Female Financial Analyst turned O/O?

First of all, he doesn't strike me as knowing near as much as he thinks he does. Secondly, there are people on this site who have skin in the game, and, I think are pretty sharp cookies. Those are the ones you should listen to. There are several, and here are three. Ridgeline, Humblepie, and Ruthless. There are more if you need them. Also, if you haven't noticed, there is a lot of bull...t on this site so be careful who you listen to or take seriously.

 

There are many free load boards on the net. Spend a few weeks running simulations. This will provide you a small idea. Word of caution. Don’t let the money blind you. Logistics = maximizing time and profit in my world. Even if you have to leave money on the table today. Leaving money on the table today, means a driver earns nothing. How many times will he do that before he quits?

Are you buying new trucks, or used? Peruse this forum for the many pitfalls of either choice. Or watch the movie Money Pit.

The 2 highest cost of running a truck, are fuel and paying the driver. How are you going to pay drivers? Percentage, or per mile.

Who will be responsible for finding the loads? For how many trucks?

Who will handle the phones? Trucking is 24/7. And a driver who has a problem, perceived or real. Is a pissed off driver if he can’t get answers.

Insurance as a new company will be expensive. The people you hire can have a direct impact on pricing.

Are you prepared to pay the cost of recovering a truck after it has been abandoned on the west coast?

These are just a few things that fall under the large umbrella referred to as logistics. They’re not by any means complete. Nor do they reflect what others consider logistics to be.

In the alternate world of truck driving. Any driver could buy/lease a truck and make money. But in the real world, 90% fail.

Owning a truck is work. It will tax your body and mind. How you plan those trucks, may tax your soul. Telling a driver who’s child, spouse, parent just died that you can’t find a load or that he’s on his own if he wants to fly home, comes with a price.

 

don't buy it. DONT. its an epa10 truck. you will have continually problems with that truck.

 

Well, I dont have a college degree. I never saw the fiscal sense in going hundreds of thousands of dollars into debt to come out so far in debt it would take many years to pay off earning only slightly more than an honest hardworking professional in a blue collar field.

Secondly there is no credit given in trucking to those with college degrees, you will start out making the same as everyone else.

Many OO claim/brag about making 150-200k a year. No, honestly the truck made that, not them. Factor in insurance, plates, ifta, fuel, maintenance, truck payment, and any other expenses they will make anywhere from 25-40% of that giving how business savy they are.

Many claim rainbows and unicorns and pots of gold, until they have a road service call, or God forbid major work needed on truck, then ooh, couldn't afford it out of business.

Finally it took me many years to get into the position I'm in now financially, sacrificing way too much. I wouldn't advise this profession( I use that term loosely today, look at some of the "professional driver" out here today) to anyone with other career paths.

But anyways best of luck to you

 

Because some, more like the few that make it have a wealth of knowledge and experience in the industry before they go over to the O/O side and are prepared for what they are going into. The others dive right in with no experience or knowledge of operating costs and no money set aside for the learning curve. Im sure others have said it in this post, but I cant stress how important it is to know this business from both an owner and drivers standpoint. Otherwise you'll get eaten alive.

 

Well obviously that is the best time to buy, I dont have a degree and I know that.