Patience...How Do You Deal With It

One of my biggest obstacles to becoming a driver is patience...and my own pride and self worth. How do you legitimize ******* shippers and receivers regarding your time as nothing?

Be the duck and let it roll off your back. You just have to realize that there is nothing you can do about it. These people deal with whinny drivers every day. The more you wine. The slower they seem to get. Some things you have no control over so no use fretting about it.

We did have one road construction crew we delivered culverts and manholes to. Occasionally we would show up with 2 dozen donuts for the crew. It go to where they would get us unloaded before we could get the chains put away.

Occasionally we would show up with 2 dozen donuts for the crew. It go to where they would get us unloaded before we could get the chains put away.

We've been through several moves as a military family. We always provide meals and drinks while the movers load/unload our household goods. It's amazing how friendly, careful with our belongings, and efficient they are when you offer them a stack of pizzas and cold sodas, fresh coffee and donuts, icy bottles of water on a sweltering day etc. We offer it because they're doing a difficult job and deserve the appreciation.

That "kill'em with kindess" strategy is hard to deploy sometimes but, it does work. Those shippers and receivers may be feeling as underappreciated as you do. Offer some appreciation of their time, and they're likely to do the same for you. Someone always has to make the first move.

I too struggle with patience. I guess the best answer is Detention Pay!!! I just remind myself I am getting paid $20 an hour to watch movies. Granted a few hours of detention pay is helpful, but the extra load I may be missing out on could make me more. But for those places that make me sit 8 or 9 hours, lol. Go right ahead.

When i first started i had a terrible time about getting loaded and unloaded. I would panic and get all worked up. And i would be that guy that went in every hour to check. Lol

I'm much better now. Like everyone said to realize there's not anything you can do about it. The best thing to do is to make sure you have the trip planned so you don't get stuck at the shipper having to take a break there or it affecting your next trip.

I plan on 3-4 hours to load or unload. I never stay at a shipper for less than 2 hours. And if it takes 6-7 hours i try to drag it out to 8 so i can split my break.

One of my biggest obstacles to becoming a driver is patience...and my own pride and self worth. How do you legitimize ******* shippers and receivers regarding your time as nothing?

I very rarely encounter this. I always try to be polite and calm when speaking to any shipper or receiver. If you aren't like the other drivers, you normally won't be treated like them.

Now, if the person you are dealing with has just dealt with a problem driver, you might just have to deal with a grumpy person no matter how nice you are.

In the end, treat it like a poker game. No matter what hand you're dealt, be nice, and polite. If they snap at you a bit or seem frazzled, give them the benefit of the doubt. That won't stop all the male cow fecal matter, but it will reduce it to a minimum.

I know, it sounds too simple, but it really is true that the people you deal with are heavily influenced by how you approach them.

You get more flies with honey as they say. I always try to be friendly to people, and for the most part, it works. In the time I have been out here, I have only run into one person that was too much of a curmudgeon for my charm to penetrate. LOL I don't remember the receiver, but they had this older lady....looked to be retirement age at least....at the guard shack, and my lord...!! That woman was a force to be reckoned with, yelling at truck drivers and ordering these big men around like they were little kids. I just had to laugh once I was safely back in my truck and headed back to the docks. I was actually a little impressed!

Bob as a truck driver your patience will be tested everyday in a variety of ways, some expected, some not.

Patience is one of the more frequently discussed topics on the forum. It's important, and should be considered a critical part of every truck driver's tool kit. Your performance, success and at times safety can depend on your ability to maintain patience, composure and focus...

Here is a link to past threads about patience: Patience

Good luck.

God, Grant me Serenity to accept the things I cannot change. Courage to change the things I can. And Wisdom to know the DIFFERENCE. That last one is the HARD part!

In the Marines it is a common saying "hurry up and wait." You get yourself where you're supposed to be early and in the Marines you have to wait a lot. It's really boring and feels like we were getting the run around a lot. But when I look back on that job, I remember a whole lot of things I loved about it.

I think when I become a trucker and am in these situations I will focus on what I love about the job and not let the waiting bother me. Plus, like the comments above, I'll watch TV or something. And trust me, waiting and having those amenities is way better than waiting in the Marines where you're sitting on a pack waiting for something and that is boring.