Wanting to become O/O with no OTR experience!!!

i don't suppose it has occurred to anyone alot of companies demand a tractor less than 10 years old. other companies demand (due to insurance) more than 1 year recent experiance. also, think about some quality time in the brig after a receiver that refuses a load, or refuses to unload you when promised. then there's the strong possibility of that "perfect" truck" breaking down on sunday night, which leave you stranded.

those things, and many more situations happen all the time. this business isn't like any job with regular hours, guaranteed pay, and benefits, and not having enough money to hold you in case of a major breakdown is the sure path to finanacial ruin. the second truck i bought i got from a finance company for next to nothing with a blown detroit in it which i replaced. i ran into the guy who had it before me, who toldme about how much money he had put into the thing, and how he simply could afford a used engine after the crank snapped. (but it ran GREAT until then). i bought that truck for $4,500.00, and put 12 into it to have a good reliable tractor. the previous owner bought it for 27k, ran it for about a year, had it paid down to under 19k, and the finanace company was coming after him for 16k the guy didn't have. he lost his house in the bankruptcy.

yeah, that can happen to you, as it has happened to thousands of others.

it's a tough business.

and there's this. you have a commitment which comes first. ever look at the news? what happens if you get sent overseas? you gonna tell me that's impossible?

here's the best advise you are gonna get. finish your commitment, get a job driving for someone else to gain experiance/ knowledge/ build a resume`, and see if you still like it so much after a year. with all the new regs, a bunch of owner operators are giving it up voluntarily, and even more will bankrupt. consider the economy, and the outlook for the next few years. it doesn't look good, and o-o's can't compete with the major companies that will scramble for any work they can get and will slash rates to do so. j.b. hunt can make a million dollars a day running each truck they have a 5 cents a mile over cost, can you?

think with you head and not your heart. that's how BUSINESS people operate. you are destined to fail if you don't, and will end up ruined, and that is the real truth. thinking like a 5 year old girl and only seeing what you want to makes you as business smart as........ a 5 year old girl, and this is a business.

having a business vision is a wonderful thing, and i comment you for wanting to become a business person, and striking out on your own, but this business is having more than it's share of trouble right now, and isn't stable. in short, do what i said, and you might survive, but it will be against the odds.

finally.......

thank you for your service to our country.