Blue Ribbon Podcast

Ever since I read the Marc Levinson's book " The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger" I've been fascinated with how goods travel from continent to continent. It's VERY different from how we move goods on American highways.

In this episode, our guest is Sara Graham aka LogisToks on TikTok. We've been following her for a while and she's done a great job at letting us know what she's encountered trying to get ships unloaded and freight moved.

Sara is a logistics industrial professional with over 10 years of experience. She currently works in non-asset multi-modal transportation services with a focus on dedicated capacity management on behalf of fortune 500 companies. Her current role is Director of Operations at NFI Industries, a leading third-party logistics provider. In her spare time, she makes TikToks under the name Logistoks about industry trends, daily experiences, and dynamic market conditions.

Tony Ramos helps small business owners who owe substantial taxes to the IRS. He is passionate about resolving overwhelming IRS debt to help people get the IRS to reduce their debt by the maximum amount and then agree to the smallest possible monthly payments for their remaining balance.

Here are some of the questions we will address:

How long can the IRS chase me for back taxes?

What happens if I haven’t filed tax returns for many years?

What are the penalties for not filing tax returns and not paying taxes?

What is the process to successfully negotiate the best deal with the IRS?

Will I go to jail if I owe a large amount of taxes?

If I don’t pay my taxes, what can the IRS do to me? Can they take my home away?

What can I do if the IRS sends me a Final Notice of Intent to Levy? How can I stop bank levies, wage garnishments, etc.?

What are all of the options available to resolve my tax debt?

What happens If I make a payment arrangement with the IRS and then later I can’t afford to make payments?

How can I find out exactly how much I owe to the IRS?

What do IRS collection representatives want from tax payers? What do taxpayers want from the IRS?

If I call the IRS myself, what should I ask of the IRS representative?

How can I avoid a federal tax lien from being filed against my home?

Our guest in this episode is Kerry Baldwin. Kerry offers online courses on the Socratic Method of Learning. The Socratic method of learning employs a time-tested method of critical thinking used by Socrates to challenge the paradigms of the people. Seminars promote productive dialogue, civil discourse, and discovery. This is a skill that is learned, and must be practiced or it is lost.

Kerry Baldwin is an independent researcher and writer with a B.A. in Philosophy from Arizona State University. In addition to her content and courses on her website, MereLiberty.com, She’s also a regular contributor for the Libertarian Christian Institute.

She is a single, homeschooling mother of three. Her work focuses on exploring a reformed view of identity through the Socratic method. The Socratic method is a time-tested of method of teaching critical thinking and critically exploring ideas. It also teaches self-awareness, self-control, and self-confidence with those who disagree with you.

She participated in an Oxford-style debate vs. Dr. Walter Block at the famed SOHO Forum in New York City, and is a contributing author for the book “Faith Seeking Freedom: Libertarian Christian Answers to Tough Questions

Kerry's Website: https://mereliberty.com/

Episode 101 would be a great opportunity to make a "101" class to cover some of the things you need to know if you're going to be a successful owner operator.

- Generating Revenue

- Customer Service

- Controlling Costs

- Record Keeping

- Accounting

- Maintenance

- Fuel

- Taxes

We will do a quick breakdown of the principles and practices that keep us going and make us profitable.

Larry Long first met Kevin at the annual CMC (Certified Master Contractor) conference in 2009 held in Kansas City. Larry was a brand new owner/operator and knew that he needed the advice of someone experienced in the business of trucking. They became fast friends, and Larry even served on the staff of the CMC. In the years since its formation, Blue Ribbon Logistical Solutions has used the principles and practices that Kevin teaches every day on the radio to operate our company successfully in ANY market. We are honored to have Kevin join us on our special 100th episode.

About Kevin:

He is a business trainer, author of national articles on trucking and finance, small fleet owner, tax preparer, and radio host of Trucking Business & Beyond. He started his career as an owner-operator 30 years ago, running a one-truck operation with the sophistication of a much larger fleet of trucks. Over the years, his experience has evolved into a comprehensive slate of professional skills including operations, logistics, accounting, financial planning, driver recruiting, information technology systems, fuel efficiency and preventative maintenance. Let us not forget about his newest endeavor of becoming an NTP (Nutritional Therapy Practitioner).

Kevin’s contributions to Overdrive Magazine, FreightWaves, Over The Road, Driving Force, Big Rig Owner, Pro Trucker and the widely recognized Randall-Reilly Publishing’s “Partners In Business” series showcase Kevin’s cutting edge grasp of the owner-operator success equation.

He has authored several online courses on how to be successful as an owner-operator and has given seminars to thousands of owner-operators, drivers, and fleet executives in the U.S. and Canada. He has also prepared thousands of federal and state tax returns for owner-operators and company drivers. Kevin was also a member of the Florida Trucking Association “Road Team”.

Currently, Kevin hosts Trucking Business & Beyond on SiriusXM / Road Dog Trucking. Kevin’s down-to-earth ability to communicate to the professional driver with knowledge, experience, and statistics, makes the show the only one of its kind dedicated to the success of the American professional driver.

Kevin’s website: https://letstruck.com/

Carrie Coffey has an interesting story to tell. She came to work for us in April 2020 right as the pandemic restrictions were being put in place and the country was shutting down. She worked hard for 18 months and recently purchased her own truck from a BCO. We will discuss what led to the decision to come here and how the experiment affected her journey to being an owner/operator.

It’s been another busy period for Blue Ribbon as we’ve added another driver AND a new (used) truck to the fleet! This episode is going to be about defying in your business and making it better than the competition. Larry says, in trucking, “There is a lot of capacity but very little competition.” We’re going to tell you about how Larry set himself apart in his other businesses before he got into trucking and how we use those same principles and practices in the fleet today.

This one is gonna be fun, y'all. Larry got his hands on a 22 page lease contract from a major US Carrier, and he's going to break it down for you. To say that he isn't happy is an understatement. This contract is filled with so much garbage that it's stunning. There is NO CHANCE that someone could sign up for this lease and ever survive it. It is an absolute SCAM meant to get drivers to drive a truck for free. It should be criminal. Buckle up, folks. It's gonna be spicy!

How tired are you of dealing with brokers? Isn't it time that we use the technology available to us to gain access to shippers directly so that we no longer have a "middle man" taking a piece of the action. Allow us to introduce you to LaneAxis, a platform that is focused on building direct relationships that lead to Shipper-direct freight opportunities on a daily basis. We really enjoyed this conversation and we think you will too. Blockchain IS the future of economics and commerce. Those who pay attention and learn now will see the greatest benefit.

You have met Zeke Goodwin before on Episode 53: Highway Refugee. In that episode, he described his experience of being jobless and homeless, finding refuge in a cab of a truck. He has come a long way since then. Now, alongside his new wife Vanessa, he is on a new journey. They have join the Blue Ribbon Team by purchasing a truck, giving it the “lunatic” treatment, and leasing it on for us to operate. He sits down with Larry to share his experience of the ups and downs of getting a truck ready to go.