Wacky World of Werner?

A man climbs into a truck...

Soon I will be a member of this community and I am curious about a few things...maybe some of you can hook a brother up with your insights and observations.

First a little preamble...
Regrading the transport industry my experience is very green, but when it comes to life my hair is very grey. This won't be my first rodeo, new vernacular, experience with the corporate world or the detailed oversight of a regulatory public agency...it will be my first time dealing with all this while trying to control and deliver on time 60,000lbs. I expect challenges and rules that make no sense to me, I expect disgruntled co-workers who will discount my efforts and endlessly complain all while showering me with tobacco stained spittle, I expect to be low man on the totem pole and I expect to earn far less than others with more experience. Those are my only expectations.

I have seen bad weather before, much worse than what any person would or could drive in. I have seen real suffering so the trials and tribulations associated with any job really won't be an issue when held in comparison. I have adopted the Buddhist philosophy and accept the First Noble Truth: life is pain and suffering; this doesn't mean life sucks but then it isn't expected to be a bed of roses either. It is what you make of it and any sense of entitlement or any feelings that life owes us will only end in disappointment. I go into this with my eyes wide open and I know that I should expect a basket load of grief as I ascend the learning curve.
Talk to a medical intern if you want to know what a real S^*T sandwich taste like.

I know that Werner is a for profit enterprise and that any money that can use me to earn for them works to their benefit. They are hiring me, I work for them, eventually (and hopefully) they will entrust me with an expensive machine; they are putting valuable resources at my disposal and expecting me to preform at a standard they dictate. I understand this and accept this paradigm. My investment is time, blood, sweat and tears...they put up their reputation, take on the liability, expose themselves to the vagaries of business and in the end hope to be able to post a healthly profit. We both give something, we both take something and we both expect the other to perform as agreed. The only expectation is honesty and integrity in our mutually beneficial arrangement. They are not Mother Teresa and neither am I; there is no reason I should expect from them more than I would expect from anyone else, especially any other for profit business who uses employees in service to their business.

Having said that I hope those who feel compelled to toss in their two cents about what a "bad" company Werner is will have the presence of mind to hold off and realize what a futile exercise it is to try and tell something to someone who is both aware of the realities and unswayed by the subjective and often irrational rants of the marginally articulate.

So after that loooooog winded intro...
I am curious to hear about the use of technology as it applies to job performance. What use, if any, is there in your daily communication with dispatch or doing trip reports to having a smart phone? Yes I know most people have them but I for one do not. Are there apps that facilitate the flow of information and speed the process. One forum member was complaining about reports and doing them by mail and preferred not to do them electronically. I am the antithesis of a Luddite so if there is something better, faster, and will give my life a little less "pain and suffering" then I am all for it.

I need a trainer who doesn't smoke. That is what I need! I'd like a trainer who didn't listen to speed metal 24-7 with the knob turned all the way up or someone who sits and nods in agreement to AM political-talk radio.
I have been around virtually every kind of person there is...I have traveled with Donald Rumsfeld and spent time with impoverished Pacific Islanders...met many movie starts and low life drug addicts and prostitutes...I can handle just about anything or anyone but I do labor over the noise blaring endlessly from a sound system especially if it is crap music or illogical ideology. If someone is playing Frank Sinatra too loud I will suffer to the best of my abilities.
So how do I find this trainer? How do I get that person who I can do my very best for? Is there anyone here who is a trainer? Do you know any trainers who fit this description?

I have no home, no kids-no wife-no dog (almost reads like a tattoo). The closest thing I have to a relationship is with my laptop and dictionary...I have been known to sleep with both and at the same time...freaky!!
I am looking at OTR and really beyond that I am open to hearing all offers. I have a storage unit and mail drop in Reno but I have no problem living out of a duffle bag or taking a flight to where ever I am wanted.
Will this impact who I am put with to train? How will this play out after I have trained? Of all the people who post on this forum and who I have spoken with I am one of the few who doesn't have a home issue that needs to be factored into the equation; my two significant others (laptop and dictionary) never leave my side. Any comments or suggestions?

Well thanks for taking the time to read this and if anyone has something to say feel free but please heed the caveat regarding negative rants about "what a b*^$#hit company Werner is or how they screwed you over and kicked your dog."

Little Eddy

 

Dadir:
What exactly are these accounts of which you speak? Are you doing a dedicated run and then unloading? Trip after trip to the same facility? Was you injury related to unloading and loading?
Geographically where are they located? Was this something the company talked you into doing? Was there a better cpm rate offered as incentive?

Thanks for you input and I look forward to reading your answers...take extra care of your foot now. Think of it as a tire, once the tire starts having problems then you start to have problems with steering and suspension. Once the foot goes then goes the knees and hips. Once the legs and hips go then you get back problems...consider the concept of skeletal bilateral symmetry and the cause and effect of damage within the system. Wear the best shoes money can buy.

Little Eddy

 

Excellent advice, thank you and I will do just that.
ps: sorry to hear about your dog, I hope he is feeling better and that the boot marks have disappeared.

 

Great advice, thanks for taking the time to comment.
Maybe I will learn a few Scorpion tunes and learn to appreciate Twisted Sister.

Little Eddy

 

Holy cow that is just over 1400 miles a week!!! Ahoooga!!! Eyes popping out!!!

Great info on the loading/unloading account...must steer clear of accounts similar to this...I don't mind the occasional load unload but I wouldn't want to make it a routine especially the way you describe the process.
Thanks for the comments and input...take care of your foot...you might even be able to get a prescription for proper footwear and if you can if becomes a deduction.

Little Eddy