I was a member of the last generation of true paper carriers. Watching them in my early childhood, I saw it as a right of passage. Maybe it was that my dad worked for a newspaper, and as a young man, it seemed like a way to do what dad does. As a fourth grader, I had no concept of money or its significance in day-to-day life. I have always cherished the experience and development from those days, marching with a paper bag over my shoulder.
The first days with a fresh green denim bag
I cannot remember how I arrived at the corner of 7th and Safstrom with my twin brother Dave to report for the first day of paper delivery. It was only three blocks from the high school and about eight blocks from Linden Park Elementary, where Dave and I attended. We each had been substitutes on another route; we were excited to take on and split our route. It was much bigger than any route we had done previously, with almost 80 houses in total.
The route street names have changed a bit. The route was all of Safstrom, a couple blocks of 7th Street, Linden, and Division. Almost every block we delivered had two sides of the street, making it easy for Dave and I to split it up. It also meant that in the beginning, we only had to memorize half the route to accomplish it. Honestly, I’m not sure we could have carried all the papers for each house by ourselves. The Post Register was delivered each weeknight, where papers had to be on porches by 7 pm, and on Sunday mornings, papers had to be on porches by 7:30 am.
Shortly after arriving, two older boys showed up. The route had previously been theirs, and they were ready to pass it on. The papers had not arrived. The boys explained the routine as we sat on the corner waiting for them. Soon, the large bundles of newspapers were being thrown from the side door of an old van. Because it was our first day, the bundles had more than papers. All the addresses we were responsible for had been printed, fresh from the dot matrix printer, onto the classic green and white patterned paper. Another included item was the collection books we would need to collect and receive monthly dues. The last item we had waited for and anticipated for years was the chance to throw our own fresh green denim, The Post Register delivery bags full of newspapers, over our shoulders.
Neither rain, sleet, or snow
It seemed like winter started right after we took on our route. Idaho Falls winters were brutal in the early ’90s; feet of snow were a regular occurrence, and a bone-chilling cold would stop the school busses from running. Regardless, the papers had to be delivered. Often, we would take a sled because poor footing and cold weather made it tough to carry full bags of newspapers.
The early lesson learned for delivering papers was that you go right from school. The days when I forgot to bring my paper bag to school meant a lot of trips back to that corner of 7th and Safstrom to retrieve more newspapers. It was not about getting my half done but ensuring the job was done daily. No lesson was more challenging than learning to wake up at 5 am on Sunday to make sure papers were delivered on time; imagine when you open the front door to find 12″ of fresh powder for our 6-block walk to 7th street.
Spring broke the brutal cold, and with it came a routine that would carry me through most of my school years. By late spring, my brother had been bitten by Daisy, one of our customer’s dogs, and had lost all interest in delivering newspapers, transitioning me to the sole owner of our small little business.
The foundation of reliability
The foundation of realizability as a paper carrier started by showing up, breaking open the bundles, and loading up with newspapers. Each day, papers had to be on porches by a specific time, and no one was going behind you to inspect them. Instead, when standards were not met, it was the voice of the customer that let you know that their expectations were not being met. To a young man, it was like having 80 parents.
Reliability, at its core, is about commitment and then living up to that commitment. In my example, it was learning to make decisions that would meet those commitments along with the proper priority. My responsibility was not just about getting papers on porches but getting them there by the deadline.
Follow-through is needed to achieve reliability
Reliability cannot be achieved by simply showing up and doing a task. Schools would be full of straight-A students if it only took showing up. Commitment and follow-through are supporting competencies in developing a strong sense of reliability. Identifying and responding to customer needs through improvement and innovation are great ways to improve reliability.
New customers, collecting dues, and paying bills were all regular items that required follow-through. As customers let me know where to place their papers or the best times to come collect, it was all about understanding expectations. Although it seemed routine, the process was developing a ton of professional experience.
Standards are a part of all jobs, and exceeding standards is a way to create a more substantial career track. Of course, it can’t happen when someone does not show up. Understanding how to identify standards and expectations is critical in developing reliability that differentiates one experience from the next.
The necessary step
Reliability cannot happen without showing up. Reliability is a competency that paves the way to sharpen other competencies and skills. Opportunity and growth come from taking steps, making attempts, and learning from mistakes, all of which will not happen if reliability is not in place to be a cornerstone of a personal brand.
Steps to take:
- Set priorities that will allow for the best opportunities
- Don’t be afraid to take risks, learn from mistakes
- Dont deliver, over-deliver
- Stay focused on self-development and learning
Get some additional insight:
- Reach out to dbarker@idaleadershiplab.com for a free 20-minute coaching.
- Sign up your team to go through a team building session – call 208-371-6274 and talk to Dan about what options might work best or request a free “needs assessment.”
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