Tapeworm in the Office

I'm surprised no one is asking Tapeworm any questions when we have a potential gold mine of insider information. I have a few. First, can you explain in detail the process from when Joe Customer calls and says he has a thousand widgets that he needs delivered to his customer. Who does what from the time that call comes in until I get a pplan?

The reason I ask is I would like to know who I will be referring to when I send an email to Richard Stocking, copied to my DM and everyone else up the food chain, requesting an explanation why whomever on the night and weekend crews do nothing to get pplans out to the drivers,a pattern of behavior I encounter everywhere in the country.
Thanks in advance,
Frank

 

It's really simple, you want to make money or not? Every limitation you put on yourself limits your opportunity to make money.

Only want to run a certain region - limit

Want to maintain a regular schedule - limit

Don't want to do live loads/unloads - limit

Want to be home every other week - limit

Don't want to do short loads - limit

Only want to drive in the sunshine - limit

Don't want to build relationships with your DM or planners - big limit

There's a 192 hours in an 8 day period ... you're only allowed to work 70 of them ... the other 122 are yours. You don't always get to use them where you want but they are yours.


My rules for myself are simple ... If I got hours - and I always have some hours - use them. Go where the freight is, the inside of my truck looks the same if I'm 30 miles or 3000 miles from my house.

 

good points

dont be afraid of those local loads, a lot of drivers think its a waste of time but they add up if you can do several plus a lot of times you do these as a "favor" for a planner in need and you can work it to your advantage (sometimes)

One of my largest checks ever was doing shorthauls all week so keep that in mind, you get premium pay plus shorthaul pay of $25. Some work out nice and some nail you with sitting time being unloaded or loaded. Sometimes im just sent to pick up a preloaded trailer and then tcall it at a terminal which is easy and fast money. But time and time again there are drivers who will not take it.

The other night in Lathrop they asked the drivers if anyone wanted to run a local load to help them.....nobody said yes, just some snickers and silence. I was without hours so wouldnt be able to. Sometimes the mechanics will come in and ask if someone wants to go do a road test and get paid for it, another a lot of drivers seem to turn down.

The point as mystic was saying, keep options open and be willing to do things you dont like to do, I have learnt this myself and my checks got better and better once I opened myself a bit more, only limit I give myself is keeping western regional.

 

I forgot to mention learn the pay scales for miles, a load that is under 25 miles will not give you shorthaul pay, instead you need to make sure and request you get paid hourly to take that load. I learnt this after getting screwed a couple times, one day I asked why I only got paid less than a dollar to take a load where I sat for 3 hours to also get it unloaded and I was mad that day saying I would never help with a local load again, the DM made it right and explained to me in these situations they will pay you by the hour but most of the time you have to talk to your DM to set it up.