When the office photocopies began to look faint, the office manager called in a local repair service. The friendly technician inspected the equipment and informed the manager that the machine was in need of a good cleaning. The tech suggested that someone could read the operator’s manual and perform the job themself, since it would cost $100 if he did the work.

Pleasantly surprised by his candor, the office manager asked, “Does your boss know you are discouraging business?”

“Actually, my boss demands we explain this to all our customers. After people try first to fix things themselves, we end up making much more money on repairs.”

Good advice is always a good investment. If you don’t know how to do something or don’t have time to learn how to do it properly, hire an expert. Knowledge is power. You will save time and money in the long term.

Over the years, I’ve hired experts to help with specific projects so that my staff and I can learn from professionals and gain valuable experience.

My philosophy is that if you can’t be an expert or don't know an expert, you should always hire an expert. But how do you find the best experts? It’s not as simple as doing a Google search -- finding the best lawyer, accountant, doctor, mechanic or whatever professional you’re looking for requires a few more steps.

Here are some strategies I use in picking an expert:

-- Go to someone you already know and trust. When a problem hits is a lousy time to look for someone you can trust. I would rather rely on someone I knew I could count on, even if their experience is limited. And if I don’t know the right person, I’ll check with some trusted colleagues for their recommendations.

-- Use an expert to find another expert in the same profession. Don't ask an accountant to help you pick a doctor. But I have asked many doctors to recommend other doctors in other specialties. Nurses are also great resources. I want the best, someone who stays current in their area of expertise.

-- Be prepared to pay for any advice you get, even when all you are asking your first expert to do is recommend a second expert. That makes expert No. 1 think twice about making a solid recommendation. Good advice is never cheap. And cheap advice is rarely good.

-- Don't be afraid to ask questions ... and a lot of them. When I interview experts, I want a time and action calendar and a deadline before I hire them. For example, one of my favorite investment probes is: “Are you putting your own money in the investment that you are recommending to me?”

-- Don’t confuse being a good friend with being a good businessperson. Hiring a buddy or family member as a favor or to save a buck may end up costing you dearly. Unless that person is actually an expert, keep looking.

-- It bears repeating: Look for experts before you need them. Anticipate challenges you might face at some point in the future and dig your well before you’re thirsty. Get to know them -- or about them -- in advance.

-- Be prepared to hire a second expert. If you are not confident in the advice you get from the first expert, a second opinion is in order.

One of my favorite books while cutting my teeth in business was “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. He wrote a story about a Colorado gold rush miner who found a lot of gold and thought he had hit a rich seam. He covered up his work, went home and told relatives and friends about his find and raised lots of money to buy equipment. They set it up and started mining. They filled a cart with gold the first few weeks, but it wasn’t enough to pay for all the equipment, and suddenly, the gold dried up. They kept digging and spent more money on equipment, but still no gold. They ended up selling their equipment to a junk dealer and went home.

The junk dealer thought he’d give it another try and got expert help from a mining engineer who did an assessment of the lease. He said the earlier miners failed because they didn’t understand fold lines and gold seams. One of the richest seams of gold in Colorado was less than 3 feet from where they were digging.

Mackay’s Moral: An old broom knows the dirty corners best.

On the first day his son joined the family firm, the founder took him on to the roof of the factory building and said, “I am going to give you your very first lesson in business. Stand on the edge of the roof.”

Reluctantly, the boy went to stand on the edge of the roof.

“Now,” said his father, “when I say jump, I want you to jump off the roof.”

“But, Dad,” said the boy, “that’s 10 feet down!”

“Do you want to succeed in business?”

“Yes, Dad.”

“And you trust me, don’t you?”

“Yes, Dad.”

“So do as I say and jump.”

The boy jumped. He crashed to the ground and lay there, winded and bruised.

His father ran up to him and said, “That was your first lesson in business, son. Never trust anyone.”

We would live in a sad world if we couldn’t trust anyone. But trust does take years to build, mere seconds to destroy and forever to repair. Trust is fragile. It’s easy to break, easy to lose and one of the most difficult things to ever get back.

David Horsager, who I consider THE trust expert, has written a follow-up book to his national best-seller “The Trust Edge.” The new book is called “Trusted Leader: 8 Pillars That Drive Results.” It’s every bit as good as the first.

The book follows CEO Ethan Parker as he discovers the root problem in his company and a way to solve it, even amid the complexities of leading in a quickly changing business and cultural environment.

The plot unfolds as a true-to-life story of a senior leader who thought success was certain. While his fast-growing organization had huge potential, Ethan faces a series of unexpected challenges that awaken him to a deeper gap in his business.

The book elaborates on the eight pillars of trust that are key attributes of successful leaders: clarity, compassion, character, competency, commitment, connection, contribution and consistency.

Building on theses eight pillars, Horsager explains that “trust will always increase effectiveness and create results in your organization.” I can surely attest to that from my own experience.

When you ask for a sale from a customer, they will judge whether your proposal is fair and meets their needs, and if you can be trusted to deliver what you promised. Mess up on one of those points, and you can assume that customer will have a hard time trusting you again. And perhaps even more damaging, that customer could share their experience with others who had considered doing business with you.

Think about how you choose vendors. Have you given repeat business to someone who has broken your trust? Not likely -- those transactions tend to be very expensive.

Management guru Peter Drucker said of trust: “In the ethics of interdependence there are only obligations, and all obligations are mutual obligations. Harmony and trust -- that is, interdependence -- require that each side be obligated to provide what the other side needs to achieve its goals and to fulfill itself.”

“Obligated” is a pretty serious word -- and it’s one that needs to be taken quite seriously. When you couch it in those terms, trust assumes the huge responsibility that it is. Your word is everything, not just in business, but life in general.

Stephen Covey, author of “The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People,” said: “Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication."

“Everything of value is built on trust,” Horsager writes.

Take it from all these experts: Trust is more than just a word. In fact, in my opinion, trust is the most important word in business.

Never make your customers or colleagues feel like the little fellow who jumped off the roof. His father was wrong -- you CAN trust people in business. Establish your reputation as someone who can be trusted.

Mackay’s Moral: Trust is a must, or else you’ll go bust.

A guy walked into a sandwich shop and the server asked what he would like to order.

He said, “What do you have that's good?”

The clerk responded that everything was good.

The customer then asked, “Do you sell things other than sandwiches?”

The clerk said, “Yes, we have salads, too.”

The customer added, “Great, I am so tired of sandwiches! That is all I ever eat!”

The clerk said, “What would you like?”

And the customer said, “I guess I’ll take a roast beef sandwich.”

Old habits die hard.

My friend John Maxwell got me thinking when he said:

“You’ll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.”

Most of your everyday routines are probably comfortable, and you’re probably doing OK with them. But imagine the dreams you could realize by mixing things up to achieve what you really want.

Another friend, Dean Graziosi, wrote a book called “Millionaire Success Habits,” in which the premise is that you can make “barely noticeable, small shifts in your daily routines by nudging out those things that don’t serve you and replacing them with habits that create a path to wealth and abundance.”

First, you must decide what you want out of life. Too often, we can define what we don’t want, but can’t really figure out where we want to go. Once you do that, your path becomes clear as to what you need to work on.

When I think back on my career, I often changed my daily routine in order to realize what was important to me. When I was building my envelope-manufacturing business, I focused on selling the major accounts in Minnesota. When I wrote my first book, “Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive,” I wanted to sell books and build my writing and speaking career. And with each new dream, I had to adapt.

I’ve always strived to be as productive as possible. I became a time-management freak. I was among the first to install a car phone. I took a speedreading course. I found that if I begin each day with a plan and prioritize what I need to accomplish, I procrastinate less.

I realized that by doing two things that I don’t want to do every morning, I can move on to more profitable things.

I continue to work at being organized because that’s always been a challenge. Wasting a minute here and there adds up to a lot of lost time trying to find things. Fortunately, I have a good staff that keeps me organized.

Another factor I’ve worked on is sleep. I always thought I wanted this message displayed on my tombstone: “He couldn’t sleep fast enough!” I was afraid of missing something. But over the years, I’ve relented and slept more. It has helped my energy and focus.

Leading up to the recent Super Bowl, I saw an article about quarterback Tom Brady and how he credits his high performance, even at age 43, to getting quality sleep and lots of it.

Getting up and stretching for 15-20 minutes also helps me. I exercise for 60-75 minutes every single day, which also gives me energy and keeps me in shape. Eating healthy, starting with a good breakfast, is also helpful.

I eliminate disruptions as much as possible and return calls at the end of the day. I also reward myself when I accomplish a task.

These are all good habits that replace bad habits. That’s not always easy. Some studies suggest that it takes about 21 days to create a new habit or break a bad habit. However, according to a study published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, it can take 18-254 days to form a new habit. The study also concluded that, on average, it takes 66 days for a new behavior to become automatic. Breaking a habit also tends to involve a more consistent, conscious effort.

So start today: Ditch your bad habits and focus on building better ones.

Mackay’s Moral: We build our lives each day with the bricks of habits we have.