Stressed to the max in Cdl school

Being your own worse critic is not going to help you. There are tons of drivers with less ability than you out here making a living. You just need to learnt he techniques that work to do the job. It's not an IQ test, it's a mechanical skill and a pattern of thinking.

To help you pass the pre-trip, break each section into smaller sections. Repeat each smaller section like a parrot. The pre-trip isn't going to be some 8 hour discussion of everything related to the truck, it's a repeat of the exact words for that section, plus an exact following of procedures for certain portions like inside the cab of the truck or the air-brake test. Memorize the pre-trip in however small the small chunks have to be for you to repeat the exact words of the test.

Also, this is a bad habit of mine, when I get frusrated I tend to focus on explaining how and why I'm not getting past he obstacle. Don't get wrapped up in explaining the difficulty or getting people to understand how frustrated you are. Focus on repeating the action or the concepts, word for word, until you pass. There are very good Pre-Trip Inspection tests on YouTube. I like this video of the PTI. You are better watching and rewatching one video than you are in watching 15 videos of different schools and drivers doing their version of the PTI.

 

Hey. How’s everything going? Here’s some tips if you still need them.

For the pretrip, prioritize learning the NAMES of every item. That’s the hardest part of it. After that use a system called ABC and BBC. ABC means Abrasions, Bulges, Cuts. BBC means Bent, Broken, Cracked. Anything rubber you say ABC. For everything else say BBC. Then of course you add on appropriate verbiage like “no leaks”, “securely mounted”.

By doing the ABC, BBC, you don’t use so much of your mental thinking of what to say, and can focus on pointing out everything you’re supposed to. You’ll find that within a few days, you’ll have the pretrip done perfectly. The in cab is easier since there’s not much inside to mention.

Driving is pretty easy once you understand the shifting pattern, and how to shift. What I found to be helpful is to figure out what area you’re having trouble in, then find a GOOD YouTube video that demonstrates it. Sometimes seeing it from the outside makes it click.