Single Truck Owners - When Your Sick

[R W]

If you are a single truck operator, with maybe one employee, what do you do when your too sick to clean? One of my lower bottom molars has been "sensitive" for a few weeks, and Thursday, it really let loose. I was driving home from a job, and my lower jaw was just hurting like hell,,,,like someone hit me with a 2X4! I told my wife that it was probably worse than having a baby...that didn't go over too well for sympathy. I got in to see my dentist Thursday, and he refered me to an oral surgeon, which probably means root canal. Friday night wasn't bad, but Sat morn was horrible....I was on my back all day. Had to cancel jobs. My son's work with me, but some jobs I just have to be on.

I'm going out today to try to catch up with a commercial job that needs to be done.

What do the big guys do when they get hampered with sick employees?

 

[Warren Wallace]

I don't ever have a sick day. I may have a bad day because I don't feel good but have to deal with it.

 

[Brian R]

You need to get to know fellow cleaners in your area. Find someone you can trust and sub out to him when you are too sick to work.
This would happen to me maybe once a year...but it happens.

Break your leg? What are you going to do.

I hurt my back a year ago in an auto accident and found out the hard way how to get work done.

 

[CleanEvo]

I call up my customers, explain the situation and re-schedule. I've never had a problem.

let's face it, people who own their own business take waaaay less sick days then employees.

 

[KevinD]

I would be looking for a new dentist. He couldn't tell what was wrong with the tooth.
Didn't prescribe a antibiotic for what sounds like a infection and some pain meds.
And oral surgeons don't perform root canals that I know of, they extract teeth.
If nothing else take 800 mg. ibuprofen. That will usually knock out the pain.

 

[hogjowl]

Before I say what I am about to say, let me make sure you understand that I am not passing judgement on the severity of your situation, nor am I saying you are a puss for not being able to stand a tiny bit of pain.

Being a small business operator can require a massive set of nads on occasion and most of us work through sickness and pain on a routine basis.

So, rest easy in the realization that we all sympathise with you.

 

[Brian R]

Before I say what I am about to say, let me make sure you understand that I am not passing judgement on the severity of your situation, nor am I saying you are a puss for not being able to stand a tiny bit of pain.
Being a small business operator can require a massive set of nads on occasion and most of us work through sickness and pain on a routine basis.

So, rest easy in the realization that we all sympathise with you.

I think we were all thinking that.

 

[Willy P]

Good thread RW - I'm going in for a hernia operation on Friday March 13th. :shock: I'm told between 4 to 6 weeks for full recovery. I'm in a pretty good position as I have 3 other owner/ops that I help out when they're in a tough spot. I'm not overly concerned about losing income as I'm prepared for that, but not being able to serve my customers makes me nervous. However, I find I'm in a good space through the friendlies I'm in touch with.Day sick? VERY rarely.

 

[Brian R]

The best thing about being a seasonal company is you can schedule your sickness.

And since most people will be sick in the winter, that works nicely for some.

 

[floorguy]

I call up my customers, explain the situation and re-schedule. I've never had a problem.

let's face it, people who own their own business take waaaay less sick days then employees.

ditto....

thats why i like how much i work, and still pay the bills...

some weeks 3 or 4 days other weeks 6 or 7 days...and other weeks 1 day...

if anything comes up i can usually absorb it.... and my chimp is pretty good, when i only need to do a small amount on the job....still wouldnt let him go it on his own...but with a bit of direction he is fine

 

[Chris A]

I usually work through it, if I reschedule I have to be half-dead. This past week I worked through a dandy little sinus infuction. Once I had food poisoning, rescheduled every job but one, guy was a prick, so I upcharged 25% :wink:

 

[Brian R]

I work through the funerals. :mrgreen:

 

[Desk Jockey]

When we have technicians off, it just makes those that show up for work have to harder. We don't reschedule, we will pull those here in the shop or a guy or two from a fire crew, but work goes on.

It doesn't take too long before the guys run off someone that doesn't pull their weight.

I personally rarely miss, they usually get mad because I keep coming to work sick and eventually the whole office gets it.

But I was sick Thursday-Saturday, I crawled in to make out payroll but other than than I slept through the major part of those days.

 

[R W]

Before I say what I am about to say, let me make sure you understand that I am not passing judgement on the severity of your situation, nor am I saying you are a puss for not being able to stand a tiny bit of pain.

Being a small business operator can require a massive set of nads on occasion and most of us work through sickness and pain on a routine basis.

So, rest easy in the realization that we all sympathise with you.

Marty....I'm sure you are my TOP sypathizer! Actually, I couldn't sit up long enough to drive, so heading out to a job would have been a real trip. I narrowed it down to Tylenol 3 with codiene on an empty stomach which tripped me up. On the other hand, if I would have made it to the job and had to heave, I had the equipment to clean it up on the spot and deodorize it, too!

My dentist couldn't do a root canal....it ain't his specialty. But I went in to day to an oral surgeon, he checked it out, and did the root job in less than 2 hours. No pain....lots of gain. I feels like a new 56 year old man again! And that was after 3 hours of water extraction this morning.

Take that, Marty!

 

[Steve Toburen]

Having gone through a very extensive and deep root canal in the Dominican Republic that required four visits to the surgeon I developed my guaranteed 4 step way to get through the 12 hours afterwards:

1. Fill one large and very ripe avocado with italian dressing (optional) and eat the entire thing. (We have avocados in the DR almost as large as canteloupes for about .30 US.)

2. Take 3 extra-strength Ibuprofen.

3. Drink one entire bottle of a decent Chilean merlot.

4. Go to bed and you will sleep like a baby and wake up feeling great the next day.

Island Boy
www.StrategiesForSuccess.com

PS I agree on having "Strategic Partners" that you trust and will help you out. OR like Richard you find someone like Big Dan that will help you develop a business that will run without you and you can play on the Internet all day. Both ways work! (Wow, Richard. Too sick to log on? I'm surprised you survived.)

 

[floorguy]

ok having tried an avacado, in a bet with my son.....




























Ill take the damn Tooth pain.......YUCK

 

[Art Kelley]

My mom used to make me Campbells soup and egg salad sandwiches and let me stay home in bed if I felt achy. Those days are gone. Now even if I'm dead with my heart stopped my wife will jab a big hypodermic of epinephrine right into my heart and hand me my invoices for the day.

 

[Brian R]

[quote="Brian Robison":1ziv5s4b]I work through the funerals. :mrgreen:

Well my son passing wasn't exactly one I was willing to miss.[/quote:1ziv5s4b]


Holy shit Hoody, did you lose child? Man, I can't even start to know how that feels.
when was this? How old was he?
Sorry man.