SCHOOL, Pay on your own or let a company pay for it?

Fee legal money??? Money just laying there??? Does anyone realize where this money is coming from??? If you are a working American,it is coming out of your pocket every day in the form of taxes.,Way too many people feeding off of the hard working people in this country.

 

No they create a product that has a low payback.
In the real word if you cant pay your bills with what your doing you find a new business.
Yes I know then we would have no food, no we would just have to pay more for what they grow. Free economy
We pay more for our food anyway just via taxes.

 

Well in the real world, there something called Actual Reality. The stuff that really happens. The truth.

In the real world the product that farmers grow doesnt have a low payback...it has a cheap customer who doesn't want to pay the real value / worth of the product.

In the real world, farmers struggle paying bills after reducing their costs as much as possible. The fact is that most farmers are getting the same price today for product as they did in the 70's. Kinda hard to live in 70's income with 2000's prices and costs.

The life of a farmer is hard which is why with the $$ issue happening lately, family farms are closing down left and right. Last thing I want to see are corporations running our farmlands.

 

In my former life my ex-husband was going to become a farmer. He thought he had it all worked out and he was going to net over $100,000 a year, starting with the first year. It was hard to not laugh in his face with that kind of a crazy idea.

 

K7, if I may be so bold to say so, but it sounds like making bad decisions is a bit of a trend. I'm not attacking you, just trying to shoot straight. If my aim is off, please don't hesitate to tell me so. I digress....if you're looking for trucking as a means to make some quick income and correct/maintain your current/previous lifestyle, you need to look elsewhere. I don't care what company you go with or how much money you make per mile at said company or what career field you choose, if you don't address handling finances properly you won't be a success. During your first year as a driver you will realistically only make about 30-35k AT BEST. When I started with PAM I was single (still am), no kids (still not a daddy), and didn't even have a place of my own. No rent/mortgage. No credit card payment. No car payment. Only bill I had was a cell phone, and I didn't even have that until after my first month solo. I was only making 24 cpm and averaged about 2500-3200 miles per week. My average bring home pay for my first six months was about $400-500. After six months of safe driving I took advantage of PAM's driver trainer program and boosted my income to about $700-1000/wk bring home.

Now, a friend of mine who I met at CDL school and have maintained contact and developed a strong friendship with for the past 4 years went to work for Werner straight out of school. He made the same cpm as I did and had about the same miles/wk, but was also married, FIVE kids, house payment, etc. etc. After just over 3 months, when his pride was affected after his wife told him they were going to have to get food stamps, he quit and went back to the oilfield to play catch up. Three months after that, he came back to driving with JB Hunt and was able to stay on top of things as he went up to 32 cpm from 24. Now he's an owner operator (not with JB) and is barely scraping the barrel once again. In fact, he just asked me for a loan earlier tonight.

So you see, this job ain't gonna make all your financial problems go away. Only your ability to properly handle money will. Ever hear of Dave Ramsey? Check out his website. Google his name. (attn mods and admin: I hope this is okay for me to post, if not please delete and let me know).

<Stepping off the soap box>

 

Well not exactly off track , I moved to being a satellite dish installer as it advertised making $70,000 a year ... I found out otherwise that was not the case, techs that were making that were there for 5 yrs, I made $200 a week with alot of hours involved ..wasnt worth my time. Am I looking for quick cash .. no as the school isnt paid for 3 weeks.. I am looking for a career with plenty of opportunities. Food stamps we are already on, even $30,000 the first year is more than I made the past 5 years as a campus cop. My wife and I have been discussing for several years the possibility of me going on the road and have visited a couple of schools and asked alot of questions of them. I just wanted to know if you have any pointers for someone that may be going to P.A.M , my other choice is Schneider. I have a family friend that worked for Swift a couple years ago and has told me quite alot to keep me away from there. Whatever I do I would more or less stick with a couple years for the experience and move up, or stay if I like them enough. Either route I have made up my mind that I am going to do this, I am not expecting a miracle but as far as financial budgeting I have worked with little for some time now since 9/11 in fact and the economic fallout that got me laid off to begin with and scrambling for whatever job I can get my hands on at that time. $350-$450-$550 in a week for awhile to start will sustain us alot better than $200 at the least.

 

Ok then....now that the preaching is over and I have a bit more information, I'll tell you what I know/knew of PAM. I drove for them from 8/03 to 7/05. I found them to be a great company and in all honesty wish I'd have never left. When I was there the St. Louis area was a great location to live in/around. As with many large carriers, PAM gets through there quite regularly. In fact, I had a dedicated for about 6 months that went from Bridgeton, MO (the Trane heating/air dist. center) to Philadelphia and back. I was home every weekend and had a three day weekend every other. I don't know how much hometime you're looking for right away, but at least you know it is/should be readily available. At the very least, it won't be hard for them to route you home for time off.

Now that I understand a bit more about where you're coming from, I think you'll do just fine. I approached PAM the same way I've approached every job I've ever had...I did what I was told/asked to do when I was told/asked to do it. A positive attitude will get you a long way in this career field. There's plenty of negativity, but don't get discouraged. Basically all trucking companies are the same, (I know I'll get railroaded for this...) it's just a matter of what fits you the best. Not all that different than a winter coat, metaphorically speaking. For example, the company I'm with now isn't the best paying, but it's got the best fit for my long term career goals. Sure I could go to another carrier and make 30-50% more per mile than I am now, but will I be treated and recognized as well as I am now? Probably not, and that's why I'm here.

I wish I could tell what's the best answer for you, but you might like you're coat a little thicker than I do

 

Lol .. well sounds like at Schneider I would need a thick coat in the winter time to meet that fuel bonus. On another note I am not expecting alot of home time starting out, actually expected it to be pretty rough the first year. I am pretty much holding back on any expectations the first couple of years as well as I have seen all different kinds of experiences from others here on these forums. I am pretty much a do what I am givin kind of person with no complaints. I dont need a best paying company either .. just comfort. Thanks for the info on finances though, I will deffinately give that a look, in the long run I am sure that will be a big help.

 

Start school this Monday in St Louis

 

which school? I went to MTC in Hazelwood