Starting School

Hey y'all. Here goes. On our way to O'Fallon IL to start school for Earl L. Henderson. We are so super excited. Of course my husband has driven before for about 10 years and got out of it for a while and now I am gonna do it with him, so I'm a little more nervous than him. Any calming words of advice for this rookie gal?

Believe it or not, the people who run into the biggest problems with their careers early on are people who come into the industry with a rigid set of expectations and strong opinions about pretty much everything. They expect to be treated a certain way, trained a certain way, and they think they have the entire process figured out in their head. Then they arrive for orientation and training, find out everything is completely different than they had imagined, and start believing that the company is disorganized or unprofessional.

So these student drivers start questioning everything. Why don't I get more time in the truck? Why do they keep changing our schedule around? Why aren't the instructors spending more time with us? Why do we spend so much time waiting on things? Why aren't they sending me out on the road sooner?

Before long they start getting an attitude and begin confronting the staff and drumming up discontent amongst the other students. Their attitude continues to sour, they get more confrontational with the staff, and before long they're on a bus headed home. Naturally they blame the company for their demise and begin hitting every website they can find to badmouth the company.

The best thing you can do is go in with a great attitude and an open mind. Whatever you expect, toss it aside and deal with whatever is in front of you instead. Just roll with it. Do what you're asked to do and do it with a smile. Someday you'll understand why things are done the way they are in this industry but in the beginning it's going to seem baffling. Don't sweat it. Just keep listening, learning, working hard, and do it all with a great attitude.

Here is some reading for you:

• Important Truths for Rookie Drivers: Surviving Your First 6 Months
• The Story Of Why So Many Rookie Drivers Fail And How To Avoid It
• Rookie Drivers: Time Management Tips And Mileage Goals
• Observations From a Rookie Truck Driver
• Truck Driver's Career Guide: Getting Through The First Year - Expectations And Preparations
• Your Trainer Will Test You On Far More Than Just Your Driving Skills
• Forum Topics Tagged "First Solo Months On The Road
• Forum Topics Tagged "Hard Lessons Learned"

Hey yall. Here goes. On our way to O'Fallon IL to start school for Earl L. Henderson. We are so super excited. Of course my husband has driven before for about 10 years and got out of it for a while and now I am gonna doit with him, so Im a lil more nervous than him. Any calming words of advice for this rookie gal?

Deep breaths, stay focused and listen to the people teaching you. I'll be there on the 26th, perhaps I'll catch you guys around the yard.

Hey yall. Here goes. On our way to O'Fallon IL to start school for Earl L. Henderson. We are so super excited. Of course my husband has driven before for about 10 years and got out of it for a while and now I am gonna doit with him, so Im a lil more nervous than him. Any calming words of advice for this rookie gal?

Deep breaths, stay focused and listen to the people teaching you. I'll be there on the 26th, perhaps I'll catch you guys around the yard.

Awesome. Maybe we will see each other. You coming alone?

The following comments appear often here. Some may not actually apply to you. I won't provide answers here, my point is: It's not you, it's the way it works:

* We don't have enough time to get this down.

* 11 hours? 10 hours? 14 hours? When do I sleep, when do I drive?

* This d**n trailer won't back like I need it to! Arrrgh!

* Double clutch! Clutch-Neutral-Clutch-Shift. I can play the piano but I can't move my feet that fast!

* How do you fit this thing between the lane lines? It's too big!

* I did it once, but the 90° alley dock back-up is killing me!

* I need more time to ______________ (fill in the blank) before my CDL skills test!

- + - + - +
Michael's advice is about it.

For the pain of backing practice I've recommended getting a small toy semi-truck trailer from Walmart. It helps you visualize the truck-trailer relationships as you back up.

Hey yall. Here goes. On our way to O'Fallon IL to start school for Earl L. Henderson. We are so super excited. Of course my husband has driven before for about 10 years and got out of it for a while and now I am gonna doit with him, so Im a lil more nervous than him. Any calming words of advice for this rookie gal?

Deep breaths, stay focused and listen to the people teaching you. I'll be there on the 26th, perhaps I'll catch you guys around the yard.

Awesome. Maybe we will see each other. You coming alone?

Yep yep, flying solo lol

Believe it or not, the people who run into the biggest problems with their careers early on are people who come into the industry with a rigid set of expectations and strong opinions about pretty much everything. They expect to be treated a certain way, trained a certain way, and they think they have the entire process figured out in their head. Then they arrive for orientation and training, find out everything is completely different than they had imagined, and start believing that the company is disorganized or unprofessional.

So these student drivers start questioning everything. Why don't I get more time in the truck? Why do they keep changing our schedule around? Why aren't the instructors spending more time with us? Why do we spend so much time waiting on things? Why aren't they sending me out on the road sooner?

Before long they start getting an attitude and begin confronting the staff and drumming up discontent amongst the other students. Their attitude continues to sour, they get more confrontational with the staff, and before long they're on a bus headed home. Naturally they blame the company for their demise and begin hitting every website they can find to badmouth the company.

The best thing you can do is go in with a great attitude and an open mind. Whatever you expect, toss it aside and deal with whatever is in front of you instead. Just roll with it. Do what you're asked to do and do it with a smile. Someday you'll understand why things are done the way they are in this industry but in the beginning it's going to seem baffling. Don't sweat it. Just keep listening, learning, working hard, and do it all with a great attitude.

Here is some reading for you:

• Important Truths for Rookie Drivers: Surviving Your First 6 Months
• The Story Of Why So Many Rookie Drivers Fail And How To Avoid It
• Rookie Drivers: Time Management Tips And Mileage Goals
• Observations From a Rookie Truck Driver
• Truck Driver's Career Guide: Getting Through The First Year - Expectations And Preparations
• Your Trainer Will Test You On Far More Than Just Your Driving Skills
• Forum Topics Tagged "First Solo Months On The Road
• Forum Topics Tagged "Hard Lessons Learned"

Believe it or not, the people who run into the biggest problems with their careers early on are people who come into the industry with a rigid set of expectations and strong opinions about pretty much everything. They expect to be treated a certain way, trained a certain way, and they think they have the entire process figured out in their head. Then they arrive for orientation and training, find out everything is completely different than they had imagined, and start believing that the company is disorganized or unprofessional.

So these student drivers start questioning everything. Why don't I get more time in the truck? Why do they keep changing our schedule around? Why aren't the instructors spending more time with us? Why do we spend so much time waiting on things? Why aren't they sending me out on the road sooner?

Before long they start getting an attitude and begin confronting the staff and drumming up discontent amongst the other students. Their attitude continues to sour, they get more confrontational with the staff, and before long they're on a bus headed home. Naturally they blame the company for their demise and begin hitting every website they can find to badmouth the company.

The best thing you can do is go in with a great attitude and an open mind. Whatever you expect, toss it aside and deal with whatever is in front of you instead. Just roll with it. Do what you're asked to do and do it with a smile. Someday you'll understand why things are done the way they are in this industry but in the beginning it's going to seem baffling. Don't sweat it. Just keep listening, learning, working hard, and do it all with a great attitude.

Here is some reading for you:

• Important Truths for Rookie Drivers: Surviving Your First 6 Months
• The Story Of Why So Many Rookie Drivers Fail And How To Avoid It
• Rookie Drivers: Time Management Tips And Mileage Goals
• Observations From a Rookie Truck Driver
• Truck Driver's Career Guide: Getting Through The First Year - Expectations And Preparations
• Your Trainer Will Test You On Far More Than Just Your Driving Skills
• Forum Topics Tagged "First Solo Months On The Road
• Forum Topics Tagged "Hard Lessons Learned"

Thanks for the words of advice guys. I really dont know what to expect. All I can do is walk in there as humble as I can and absorb what Im being taught.

Make your time on the truck count. Lots of students, but you'll get your turn. Be patient. Henderson is very patient with the students. It's a good school and great company

Well I am here. Checked into the hotel this morning at aroynd 2 am. I start tomorrow. Here goes nothing. Or everything rather. Im nervous as ****. Prpbably wont sleep well tonight. Talked to some of the other guys in classes before me. Not real positive about how this all works. Some guys seem to have alot more info that i didnt even concider. I guess all I can do is go in with an open mind and hope that my husband with all his prior expirence will be able to guide me a lil.

Some guys seem to have alot more info that i didnt even concider.

What info did they have that you did not consider?