Turned 18, Plan to become a hot shot driver by 26 (hopefully), need advice

Back when the auto industry bailout was taking shape, G M admitted that about $2800.00 dollars of the price of a new car was directly due to payment of union related expenses. This would be pension and healthcare.

 

Join the military and get your cdl in there. Army & Navy have excellent programs to make you a trucker.
If you're 18 you don't need your parents permission.
That's what I did and didn't inform them until I was sworn in. "I joined the Navy and leave in a couple days for boot camp in San Diego."

 

Parents can give a guy useful life advice but at the end of the day its your life, live it how you see fit. Don't be the man who has to defer to mom & dad for every life decision.

 

I'm still confused as to why ANYBODY would actually want to drive a hot-shot? It seems those guys just pick up the crappy freight that the 'real truckers' find doesn't pay well enough. And why would you want to make a living driving a vehicle where you have to sleep in a back seat, rather than an actual sleeper?

 

There are countless threads about hot shots. Usually negative.

There’s a regular, here, who will tell you his daily operating expenses were roughly the same as an 18-wheeler and he earned way less revenue. That’s why most of these people’s equipment is beat to crap and they look like they’re starving. As another said, why would you want to live in a pickup truck?

The road looks like an amazing adventure. I get the romanticism. However, it’s nothing but chasing miles, to earn a living. You won’t be sightseeing, as some people think it is. If the wheels aren’t turnin’, you’re not earnin’. After a few years of seeing the same roads, it just becomes about dealing with idiots.

You really need to seek help from a community college guidance counselor. They see thousands of young people, throughout their years, and can offer testing to help you find your true potential. This industry is one of constant struggles, with no alternative. Once you’re in it for some years, there’s no getting out. You’ll have no life, constantly chasing miles. And, the industry is on an accelerated decline. It’s no longer enjoyable.

 

You folks in the US must use some real junk to haul logs with. Most log trucks up here are in better shape than the highway trucks.