I'm a potential college dropout, should trucking be a plan 'B' for me?

Heck i was securing loads when i was 7.

 

Needs it to rmember how to manuver to all shippers

 

another option,

Join the military and gain some life experience there too.

 

An option that i wish that i had taken.

 

What I wouldn't give to be in your shoes kid. 10 years ago minus the college debt I was a mirror image of what you are now. I was fresh out of the military at the age 23 with no direction or ambition. You are probably thinking to yourself life can't get much worse. Don't ever, EVER, tell yourself that, because believe me, it can.

Have you thought about the military? If you finish your degree you could go in as an officer, making way more than an enlisted grunt. You have a higher chance of getting injured or dying out here on the road than you do getting killed or injured by a sniper or IED in the sandbox. If the bad drivers out here don't get you, the bad diet and daily stress will take its toll.

For the entire time I served I HATED the army, resented it, resented being treated like a child (though I acted like one most of the time), and scoffed at any benefit they offered to me because I was simply counting the days till I could leave. If I would have stayed in for 20 years I could be retiring in August of 2017. Now here I sit, broke, and in debt, with medical bills. And another round of truck driving on the horizon chasing that carrot.

We're not trying to scare you away, we just want you to know what you're getting into if you take this path. People seem to think jobs like trucking and the military are a quick fix. They are not only a career change, they are a lifestyle change. You will not work 9-5 or even 10-6. You will not work a regular schedule. you will not eat on a regular schedule. You will a lot of times drive when your tired and try to sleep when you can't, and repeat the cycle all week. Don't think that because you have a day or two off at home you will accomplish all kinds of things. Most people even after a week over the road feel the need to just sit around, relax, and unwind for at least half a day. It takes a toll on a body, no matter what kind of shape you're in.

Now both sides of the Coin:

I've seen it stated that you will not make over $30,000 your first year. Back in 2003-2004 I made over $45,000 my first year. BUT: I drove a stripped down International with a top speed of 64.5, not a shiny long-nosed chromed out Peterbilt. I drove basically a 7 state midwest regional area, and I was home weekends. home weekends meant maybe get home friday night and leave sunday afternoon. Get used to this kind of advertising, the whole industry is loaded with it.

Of the 25 or so that graduated from my CDL class, I think there were only about 5 of us that stuck with it for a year, and I think I am one of only three from that class that is still at it. This should give you some idea of the quitting/failure rate for new drivers. Let me ask you this, If you're so willing to quit school, what's to stop you from giving up on trucking shortly after trying it?

If you are hell bent on giving Over-the-road trucking a shot, go out to truck stops and talk to the drivers, not the recruiters. A recruiter's job is to be friendly on the phone, make a quota and fill seats, nothing more. If they don't fill seats they will lose their job. Even if you ask nail-on-the-head questions they are trained to answer in a way that sugar-coats. When you talk to a driver directly you will see the condition of the equipment, the condition of the driver, and hear the opinion of someone who actually works there. Keep in mind also that some drivers get a bonus for referring people, so instead of telling the honest truth they can sugar-coat things just to find a sucker to supplement their income.

Almost all companies that offer a sign-on bonus are too good to be true. Think about, If I run a decent work place, why would I need to pay you a few thousand dollars just to come work for me? I would have applications piled up and people beating down the door coming to work here if I ran a good workplace.

When you see the word "bonus" along with an employment ad, think bogus and revolving door. Bonuses with trucking companies are usually money they hold over your head that they should be paying you in the first place. They will yank it away from you as they see fit. Doesn't matter if it's sign-on, safety, performance, fuel economy, idling, etc. Usually these bonuses are offered with medium-to large size Mega-Carriers to compensate for sub-par wages and benefits. And the majority of bonuses with a few exceptions are either unattainable or redundant and ridiculous to accomplish.

Street smarts. Educate yourself in that.

Also, take what you read here with a grain of salt, but look here: http://www.thetruckersreport.com/truckingindustryforum/report-a-bad-trucking-company-here/

I can tell just by the way you type that you have more intellect and wit 75% of the drivers out there. Use that to your advantage whatever your choice is.

 

That's right! I've learned how to get drunk and waste tax payers money during my vacation in the us army. Everyone still thanks me for it over 20 years later

 

pretty #### important skills if you ask me.

 

In case you haven't heard,

the military is being reduced in size.

You'll need to have a skill that they are in need of.

Good Luck !!

 

So enlist, doing research first of course, and have a skill that they need, or pick a skill that you enjoy. Get a job that has some meaning in the real world when you leave the service. As far as I know the Army still bases what kind of job you can get off the ASVAB for the most part.

The military is getting rid of deadbeats, drunks, spouse-beaters, people who can't balance a checkbook or pay bills, people who do only the bare minimum to stay in.. getting rid of its dead-weight and it's own "steering wheel holders" so to speak.

 

Nah....they don't have any of that......