Ever ask yourself that question? If you were standing around with a crowd of people at a reception talking, and you said “I’m in HVAC,” or “I’m in the heating and cooling business,” it might not spawn much conversation if people thought they already knew what HVAC or heating and cooling is all about.

But, what if you said you were in the health and safety productivity business? Mark Matteson, an industry consultant, posed this question at an annual joint state meeting of the Ohio Air Conditioning Contractors of America, and the Ohio Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors.

A discussion ensued, and many in the room walked out with a smile on their face as if they had just discovered a new lease on life. Almost everyone falls victim to low self-worth from time to time.

Whether it is the lonely Maytag repairman, the dispatcher behind the desk, the technician perched on a 110°F roof, or the person pounding out e-mails at 2 a.m. - we all sometimes wonder, “What in the world am I doing?”

Well, if you are in any aspect of the HVAC business, you may be providing a service that maintains refrigeration for plasma in hospitals, or critical living conditions for the elderly in assisted living care facilities or in their homes.

You might be building new homes in parts of the United States that previously had no water, no power, no air conditioning; virtually uninhabitable - until you came along.

So, if you’re ever wondering what business you’re in - you are in a good business. Don’t forget it.