Breaker, Breaker, 1…9… Before many of us ever knew we’d wind up in logistics careers, we spent our childhoods fantasizing about the world of CB radio. In an era before text messages, DMs, and PMs, CBs seemed like an elite club of the coolest big rig truckers speaking in secret code to let each other know who was boss. Even today, those new to the world of trucking often fall into one of two categories. They either can’t wait to get their hands on their own CB to introduce their own call sign, or they pull
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If you had a hot date this past Valentine’s Day, I hope you had a great time. And, if you didn’t – I hope you’re enjoying those half-price chocolate sales! As for me, I got a pre-Valentine’s mani-pedi before celebrating with my husband, Dale. There’s something about being stuck somewhere with my shoes off and toes soaking that immobilizes me enough to actually relax and read. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not lugging copies of War and Peace to the nail salon. When I get my toesies done, I can’t help but reach for
Read more →Shortage. The very word can cause panic. When a storm is coming, just the idea that we might not be able to get bread, eggs, and toilet paper can clear the shelves and incite retailers to mark up prices. It’s a basic principle of economics: supply and demand: the amount of an available commodity and the amount of desire for said commodity factor into the item’s price. In the logistics industry, the capacity crisis has been ongoing for years. But in my three decades as a 3PL broker, I’ve never seen anything like this. Naturally, the cost
Read more →Each year, the Matchmaker Logistics team creates a mantra to focus our group for the year ahead. For 2018, we chose “Radiate Positivity.” Now for a 3PL broker, this might sound a little like: “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” but I assure you – thinking positive has big rewards! According to a TED Talk by positive psychology expert Shawn Achor (a 12-minute “must watch” if you ask me), when it comes to determining happiness, the things we think would make a person happy – fast cars, big paychecks, even a glowing family – don’t necessarily mean a person is happy. In fact, 90%
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In my last post, I shared some thoughts on the loss of my mother and Matchmaker Logistics co-founder, Eileen Skane. The post published while I was at a meeting out of the office. When I returned to the office, as is my habit, I immediately checked my voicemail and email to see what fires caught wind while I was away. When I saw dozens of notifications in my inbox, I felt that old familiar instinct kick in – time to jump in, put out those ‘fires’, and help people out with whatever they needed from me. But
Read more →In my last post, I wrote about how this winter, folks all over the Southern United States have been waking up to unexpected snow and ice. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always thought those of us in the South live here in order to avoid those kind of troubles. It’s enough to make you want to pack up and move somewhere tropical, like Hawaii. Though it seems like Hawaii was trying to top the news in ‘unexpectedly bad mornings’. From the It Could Be Worse Files, residents of Hawaii woke up last
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This past Christmas, we said goodbye to my mother. Eileen Skane Ryder passed away on December 20th at Davis Health Care Center; she was 90 years young. Born in New York, NY, Mom spent most of her life in Connecticut. Despite a difficult childhood, Mom achieved great success in life both personally and professionally. She was a career woman throughout the 70’s – a very successful, award-winning real estate agent. Then, in 1981, she helped my father found Matchmaker Logistics. In 1990, Mom and Dad moved the family business to Wilmington where they later retired.
Read more →It snowed in Alabama on December 8th. Although we southerners listen to all of the traditional Christmas tunes (Let it Snow!, White Christmas, Winter Wonderland), we don’t expect it to actually happen. The snow cramped my travel plans as I made my way to the annual Matchmaker Logistics end-of-year retreat and Christmas party. My flight was delayed and my luggage was delayed even longer (arriving a good seven hours after I did). Then, the first week of the New Year, what comes along? A bomb cyclone. I didn’t even know this was a thing! Forget blizzards.
Read more →For many of us, the New Year is a time to make resolutions addressing issues we may have ignored throughout the rest of the year. But because we wait to address these issues until they’ve become problematic (think: weight, bad habits, etc.), fewer than eight percent of us actually achieve our New Year’s goals. It’s an easy trap to fall into – and some say it’s why infrastructure is such a major concern in the United States. Roads, dams, airports and other structures don’t maintain themselves, and we’ve ignored them for too long. TV
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I was only five or six years old, but I’ll never forget that moment. On Christmas morning, Santa brought me the bike of my dreams – purple, with a banana seat. I can still recall how beautiful that bike looked in the glow of the Christmas tree. As an adult, giving is always more exciting than receiving. But, I still enjoyed this list of forty tastemakers, leaders, and business tycoons describing their most magical Christmas memories. So I decided to ask my team- what were the best Christmas gifts they ever got? And they delivered with some amazing
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