Never Give Up, Never Surrender

Sometimes in life, you think that you just don’t want to play anymore. You are tired, you are frustrated and no matter what you do, things aren’t getting better. Does this sound familiar? Well, know that you aren’t alone; we’ve all gone through it.

In trucking it can often seem that you are alone in your struggles. You are the only one in the truck driving for hours on end. It is difficult, any truck driver will admit that. Being away from your friends and family for weeks on end is hard, but stick through it and remember; there is always light behind the clouds.

If you are just starting your truck driving job, know that the first few months are always the hardest. It’s a definite lifestyle change and you have to give yourself time to get used to it. There will probably be times when you think to yourself, is this worth it? But don’t answer that yet. Wait until you’ve got about six or more months under your belt and then think about it.

Life on the road really is rewarding and has many great aspects to it. For example, you get paid to travel across this great nation where each and every state is different. Just watch, soon enough you’ll be able to proudly say you’ve been in every state. While those with an office job, however, can name a few they’ve been to, but they probably weren’t paid to go to all of them.

It helps if you have someone you can call, maybe a family member or a friend who you could talk to while you’re on your break. If you don’t have someone you can call then there are plenty of trucking forums where you can go to talk to people in the exact same situation you are, as well as people who have been there, done that and came out on the other side. You can also get out of your truck and talk to the other drivers at the truck stop. Many of them are feeling the same way you are and would love the opportunity to talk to someone besides themselves.

I know times can get hard, but don’t give up. Honestly, it is what you make of it. Allow yourself a moment of despair if you need to, but then pull yourself back up, roll your shoulders and get back in the game. Enjoy the road and look for the good things in each and every day, if you look hard enough I’m sure you can find at least one good thing. Hey, you’ve got a job right? Even if you can only think of one positive thing, it’s worth holding on to.

You can make it. Just live each day the best you can and you will soon find yourself loving the lifestyle of a truck driver. Life goes on, make sure you go with it.

Trucking on Time

In the trucking industry, being on time is vital to your success. If you’re late it can cause a big problem because when you’re late, others will have to wait for you and they will then be late. Deadlines may be missed and shipments may not get picked up and the list goes on. It’s a bit like a domino effect.

So, knowing how important it is to be on time, what can you do to make sure you are? Well, I would suggest sitting down and getting out a good trip plan. Know exactly where you’re going, how you’re going to get there and how long it’s going to take. On top of that time add intervals for stops such as bathroom breaks, food breaks and traffic. A good trip plan can make or break you.

For me being on time is difficult, I find that for some reason I am exactly five minutes late. So, easy solution, just leave five minutes earlier, right? If only it were that easy. Through my conflicts with time, I’ve noticed that I have to tell myself, and more importantly make myself believe, that I need to be somewhere five minutes earlier than I actually do. If I plan on leaving with the perfect amount of time to get to there, I’ll be five minutes late.

So, now I have a schedule. I know that I have to be going out my door at 6. I have to be getting on the freeway at 6:20 and getting on the highway to my work at 6:35 in order to be to work at 7.  Knowing ahead of time how long certain things will take will help you plan for them and it will help you be on time.

One thing that you should keep in mind is that it’s always better to be early than late. Think about it, how often do you hear employers complain about an employee always being a few minutes early? Never.

With this in mind, why not give yourself about ten extra minutes just in case something happens? You can never predict when an accident will occur and set you behind on your schedule. Plan ahead, stay safe and remember; if you are running late don’t drive dangerously to get there on time. A late load is better than no load.