Do. It. Right.
Costly Lessons
I started buying woodworking tools over 25 years ago. I was on a budget, so I bought inexpensive tools. I would use them for a while, then they would break. They usually didn’t work that well and, trying to learn from my mistakes, I decided not to go cheap when I replaced them–I would buy a slightly better one to replace the broken one! I would trek down to the hardware store and buy an upgrade. I would still get sub-par results and it would last a while longer but eventually, I had another useless tool.
One day I saw a really great tool at a woodworking show. A tool designed to last a lifetime. The kind you hand down to your kids. One that cost “too much”. I bought it. But man, it cost a lot. Or did it?
The first tool was inexpensive. It cost less than $50. A year later, a better one was $125. A couple of years later, the heirloom was a little over $200. I spent $375 to get a really good $225 tool. If I had just bought the best one up front, I would have saved myself years of struggle, years of sub-par results and in the end would have SAVED $150! Instead of doing it right the first time, I did it over. And over. And it cost me much more than if I had just done it right the first time.
I learned a lot from that tool buying experience. I was using this principle in nearly every area of my life. I started to notice myself taking shortcuts and then having to “do it over” the right way. Then I consciously started doing things right the first time. Before I would undertake a task, I started asking myself “What is the right way to do this?” And then I would do it. My work became better immediately. It didn’t matter if it was a chore around the house or a project at work. It saved time (over the long run), it saved money (over the long run) and it saved a lot of frustration (all along the way). There were a lot of times in the past that I did things ‘half way’ that caused me frustration. I have never gotten frustrated doing something the right way. Not one time. Buying one tool really changed the way I’ve lived my life.
John Wooden is credited with saying: “If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it again?”
Whatever you are doing, you will never regret doing it right. Doing it right eliminates the need to do it over (and often still get poor results).
Lessons Learned
Doing things right can (and should) be applied to every aspect of your life. Even trash. Putting a waste program together is easy, right? Call ********** waste services and order service. You get a bill, pay it and a few days later, they deliver a container and a few days after that, they start emptying it. What do you need help with that? If you do this, you just bought the inexpensive tool mentioned above. But instead of going cheap, you likely way overpaid.
Did you get the right service for your needs or did you get what you thought you needed? Did you get the best price on the service, or did you just get the price that was quoted by the provider? Does your provider offer additional services such as bin or enclosure cleaning as part of their service? Does your provider routinely audit your invoices to ensure that you are paying for the service you need and not anything else? Are you being overcharged for fuel or environmental surcharges or a myriad of other ‘hidden’ costs on the super complicated invoice?
If you answered ‘No’ or ‘I’m not sure’ to any of these questions, we can help you! We take the mystery (and danger) out of buying waste services. Our contracts are super simple, usually only a couple of standard 8-1/2“ x 11“ pages. Our invoices are readable by anyone, not just waste hauler accountants. When you have a problem, you don’t call an unresponsive call center, you call our team. You have our cell phone numbers.
We help you do it right.
ABOUT TRISTAR SOLUTIONS GROUP
TriStar Solutions Group founders Matt Barber and Kevin Cecil bring an inspiring level of passion and a unique synergy in establishing the company. Matt and Kevin have a commitment to excellence in all they do and have a track record of success in solving some very difficult problems.
After starting their bin cleaning business in 2020, it quickly became apparent that there were more struggles with trash in this area beyond stinky trash bins. Solving one problem (how to clean dirty trash bins) led to several more problems uncovered–missed trash pickups, as many as seven different trash haulers collecting trash on the same street (on different days of the week) and it seems everybody is being charged a different rate. We’ve even seen waste haulers irresponsibly dump recycling waste into the landfill. If you are paying to have your recyclables responsibly processed, this is very disappointing.
Looking for ways to help our customers solve these problems, we began our partnership with Global Disposal, Inc., Leveraging the PINWaste and WasteSmarter platforms, TriStar Solutions Group is able to assess a community’s or business’s waste problem(s) and deliver a comprehensive solution that solves multiple waste problems in one agreement. Often, we can include enhanced services such as bin cleaning, Christmas tree pickup, e-waste pickup, shred-days, and more… for less cost than most are currently paying for trash pickup alone.
Learn more here.
