Fear & Nerves : How much is normal?

What you descrbed is not fear and nerves, just the unknown for a new driver. The FEAR and Nerves will come into play when you drive during your first Blizzard,whiteout , ice storm and black ice. thats the text book definition of fear and nerves. Anyone can run when the roads are hih and dry. If driving in horrible weather doesnt bother you then you will be fine. Dont sweat the other crap like Dot issues/logs. run legal and you will be fine. Dont make a Hero out of your dispatcher, if your tired, then park it, if you cant run due to hours, then park it, if the roads are not passible, then park it!

 

Well said Sir.!!

 

Every driver should feel fear.

Fear for that 4-wheelie cutting you off, then slowng down.
Fear for what the next dock might be like.
Fear for the crosswinds when you are only carrying 8k.
Fear for...
The list is endless.

One way to abate that fear is to do one simple thing.
Never be in a hurry.
Never.

A driver cuts in too close? Slow down a bit, for a bit.
Dock way too tight for comfort? Slow down a bit, and ease it in.
Heavy winds? Slow down, and if necessary pull in to the next truck stop and shut down until the winds die down.

Fear is your friend, when driving a big rig.
It tells you when to take things a bit slower.

And no load is worth hurrying over, if it will mean your life (or the life or property of another) is lost in the process.

 

Just like with any other job, you have to respect it. Never get careless or take chances. Now im not saying don't try to new places and challenges. Just remember every where you drive adds to your experiance level. Sometimes your going to be required to go somewhere ur not comfortable with, but remember to keep a calm level head as it will allow you to think better.

 

Kirk look at it this way,if a woman can do it then so can you.Fear is normal.When I attended school the first driver I spoke with was a Werner driver.I thought his trk was too big.But once I got with a trainer it did'nt take long for me to get comfortable with driving.It's not as bad as what you're reading otherwise I would have changed to a different line of work long ago.These drivers that ran illegal then gets on the forum to tell their story,well that's their fault for running illegal.I have a hard time sympatizing with them.If they don't wanna run illegal then you tell your employer a solid NO.In trucking you do not wanna leave your dispatcher any space to walk all over you because believe me they will.You give them an inch and they'll take a mile.You wanna talk bad equipment,oh my god the last company I drove for had the worst equipment imaginable.You'll be going with a mega starter company so you'll probably have good equipment and you go over the trk and trailer before you leave the terminal.If you see anything that needs to be fixed then you take it to their shop.You having fear is normal and will pass believe me.So if this is what you wanna do then I say GO FOR IT and don't let certain posts stop you from fullfilling your dream.

 

If you become a real trucker, you will always have a good respect for what could happen. This will border on fear, but you learn to control it.There are times I have lost my nerve after a close call, and had to take a few hours parked, re-gain my composure, get back up in the seat, and go back to trucking. There are times I have gotten scared from the weather, and really had to gut it out to get to a safe place to wait.
But learn from your experiences, respect the nature of the job, and go trucking. We all have concerns, but you learn to live with them.

 

Oh for C'sake Captain Kirk..You were in charge of the Starship...Enterprise.. You will be just fine. You have received some great advice here. Good Luck.

BTW. Is Lt. Uhura still single and even more important-still sexy?