Your are exactly right! This is harder than many think. I had a buyer come to me with cash and it still took me a year to get out.
We are for sale and with all the failures with new owners because the smart ones got out before, we are highly concerned that we will not be allowed to sell or take an extremely long time.
We have been the top contractor in our entire terminal 2015 with a score of 99.6% Why? We have 1 full time manager and 1 full floater and me being the 3rd back up. Know how much I have paid myself this year? ZERO, not a single cent.
8 trucks running with 2 backups. Both manager and floater out everyday helping with bulk and stops to ease the pain, neither sitting on their asses doing nothing. Often they help other contractors as well. Even with the 2 backups I have probably driven a combined total of 40 days this year. Yes, crap happens, you think you got yourself covered but things just happens.
All you in ISP or PSA people still know the numbers, not much different anywhere. Try adding 1 guy per your 4 trucks, how much expendable income is actually left to pay yourself? EXACTLY. Its a joke and not worth the headache, counting my days till I am free from this burden