378 00:20:42,157 --> 00:20:47,087 And learning how to influence and shape and develop other 379 00:20:47,127 --> 00:20:50,479 people in ways that are good for them, that keep them highly 380 00:20:50,559 --> 00:20:54,806 engaged, is good for the business and it's good for me. 381 00:20:54,806 --> 00:21:01,961 It's just a different kind of emotional intelligence and 382 00:21:03,683 --> 00:21:04,144 maturity. 383 00:21:04,144 --> 00:21:07,476 And then occasionally you come across somebody who's just 384 00:21:07,516 --> 00:21:10,530 gifted at all of those things at a really young age or you know 385 00:21:10,550 --> 00:21:13,238 they're advanced beyond their years and they're highly 386 00:21:13,298 --> 00:21:17,105 inspiring and motivating people and I wish I had been that, but 387 00:21:17,144 --> 00:21:20,430 I had to learn things the hard way, by getting it wrong mostly. 388 00:21:21,895 --> 00:21:22,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, same. 389 00:21:22,955 --> 00:21:27,125 I've got a 23-year-old son who's turning into a pretty good 390 00:21:27,165 --> 00:21:29,902 leader himself and he works in an organization full of young 391 00:21:29,942 --> 00:21:33,624 people, so he's been able to take his first couple of leaps 392 00:21:33,683 --> 00:21:36,843 into leadership and stuff and it's really fun to watch him. 393 00:21:36,914 --> 00:21:39,986 When you just said, like some people just have it, he has it 394 00:21:40,307 --> 00:21:44,578 and he, you know, listen, I've learned from him, like listening 395 00:21:44,578 --> 00:21:48,166 to him talk to some of his people, you know, if he's at the 396 00:21:48,166 --> 00:21:50,318 house or something and I hear him take a phone call on that, 397 00:21:50,380 --> 00:21:53,487 it's like wow, that was geez, you know. 398 00:21:53,487 --> 00:21:58,638 And for him I've really thought it's come from watching some of 399 00:21:58,638 --> 00:21:59,919 his good football coaches. 400 00:21:59,919 --> 00:22:04,903 I mean he's got like he played college football and his coaches 401 00:22:04,903 --> 00:22:10,507 in the Hall of Fame and it's like I, when I hear him, it's 402 00:22:10,547 --> 00:22:15,010 like I know that's where he got some of his you know just all of 403 00:22:15,010 --> 00:22:17,132 this because I mean, think about it Like. 404 00:22:17,132 --> 00:22:20,502 I mean, just as a football coach, like just you would never 405 00:22:20,502 --> 00:22:24,376 see a football coach that reached a certain level that 406 00:22:24,396 --> 00:22:27,108 that's the only tool they had in their toolbox was banging their 407 00:22:27,108 --> 00:22:30,038 fist right Like there is a time and a place, but you've got to 408 00:22:30,058 --> 00:22:32,644 bring more to the situation as well, you know. 409 00:22:32,744 --> 00:22:36,121 But I do, I feel like with some of the young people they got it 410 00:22:36,181 --> 00:22:39,308 from, because if they haven't had a lot of work experience, 411 00:22:39,429 --> 00:22:42,036 that's the leadership experience they're pulling from. 412 00:22:42,036 --> 00:22:42,436 You know. 413 00:22:43,721 --> 00:22:47,190 Speaker 1: Well, and athletics is such a rich environment to 414 00:22:47,289 --> 00:22:50,176 learn those types of skills and capabilities. 415 00:22:50,176 --> 00:22:52,740 I was not much of an athlete myself. 416 00:22:52,740 --> 00:22:57,248 I made it to high school and then I was not competitive any 417 00:22:57,288 --> 00:23:02,247 longer, and so, watching my four children themselves go through 418 00:23:02,287 --> 00:23:06,416 athletics programs in volleyball and football and baseball and 419 00:23:06,497 --> 00:23:11,926 lacrosse I envy the learnings that they got. 420 00:23:11,926 --> 00:23:15,779 As high school students and for anybody who makes it to the 421 00:23:15,799 --> 00:23:19,008 collegiate level, you're generally going to be surrounded 422 00:23:19,008 --> 00:23:22,541 with mentors and teachers and people that are going to grow 423 00:23:22,582 --> 00:23:26,654 you as athletes but also going to grow you as human beings, and 424 00:23:26,654 --> 00:23:33,387 I think that's part of why recruiting is still done heavily 425 00:23:33,387 --> 00:23:33,868 at. 426 00:23:33,868 --> 00:23:36,968 You know, for athletics at college campuses in 427 00:23:37,108 --> 00:23:41,801 transportation and logistics is competitiveness and grit and 428 00:23:41,842 --> 00:23:45,249 adaptability, and- Commitment. 429 00:23:45,634 --> 00:23:46,317 Flexibility. 430 00:23:46,317 --> 00:23:54,585 All of those skills are so much easier to accumulate in an 431 00:23:54,625 --> 00:23:55,445 athletic environment. 432 00:23:55,445 --> 00:23:57,529 So were you an athlete yourself ? 433 00:23:57,529 --> 00:24:01,603 Or where, where, where do you feel like you got most of your 434 00:24:01,663 --> 00:24:04,923 own development from then people in your life or in your life? 435 00:24:06,015 --> 00:24:07,178 Speaker 2: Trial and error. 436 00:24:07,178 --> 00:24:09,162 I've done everything wrong. 437 00:24:09,162 --> 00:24:12,067 Now I just get it right sometimes. 438 00:24:12,067 --> 00:24:17,337 No, I I've shared with you that I've been part of the Vistage 439 00:24:17,377 --> 00:24:22,080 community for about five years, so I know, like my, my group 440 00:24:22,141 --> 00:24:24,642 here in Omaha has definitely helped me. 441 00:24:24,642 --> 00:24:30,205 You know, level up my leadership skills um as well, 442 00:24:30,286 --> 00:24:38,070 just kind of, um, you know, getting people in place at ABLE, 443 00:24:38,070 --> 00:24:41,717 kind of making sure the right people are in the right seats um 444 00:24:41,717 --> 00:24:47,708 to amplify the, the, the good stuff, and then also kind of to 445 00:24:47,748 --> 00:24:50,461 balance out what I don't bring to the table and what I don't 446 00:24:50,500 --> 00:24:50,801 have. 447 00:24:50,801 --> 00:24:54,415 Where there was a point in ABLE's history where there was 448 00:24:54,455 --> 00:24:58,276 probably too much of a certain type of leadership energy, call 449 00:24:58,355 --> 00:24:58,415 it. 450 00:24:58,415 --> 00:25:02,905 And so you know, I think I've learned balance in that way too. 451 00:25:02,967 --> 00:25:07,261 Like I said, like you know, people amplify the good stuff 452 00:25:07,281 --> 00:25:10,917 that I bring to the table and then people to pick up the slack 453 00:25:10,917 --> 00:25:13,164 and and clean up behind me where I'm lacking. 454 00:25:13,244 --> 00:25:13,786 You know what I mean. 455 00:25:13,786 --> 00:25:35,869 And so I'm in a good place hire a president who had led um you 456 00:25:35,890 --> 00:25:40,335 know, some offices for CH, for you know a number of years, a 457 00:25:40,394 --> 00:25:44,846 couple of decades, and so it was just very relevant experience, 458 00:25:44,905 --> 00:25:47,699 like my office, you know, very much feels like a. 459 00:25:47,699 --> 00:25:52,178 You know, although CH is a really big company, um, with 460 00:25:52,218 --> 00:25:55,963 billions in revenue, it was a lot of small offices, you know, 461 00:25:56,064 --> 00:26:00,675 and so there's just a lot of similarities there and um, with 462 00:26:00,756 --> 00:26:05,500 both of us, you know, leading now it's like I feel like we're 463 00:26:05,559 --> 00:26:08,435 able to move a lot faster and just for those reasons, like I 464 00:26:08,496 --> 00:26:12,358 said, he he amplifies some work I do and he's really good at 465 00:26:12,398 --> 00:26:15,296 some stuff that I'm not so good at, you know, which is really on 466 00:26:15,296 --> 00:26:20,003 on the people side and the leadership side, and so Well, it 467 00:26:20,003 --> 00:26:23,349 sounds like you have a path forward for the next 10 years. 468 00:26:24,455 --> 00:26:27,383 Speaker 1: We wish you nothing but success on the in the next 469 00:26:27,423 --> 00:26:27,784 chapter. 470 00:26:27,784 --> 00:26:30,877 Last question what does able transport mean? 471 00:26:30,877 --> 00:26:31,438 What is? 472 00:26:31,438 --> 00:26:33,701 Where did the name come from and what does it mean to you? 473 00:26:33,721 --> 00:26:35,525 Speaker 2: come from, and what does it mean to you? 474 00:26:35,525 --> 00:26:36,507 That's a good question. 475 00:26:36,507 --> 00:26:46,457 So, ready, willing and able, Um , but how it came to me as it 476 00:26:46,477 --> 00:26:47,398 was, it was in the running. 477 00:26:47,398 --> 00:26:51,046 I can't even remember now like my top two or three names I had 478 00:26:51,066 --> 00:26:51,185 chosen. 479 00:26:51,185 --> 00:26:53,730 But, um, I was putting on my shoes one day. 480 00:26:53,955 --> 00:26:56,422 I do remember, you know how some things just remember where you 481 00:26:56,461 --> 00:26:57,365 were at and what you were doing. 482 00:26:57,365 --> 00:27:00,472 I was putting on my shoes in the mudroom and I shouted in and 483 00:27:00,472 --> 00:27:04,080 told my husband it's able, calling it able, and it was like 484 00:27:04,080 --> 00:27:08,777 capable, reliable, dependable and just all of these things. 485 00:27:08,777 --> 00:27:10,903 And so that's kind of where it came from. 486 00:27:10,903 --> 00:27:15,657 But then I sent, when I sent the name over to the graphic 487 00:27:15,678 --> 00:27:18,397 designer and that, and when she designed the brand, I was like, 488 00:27:18,558 --> 00:27:21,951 yes, I loved the colors, I loved the little road, how she made 489 00:27:21,971 --> 00:27:26,683 the A into a road, and, um, yeah , and then I could just see it 490 00:27:26,763 --> 00:27:27,345 and it was I. 491 00:27:27,345 --> 00:27:29,635 Really I'm still, 10 years later, I'm in love with the 492 00:27:29,655 --> 00:27:30,036 brand. 493 00:27:30,036 --> 00:27:33,939 Um, still, so I, yeah, but that's kind of how it came to be 494 00:27:33,939 --> 00:27:33,939 . 495 00:27:35,079 --> 00:27:36,040 Speaker 1: That is a great story . 496 00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:38,762 You never know where that moment of inspiration is going 497 00:27:38,782 --> 00:27:44,366 to come from, and it is similar to naming a child, because 498 00:27:44,386 --> 00:27:47,630 you're going to have it for a long time and it means something 499 00:27:47,630 --> 00:27:49,971 deeply personal, and so thank you, thank you for sharing that 500 00:27:50,011 --> 00:27:53,156 with us today, thanks for opening up about your journey 501 00:27:53,176 --> 00:27:55,903 journey I'm hoping if somebody is listening right now, that is 502 00:27:56,585 --> 00:28:02,164 maybe where you were 10 years ago that they have heard. 503 00:28:02,164 --> 00:28:05,954 I mean, the themes that I've heard from you are adaptability, 504 00:28:05,954 --> 00:28:10,384 just plain old hard work, doing what you said you're going to 505 00:28:10,403 --> 00:28:16,000 do, following through and that's maybe why I'm attracted to your 506 00:28:16,000 --> 00:28:19,125 story is that those are all very Midwest, humble, 507 00:28:19,685 --> 00:28:25,459 straightforward, old fashioned values and with that as your 508 00:28:25,499 --> 00:28:28,306 foundation, I have no doubt you're going to continue being 509 00:28:28,365 --> 00:28:30,981 successful and, like I said, we're all rooting for you, thank 510 00:28:30,981 --> 00:28:31,122 you. 511 00:28:31,142 --> 00:28:31,865 Speaker 2: Yeah, thank you. 512 00:28:34,336 --> 00:28:36,366 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to another episode of the 513 00:28:36,406 --> 00:28:39,622 bootstrappers guide to logistics , and a special thank you to our 514 00:28:39,622 --> 00:28:42,192 sponsors and the team behind the scenes who make it all 515 00:28:42,212 --> 00:28:42,595 possible. 516 00:28:42,595 --> 00:28:46,131 Be sure to like, follow or subscribe to the podcast to get 517 00:28:46,151 --> 00:28:46,875 the latest updates. 518 00:28:46,875 --> 00:28:49,989 To learn more about the show and connect with the growing 519 00:28:50,028 --> 00:28:53,378 community of entrepreneurs, visit logisticsfounderscom. 520 00:28:53,378 --> 00:28:57,227 And, of course, thank you to all the founders who trust us to 521 00:28:57,227 --> 00:28:57,989 share their stories.