Failure, why? How to prevent it?

The people that fail are no longer here. I recently learned that after over looking the obvious.

 

This would be a good song to listen to as you drive down the road. Pretty obvfious it was written by a trucker.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o84slzpegnU&feature=player_detailpage

 

Friend of mine from Fairbanks retired from trucking a few years ago and now receives $10K a month pension including social security. He worked hard and didn't waste his money; maxed out on 401K and other investments.
Trucking is a great career if you plan wisely.
Ignore any seasoned trucker that complains and advises you not to be a trucker. If it's so horrible, why did they stay long enough to become seasoned?

Last time I talked to my friend, he had purchased a beachfront condo in the Orient and had 2 live-in hotties taking care of him. Hard work pays off.

 

This is really a one word answer but I can't stop at one word so bare with me. The word is ATTITUDE.

Do you want to be a truck driver or a Professional who drives a truck?

A Professional Truck Driver understands that first and foremost he is a Salesman. Everything he does represents the company. He is driving down the road with a big sign on the trailer which names the company he works for. People see him tossing yellow bottles out the window or loading a six pack into the tractor, they are going to remember what company he worked for. If they ever need to call for a truck to ship things that is one company that won't get the call.

Let me give you an example of a Professional Truck Driver that is off the wall. I was in Atlanta, GA. I was having trouble with a woman who was making me leave the property and come back later. Okay, that is what I have to do, I was new. And elderly black driver came in. His appointment time was the same as mine. He asked to use the restroom. The woman who had given me a hard time got really hateful with him. He was polite. She got worst. He explained he had solid reasons to use the restroom. She told him they didn't have restrooms for Truck Drivers. He replied that he was a Professional who happened to drive a truck. She told him to take his N ### out of there and come back tomorrow. He proceeded outside and relieved himself of his solid problems right in front of the door. The boss came in at 6 AM and threw a fit. The employee told the Boss what must have happened and as she was getting done, the Professional Truck Driver walked up. She pointed at him and said, "there the N is." In a calm matter, the Professional Truck Driver, explained what had happened and the employee is no longer employed. Also, the restrooms there are open to the Professional Truck Drivers who wish to use them.

Now the reason I use such an extreme example is that this older man of southern black heritage had faced problems his whole life. Major problems. But he had adapted an attitude where no one was going to get him angry or take advantage of him. He maintained a Professional Attitude even with his pants down squatting in a parking lot. The Professional Attitude is what it takes to succeed.

You are a salesman, you are a business man. You are Professional.

Strike.

 

Disagree with 98% of this statement.

 

I'm guessing he's one of those divers that get "fatigued" (those guys LOVE that word) after a whole 3 hours of driving because they're passing through sparks and want to go to the casino.

 

Didn't read all the replies but basically, if I could boil it down to it's essence, the one that fail do not want to work....they thought it would be relaxing and fun....not stressful and work.

They either:
1. Took the course as a means of continuing their unemployment benefits and had no intention of ever working as a truck driver, or
2. They thought it would be fun to see the country...maybe the wife could even tag along, or
3. They had no idea what it's like to drive a 75' vehicle into an unfamiliar city full of idiots at rush hour, or
4. They had no idea what it's like to be on the clock all ay every day.

 

......I had on fella a couple of years ago. Approx late 50's. Good driver. Careful. Had some experience with a medium size dry van company. I took him on a training run to show him what we did.....we each had our own truck plus there was another guy on his maiden voyage too. We left our yard at 06:00 with our step decks. We drove 450 miles, got unloaded and went to the Harrisburg TA for supper. That was close to a 14 hr day.

Next AM we bounce a few miles to the shipper and arrive at 07:00. We spend ~3hrs getting loaded and drive back to the yard. ~12-14 hrs that day.

He was paid $.40/mile + $.02 safety bonus because he didn't break anything + $15/hr for securement. When we got back to the yard he said he was quitting to take a local day cab job because he couldn't handle the "marathon days."

 

I've never witnessed a student failing to pass a state CDL test, but of all my students exactly 1 (ONE) actually did not fail to learn to "drive".

IME, the greatest mistake of students may be assuming they already know how to "drive" when they don't have a clue. They arrive at school with the definition of "driving" = "not crashing or getting a ticket", and that rarely changes. They don't call them "driving habits" for nothing.

The vast majority, IME, resist mastering the pre-trip. It's boring, and they don't see the necessity for it. It's more fun to crash the gears and practice backing.

Virtually no one ever "practices" "driving" once avoiding crashing into things is apparently mastered.

That's one big reason virtually everyone is an incompetent motorist/steering wheel holder. All their standards are of their own invention.

Just try questioning one about speeding and following too closely. You will discover they believe you don't know jack. As long as you don't crash, you're driving perfectly "safely".