The Raw Truth Of Research

Hello all,

I'm going to work backward, from everything I just read on the site; trust me it will make sense later. A couple of questions toward the end.

Prologue: After about a week and a half, the time I found this site and the insights I have gotten, the time has come for me to give a huge round of applause to Brett and many others. Phenomenal what you have going here, and quite disappointed that I didn't find it back when I started driving initially, but guess what "**** happens", right?

I loved the insight and would like to say that I will be going back into trucking somehow, some way. It is all dependant on if I can find a DOT Physician, or not, to give me a 90-day medical card to renew my expired one for the time being. If I get one I basically have my pick of where I want to go, of course, limited to companies that have refresher courses. If I don't then I will do everything I need to do to get my CDL back on track and get with a good starting company, again. Ugh! Rough but doable.

Pages 86-89 of Brett's book. I loved the insight and would like to say, for future folks considering this career, DO YOUR RESEARCH!! I sold myself short in the beginning. I only thought I knew what would happen. Yeah, I did research, but I didn't do REAL research. That lead me down a sort of blind path where I let myself/ego believe that it would be easy. I took it for granted and I let myself/ego try to control things, to put it lightly I didn't take the industry for what it was instead I was trying to reinvent the wheel to fit what I wanted. That is not how it works, and that is not how it will ever work. Sometimes that is how you learn, but hopefully, this post will help someone in the future. This is by no means to justify my decision, I don’t owe that to anyone except myself, but I thought it might be good for others that come to this site to see. As far as those last few pages go, I can't see myself not trying, truly experiencing this life. Since I sold myself short before I even had the chance to actually listen and learn more than the basics, I need a redo, LOL.

Pages 53-58 ish I am not going to argue with the facts or opinions presented, but it is extremely hard for me to see how people are cheating the ELDs. Yeah, I might have tried to cheat or did cheat a couple times in my life, but cheating has always been a huge value of mine it is just not something a person should be doing, although I know people do, but I keep myself from doing it. I hated those pages, not for the truth, but for the shock it put me in, just to come back to the beginning an be psyched out at the end, LOL, TOUCHE Brett.

Page 52 regarding, “Hard Work” vs. “Laziness” with regard to weather conditions. If we don’t feel safe to drive, I’m not being lazy, I’m being safe. I understand that over time and experience I will feel more safe, but just starting out that is not the case. Is it a matter of just dealing with it, until we have that experience under us that will make the argument show more validity?

Maybe a stupid question, sorry. How do you find the drivers and mechanics to talk to other than this site? You just show up somewhere and ask, LOL? How is this done, since many companies are in the confines of a fenced and protected area? Showing up to a random truck stop loitering?

Last notes: I have a plan to create a Company Research matrix, at least what I will be using and would like to offer that up to Brett for review and if he likes it and agrees with it, maybe he will throw it up here, or maybe something similar; you never know.

That is it, folks, good luck to all of you, and please pray for me, LOL.

Sorry if that ending seemed as though I was disappearing. I'm still here, LOL. I'm working on the High Road Program and navigating around the other great resources on the site here.

If anyone has any answers to those last 2 questions at the end would be a great help for me. Thanks.

Yep. go to any truck stop to find talkative truckers. lol many are very lonely. bring a woman with you...wife, friend gf whatever and you will see them be really chatty.

as for mechanics...i get my info from the ones at our company. i always ask them a ton of questions and they love it.....because they love their job.

I have a plan to create a Company Research matrix, at least what I will be using

One word of caution.......don't waste too much time researching companies until you've actually applied to them and have been offered a position. Over the years I've watched countless people waste weeks or even months of their time researching dozens of companies and in the end they wind up one only two or three offers. Just because you qualify for a company doesn't mean they're going to offer you a job. Companies tend to get a ton of applications and try to choose from the best ones.

So find out who is going to offer you a job, then compare those offers.

Yep. go to any truck stop to find talkative truckers. lol many are very lonely. bring a woman with you...wife, friend gf whatever and you will see them be really chatty.

Ok, a bit out of my comfort zone, but I'll give it a try. Thanks, Rainy.

One word of caution.......don't waste too much time researching companies until you've actually applied to them and have been offered a position.

Understood. Although I'm not doing it for whether I qualify, I completely understand that part. It is research for what I look for in a company. For example, CRST only pays $0.34 CPM , or thereabouts, which is better than nothing, but it would go to the bottom of my list as I can try to get into a company that may offer $0.38 CPM or higher. My matrix is a spreadsheet with 3 main tabs. Things to consider (from your book), Questions (what to ask companies when in the interview), and the Matrix. I don't know if the pic will show up. Hard to explain.

If you are still asking for me to be cautious, then no problem. I just wanted to make sure that we weren't coming from different perspectives. I have a thick head sometimes I don't understand initially.

If the link I just put in doesn't work you can see it on this one: https://imgur.com/a/F191r

CRST is a teaming company...if that is total truck miles that is darn good pay. If that is the pay tge drivers split, the not so good. in your research be sure to know what u are looking at

;)

CRST is a teaming company...if that is total truck miles that is darn good pay. If that is the pay tge drivers split, the not so good. in your research be sure to know what u are looking at

;)

Rainy, CRST splits the MILES, NOT the PAY. For example if the TRUCK does 5K miles every week and both drivers have the same experience level and are at .34 cpm then each driver would get paid .34 cpm on 2500 miles. In other words, no matter how many miles you drive you get paid HALF the miles the TRUCK turns on each trip you turn in. CRST pays on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you were wanting to join us and train people then whatever your active cpm rate is, as long as you have an ACTIVE student on the TRUCK you will receive your normal cpm rate plus a 10 cpm bonus for training someone on a load.

CRST is a teaming company...if that is total truck miles that is darn good pay. If that is the pay tge drivers split, the not so good. in your research be sure to know what u are looking at

It was an example, I just happened to use CRST by mistake, but yes I will keep a good eye out.

Good News!!!! I got my 90-day Med Cert. Yay!!!!! I can get my CDL out of Disqualified tomorrow. Don't have to go back to school, just have to find a company that does a refresher course, or my school will let me refresh for 2 days for free, then I can just find a company that will put me through their company stuff. Man, I'm so happy!!