They all suck!

I couldn't agree more. I've been driving truck for almost 15 years. Everything from old Mack's with 2 shifters to 18 speeds. Tri axle dumps with 20 ton low beds and a little local tractor trailer driving.Decent employment record, no criminal or motor vehicle violations, and no one will even look at me to drive tractor trailer though I have a Cdl A with tanker. Though I'm employed now (not truck driving) I'm pissed that I can't even utilize the skills I have obtained over these years. It's very discouraging.

 

operating a truck has gotten comfortable to me, i especially like backing. the sucky part is dealing the pay by mile bullcr@p, lousy shipper/recievers, ###### dispatch and planners, terrible for the most part truckstops and parking, DAC blacklist threat and more. my first year in a seven day 60+hr work week, $300 a week was a good week! i picked my handle cause thats the way i feel, social life is gone, hobbies are gone, hometime relaxing is gone, cooking fresh meals is gone, working out regularly in a gym is gone, sleeping in the safety of a bed in a home is gone, just a miserable life all for $300 a week. boy was i suckered by the trucking propoganda, i have invested too much money and time into this to quit and no extra money to quit and start something else, i am Stuckinatruck....

 

Trucking... one must love it or get out of it. I did all the search I could before entering this industry and after 6 moths I found out this was for me! I am a loner with no home and no family and maybe no life... But the road is my life... I love the road... and I can deal with the every day challenges. Worked for a mega carrier for over 5 yrs and got the best I could out of it. Met very nice folks there, got a lot of support, great truck, good miles, good account, but I decided it was time to move on to something different. So I say, not all companies suck. Trucking is not easy at all and some folks are just not born for this kind of life and also don't learn how to work the system.

 

Being a trucker has never been easy. That goes for today as well as yesteryear. When I started trucking, I started out OTR and enjoyed seeing the country and gaining valuable experience. The company burned me on several things and I got out of it.

That is when I drifted into other areas of employment and other professions. But, finally, what I found was that I wasn’t satisfied there either. Believe me, I tried everything! I got stubborn about getting back into the trucking industry. That didn’t work…the trucking industry found me anyway!

I ended up saying, NO!, to OTR driving and took a position as a Quad-Axle driver--local, home every night. I’ve never looked back! I can make good money doing it and I have my nights home. Once you are into this kind of driving for a while (and many other drivers see that you are good) you start getting random calls from other companies whose drivers recommend you when they are in need of a good driver.

Are there problems? Yes sir, there are. Truck maintenance is one, rate of pay is another (I very recently left a company who had been calling me for 3 years. Reason? Because of their false promises of a “good pay rate.”)

Trucking is like many other industries/professions; it has its problems and it always has. The goal is to find that niche or company that fits, “just well enough,” into your idea of reasonable. There is no perfection to be found. But then…that is the way it is in all aspects of a life. Good luck to you.

 

You just hit the proverbial nail on the head.

This industry has never been easy on people that don't absolutely love the lifestyle of long haul trucking. It is a very difficult career if your primary focus is home time and money.

Unfortunately, many of this nations manufacturing jobs have tanked in the last twenty or thirty years. We find a huge number of transplants that have limited career opportunities forced into trucking that never had the love for the lifestyle.

99.9% of these "bad company threads are disappointed folks with very few choices in any career. Long haul trucking is not in their cards either, but they haven't come to terms with it yet. There really is nobody to blame, it's just part of the changing dynamic within our nation.

I guess these people just need something to blame for the way life has treated them. It is not the fault of trucking. Many of these companies listed are doing the best they can to keep people happy. What carrier can keep a person happy that is constantly annoyed at everything to do with trucking? You have to love this career, it will grind you into shreds without it.

 

To a certain extent, though, the companies themselves are to blame for enticing new recruits with less than honest recruiting tactics. If you told somebody who knew nothing about the industry that they'd make little to no money (at first), almost never get home and deal with over the top BS on a daily basis, chances are that person wouldn't even show up for day one of CDL training. But take a look at craigslist. Youve got Swift promising new drivers they'll make 60k a year working ten days out and only running 11 states. It's total crap, guys like us know that because we know the industry. But you get somebody who doesn't know jack and suddenly they see its all lies...yeah of course they're going to be disgruntled. On the other hand, new drivers need to exercise common sense. If you can't even find a job at McDonalds or you're a convicted felon and suddenly you've got a major trucking company begging to hire you and promising you the good life, you'd better exercise some real common sense. If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is...

 

I read all the comments in this thread and pretty much agree with every thing that was posted. All I can say is one has to find his or her "love" in life before they will be happy. I'm not talking about a spouse, I'm talking about the job they just can't wait to get up for every morning. Here are a list of jobs I've held over the years since I graduated high school. Parts of these jobs I liked, but not enough to stay in those positions/careers/industries.

1) The Army as a infantry Soldier.
2) Wal-Mart Stockman while in college for three years.
3) Taught Social Studies and Coached Football, Basketball, and Track over a six year period.
4) School Administrator (Was a H.S. Principal, Assistant Principal, and Athletic Director over a four year period.)
5) Owned my own pop and mom pizza business for two years.
6) Worked in five different factories or distribution centers over a period of three years.
7) Truck Driver for a year.

As I said, some things about all of those jobs I liked, but for the most part I found things about each job I disliked enough to move on and try something different.

Then one day I was at a casino with a friend. I had been in one a time or two but never spent any thing over $20 on any visit. My friend played the table game "Craps" and watched how much fun he had as he won several hundred dollars. I guess that began my obsession with the game.
I returned quite a few times over a period of several weeks and unlike my friend, I lost money. Then I decided to study how others played the game. Most people bought in for $300 or less I observed, but some bought in for higher amounts. I watched people play for hours at a time and lose, while others won. Watched people walk up and make small bets, win and leave. And I could keep going on and on here about how people play and either win or lose, but the type of players I noticed who walked away winning almost every visit was the typical "Don't Player."

So I started observing every "Don't Player" that I saw and watched how each one played. Many times they won, more than the average regular player. So I started developing my own "Don't Pass Line Bet" strategy and eventually came up with one that I liked.

Now before I go on I must address what some of you are thinking, "why is this guy talking about gambling on a truckers forum?" Well it goes back to what I said earlier in this post, you have to find the job you "love" the most and are most passionate about. For me, I've found being a professional gambler has made me happier in life than any other profession I've ever tried. Some will argue that I'm addicted and should seek counseling. So to that I ask, "seek counseling for a profession that made me over $100,000 last year?" Yes I made over $100,000 last year, and I didn't even gamble a 1/3rd of the year.

Now as I said, I developed a strategy, and stayed with that strategy, and have continued to stay with that strategy over the years. It's not the strategy really that has made my "love" for gambling a successful profession for me, but it was staying the course, staying dedicated and consistent with the strategy that made, and continues to make me successful as a professional gambler.

With that said, gambling as a profession isn't for every one. In fact out side of just having fun, gambling really isn't for most people as a profession. Yet I was determined to succeed in gambling as a professional gambler and make a living off of it and so far I've succeeded.

With that said, trucking is the same thing for many of you as gambling is to me. If you really want to be a successful truck driver, then you have to "love" what you do daily. Learn to tolerate the B.S. and develop goals that are obtainable. When I was a trucker I loved driving the roads of America, but eventually quit because of one particular fleet manager who was one of the most arrogant idiots I have ever met in my life. The day I meet him was the day I quit. Dude just laid into me with his attitude the first time I met him and treated me like I was some piece of trash he could kick around. Thinking back on it as I type this post I suppose he caught me on a bad day because I gave him an attitude back and left the company shortly after the conversation between us ended. As I grown man I expected to be treated with respect if you want respect back. This particular wet behind the ears college grad figured he would show every one under him who was the boss when he got hired. A friend of mine who drove under this guy as his fleet manager said the dude lasted all of six weeks before they canned him because so many drivers were either complaining to his superiors or quitting the company. So that's why I quit the trucking profession and never went back.

Well this was just my 2 cents...

 

You quit because of an abrasive FM? It was never in the cards for you. I can't help thinking, what would you be doing today if that FM had been a really cool, helpful, professional person? (I've never met one, but I'm told they exist)

 

I quit!
Rack up another one!

 

You quit what your company?