Michelle Sukow

Michelle Sukow of HDM Trucking recently presented at the Women of the Towing and Recovery Association of America (WTRAA) Driven Conference.

As a headliner, she gave an incredible presentation on work/life balance – a subject many of us in the towing industry certainly struggle with.

She drew rave reviews from all present. She explained how she essentially started her life over at 50 years old despite being inside our industry for many years. She pioneered and pulled through personal hardships and challenges, somehow finding that magical work/life balance along the way.

One of the most substantial takeaways I had from her presentation was something we may realize internally, but haven’t verbalized or acknowledged:

Michelle announced, “I know you cannot balance equal amounts of work and equal amounts of personal life and keep that sustainable for any length of time. You can’t always give your all to all areas equally. That is a recipe for complete burnout.”

Her learned wisdom continued: “You know, just because I’m up here speaking does not mean that I have ALL my stuff together ALL the time. I don’t and I’m not ashamed to admit it. I’m a progress over perfection kind of girl! There are days where I literally still fall apart. I mean, it’s the towing business, it changes with every phone call. That is a lot to deal with day in and day out. It can be relentless some days. But I’ve learned and figured out what works for me to pull myself out of it and put all the pieces back together.”

Michelle made four primary points:

Know what season you are in - you’re going to find yourself overwhelmed at times, you’re going to find yourself a little frustrated, you’re going to find yourself burning out if you don’t learn to let some things go and live in the season you are in. You must accept the fact that

no matter what, life is going to demand things from you, especially in the towing industry because it never stops, BUT you get to choose how you are going to react and how you’re going to prioritize all that.

Show up, and do your best, no matter what.

Find what works for you – plan your time for thinking and relaxing. Set or blend boundaries – Boundaries allow you to be your true self; they are a form of self-care, and they create realistic expectations. Trust yourself more – You know what works for you. You know what season you are in. You know what boundaries you need and which ones you can blend. If you are trying to put your life in an equal balance of work & life, you will constantly be running from one thing to the next in an exhausting pace in hopes to keep things even. Quit focusing on the balance and instead let’s focus on making all the areas of our life work together. Be present and set priorities to live your best and probably unbalanced life. Be true to you. Please know that life isn’t about keeping score to keep it balanced.

No matter what you’re towing,

we’re always behind you.

Stay protected with insurance from Progressive. With policies

customized for tow truck drivers, we offer Primary Liability limits up to $2 million and specialized coverages like On-Hook and Garagekeepers Liability.

Call your local agent or visit ProgressiveCommercial.com.

Progressive Casualty Ins. Co. & affiliates. Specialized coverages may not be available in all states or situations. In Texas and Virginia, Garagekeepers Legal Liability coverage is called Storage Location insurance. In these two states only, On-Hook Towing insurance is then called Garagekeepers Legal Liability coverage.