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If you have ever read about how to be successful, you probably have heard of the author Napoleon Hill. He is the granddaddy of all business success writers. During the Great Depression, his book Think and Grow Rich sold over a million copies, and is still in print today, with over 40,000,000 copies sold. In the book, Hill lays out a system for fulfilling one’s dreams called the 13 Principles of Success.

By Ray Luden - I still look back at all the fun I had working in the portable restroom business with my dad. Fun cleaning toilets? Everything can be fun if you do it with a spirit of competition and enthusiasm! Sure, not every day was a “walk in the roses,” if you know what I mean; but almost every day introduced me to new people and reacquainted me with old friends.

By Mike Adams - Market share is defined as the portion of the local market that you can claim as your customers. It is becoming a precious commodity in the portable restroom business, especially in areas where there is a lot of competition. In many regions today, relatively few new customers come into an area. Instead a new customer for you is some other company’s former customer, and when you lose a customer, someone else picks them up.

The Best Way to a Better and Brighter Future for You and Your Business Many portable sanitation business owners are happy keeping it simple. They run a hundred or so units and a truck or two. They are small and they want to stay that way. That’s okay for them, but if you see the potential for growth and can hardly wait to make your business future better, then you should consider writing a business plan to direct your business three and five years down the line.

By Vernon Hills, President PolyJohn International I travel over 250,000 miles a year because I know there is no substitute for getting to know your customers personally. Successful international sales require my physical presence, because customers around the world like to develop friendships that serve as a foundation for long-term business relationships.

Use a customer feedback system to get answers Mark Twain once said, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you in trouble, it’s the things you know that ain’t so.” We all “know” that we provide the best service in our own areas at a fair price. But what if, “it ain’t so?” How would you find out? How do you really discover what your customers are thinking about you and what they want? The best way to find out is to ask.

Your mission statement is a promise to all the people who come into contact with your business, customers, employees, and end users. It should describe how you plan to do business and what should be expected by the people who work for you and by the people who use your service.

You have customers, you have a pumping truck, you have restrooms, deodorizing chemicals, a place to dump—you have all the capabilities you need to service, right? As you may know there is a lot more to becoming successful in this business than that. According to statistics from the Small Business Administration, most companies do not turn a profit until their third year in business, and a majority are out of business by their fifth year.

Practice being an 80/20 company There are individual companies who are changing the industries they are in. They are considered by some as revolutionaries filled with people and small teams who use the 80/20 principle to build businesses and future success. You may already be an 80/20 individual and/or company without knowing it, but if you are not, you have everything to gain by becoming one.

In 1987, Michael Gerber wrote a groundbreaking, best-selling business book named, The E Myth: Why Most Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It, – ”E” standing for Entrepreneur. In it, he talks about the hidden secret to becoming a wealthy and successful entrepreneur. Putting it simply, the secret is to work on your business, not in it.