Are You Ready to Be A Mentor?

Swift, Werner, Knight, England, Schneider, PTL, PAM, CRST, Prime, FFE, Central, USA, Maverick. There are more, but those are the ones that I can think of. Stevens requires a year of experience to become a trainer, but they have dumb and dumber...which is where they stick 2 trainees in a truck and send them on their way, and they'll "figure it out." There are training companies out there that only require 3 months of experience to become a trainer. When I went through training at Steven's it was quite obvious that the 4 "trainers" that I had were only there for the money. When it was time for me to drive, they would go to the back, close the curtains, and I wouldn't see them again unless they had to pee or we got to a shipper/receiver. Money is a great motivator, and you've got people that wouldn't (and shouldn't) ever have trained if it wasn't for the fact that they are getting paid for all of the miles that their trainee drives...and if companies didn't offer that, there is no way they would ever get the amount of trainers needed to keep the door revolving.

 

You can't give 30 plus years of experience to a newb in 10000 miles or thereabouts. The goal of the training companies is, reduce 1st year fallout and wrecks. If you have made it a year, on time, and safely, then you have a chance to be a decent trainer. You still have to have patience and be able to communicate what you know.

In that scheme of things, we all bow low and face east when the super truckers come by us and crowd our students in a parking lot (not really)...but, we are doing our jobs, and you got a lot of nerve telling us we don't belong. When you sign the trainer/finisher/mentor's paycheck, then you are qualified to decide if we are qualified to do our jobs.

Yes, you have been driving longer, I really do respect that...but, like I said, you don't gain any more of my respect by telling me and others like me, that I am not qualified...especially if you infer that you are better than me. When you don't have 30 years to teach a student, then 30 years of knowledge just isn't all that helpful. In roughly 30 days the best you can do is show them how to get there on time and without adding any more crosses to the road side or trading paint with the 30-year pros.

 

Just keep your words in mind when one day when you have to "train" one of those guys who had been driving for years, got off a truck for a couple years and had to get back on. You will know the guy can drive, and he will know that you are still a rookie. Don't get an attitude and try to lord over the driver. Just let him drive, do his required time and sign off on him. He won't like you and you won't like him, but neither one of you are here to win a popularity contest.

 

If the two can make it 30 days living in a box without egos glaring they just might make it to the six / eight week mark and finish up

 

It's just funny to think that all of these guys with less than 5 years seem to know so much more....Roadrealtor no one has said that that they were "better" THAN YOU....MORE QUALIFIED ...YES...BUT NOT BETTER. I just can't get over the arrogance and over-confidence that some of these rookies have.

 

My third "trainee" was a guy like that.

I showed him all the new rules, the QUALCOMM and the companies paperwork.

He showed me so old hand tricks and some great places to eat.

We talk every week.