I’ve been on the road since March 11th. I’ve been cooking some meals, but really enjoy eating at local restaurants for dinner. At home I can just go out, or call a delivery service when I’m hungry. Really doesn’t matter what day it is, and often it doesn’t even matter what time it is. I’m really spoiled in that way.
So over the past few weeks I’ve been doing my thing during the day, then when I get a little rumbly in my tumbly I’d jump in the truck and head out. First of all, there is no just “running out” for anything where I was staying in Texas, it was 15 minutes to anywhere. Here in Louisiana it’s pretty much the same but I’m near a good sized town just north of New Orleans (Mandeville).
Here’s what I’ve noticed: restaurants are only open a few days a week and during limited hours. In Texas the BBQ places I liked were generally open “Wednesday through Sunday 1130 or until we run out.” Here in Louisiana the few places that were recommended to me are open “Tuesday-Friday noon to seven.”
It’s no secret that restaurants were hit hard with the Coronavirus lock downs. Those that survived adapted by reducing staff and hours. I talked to the owners of these places and there are some key takeaways:
The Mom & Pop’s are just that: family operations with limited outsiders filling key roles.
They have reduced hours and days of operations and while gross revenues are down, their profits margins are creeping up due to reduced expenses (less waste, idle staff on the clock, reduced utilities).
When they are open, they are packed.
Streamlined menus resulting in less waste and also contributes a nice chunk to profitability.
These changes are huge for restaurants. It’s made me think about productivity improvements I can apply to my own businesses.
What can you do to reduce the time you spend on your business but boost your profitability?
What seemed absurd in the restaurant biz now appears to be becoming common.
A Virtual Millionaire?
I’ve not published any long format stories on Medium since hitting the road, but I am posting short things there to capture some ideas. One of which is a thought around becoming a virtual millionaire.
A million bucks is a common target for retirement accounts. Then what? You withdraw some each year to live on and hope you don’t outlive your money.
How about using a side hustle to become a virtual millionaire? Basically you need to generate a little over $3K a month, and if you can do it in a way that doesn’t require you to be hands on, even better (blogging, affiliate sales, digital products, etc.)
Read more here:
Why becoming a “virtual millionaire” is the way to go.
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