Just Finished Training At Swift Academy, Lewiston, ID

Blue Zombie Trucker wrote:

I know that this makes me sound like an arrogant little prick but I put up with that clown for five weeks and I didn't learn a fraction of what I should have.

The above statement is like watching a funny movie, laughing til you cry for 90 minutes only to claim after the fact, "it wasn't the least bit funny".

I have read your diary quite a few times, and gotta say that you had numerous good things to say about your mentor in many different posts and gave detailed examples documenting this fact. Calling him a clown after the fact is "JV", somewhat a reflection on you. You had an opportunity to request a change, had second thoughts and decided to stick with him knowing there was a risk any initial improvement was superficial and might only be temporary. No one twisted your arm, it was your decision to freely make, and ultimately "one" you were responsible for making. Remember I called it out, you and your mentor were "flint and steel", it was a personality conflict. I still applaud your decision to "look past that" and ride it out but not a fan of throwing him under the bus because you decided to stick with him.

Sorry, not trying to be a hard-a**, but I am not buying your current attitude as a direct result of your mentor. Okay you were in a toxic environment, it's over and I am quite certain despite all of the personality conflicts, you learned a lot from him. Don't take my word for that, re-read the whole thread from start to finish.

Giving him the power to make you miserable at this point, is counter-productive and distracting, although it does provide some click-bait for visiting your blog.

It's in the past, get over it...you'll be a much better and safer driver as a result.

G-Town,

Wow, nice constructive critique. I hope to receive the same when I get on here and need to vent. Your insight from a different perspective is priceless. I think we all need that in order to stay grounded and focused.

Jim

Brett, dude, we need an edit function LOL!

You can use the "Preview" button to see your post before posting anything. And please do not try pushing people to your blog. I let you put a link to it in your profile but please leave it at that.

my attitude went to **** because of my mentor.

Why would you let your mentor sour your attitude toward trucking? All that's going to do is hurt you. You're not going to enjoy your job nearly as much and you're not going to have nearly as much fun as you should. Worse than that, you're not going to get along with people like you should. That will spill over into how quickly people load and unload you, how willing dispatch is to put in the extra effort to get you more miles and better runs, how quickly mechanics want to get you out of the shop, etc. You're also going to be distracted with negative thoughts about all sorts of things which is going to lead to making more mistakes.

Finally, being negative is just going to attract more negative people to you. Before you know it you're going to be hanging out with the terminal rats complaining about everything under the sun all the time.

I've watched so many people's attitude sour in this business. It quickly becomes a downward spiral and effects everything in their life. No one has ever said, "Man, things never started going good for me in my life until I started complaining about everything and being miserable all the time." No one. Ever.

Brett, I believe I have removed all references to my blog from TT. If I missed any please let me know.

Brett, I believe I have removed all references to my blog from TT. If I missed any please let me know.

You didn't have to remove it from your profile. You can put it there. That's what it's there for. That way people can contact you or learn more about you. Just don't use your posts to promote it, otherwise we'll have 10,000 people here doing that all the time.

He taught me nothing at all about route planning

Hey, BZT! I was wondering if you wouldn't mind discussing a little bit about what route planning entails. What have you had to teach yourself? I know nothing about it, so pretend you're explaining it to a child.

RealDiehl wrote to BlueZombie Trucker:

He taught me nothing at all about route planning

Hey, BZT! I was wondering if you wouldn't mind discussing a little bit about what route planning entails. What have you had to teach yourself? I know nothing about it, so pretend you're explaining it to a child.

If you really want the straight scoop, check out this link: Trip planning

Thanks, G! Just what the doctor ordered...

Blue Zombie Trucker wrote:

I know that this makes me sound like an arrogant little prick but I put up with that clown for five weeks and I didn't learn a fraction of what I should have.

The above statement is like watching a funny movie, laughing til you cry for 90 minutes only to claim after the fact, "it wasn't the least bit funny".

I have read your diary quite a few times, and gotta say that you had numerous good things to say about your mentor in many different posts and gave detailed examples documenting this fact. Calling him a clown after the fact is "JV", somewhat a reflection on you. You had an opportunity to request a change, had second thoughts and decided to stick with him knowing there was a risk any initial improvement was superficial and might only be temporary. No one twisted your arm, it was your decision to freely make, and ultimately "one" you were responsible for making. Remember I called it out, you and your mentor were "flint and steel", it was a personality conflict. I still applaud your decision to "look past that" and ride it out but not a fan of throwing him under the bus because you decided to stick with him.

Sorry, not trying to be a hard-a**, but I am not buying your current attitude as a direct result of your mentor. Okay you were in a toxic environment, it's over and I am quite certain despite all of the personality conflicts, you learned a lot from him. Don't take my word for that, re-read the whole thread from start to finish.

Giving him the power to make you miserable at this point, is counter-productive and distracting, although it does provide some click-bait for visiting your blog.

It's in the past, get over it...you'll be a much better and safer driver as a result.

I had to do a double take when he went there. I thought I had missed a page or something. All in all, I liked the first hand account of the struggle to remain detached & composed, which was very admirable, all the way up to the point that he flipped the script. I can bottle up many things,thinking I could handle it, only to talk crap as soon I get a simpathetic ear. It’s human nature I guess but hope that if I ever go there, everyone on here can pile on all they want. Constructive & instructive criticism is very appreciated. Thank you blue zombie for the honesty & for putting yourself out there for us to learn from.

Reyn wrote:

I had to do a double take when he went there. I thought I had missed a page or something. All in all, I liked the first hand account of the struggle to remain detached & composed, which was very admirable, all the way up to the point that he flipped the script.

Reyn I can understand your "double-take" on the ending of BZT's diary. However this is not all that uncommon. We see this scenario repeatedly. Look at Paul's "just another Prime diary". A similar end. Why? It's about the intersection of hope, expectations and managing the scope of reality when family is involved.

Many people attemp entry into this career, only to learn through experience, it's not at all what they thought it would be. Or perhaps in this case, the significant other either didn't understand the process or realized early on it wasn't going to work for them. How truck driving affects and alters the family dynamic is not always predictable. One can never be sure...

What I am sure of; this diary stamps an exclamation point on the need to set reasonable goals and establish realistic expectations before committing. This also includes family members as well. The burden of sacrifices and adjustments also falls on them. Unfortunately BZT now owes Swift for the full tuition.

Must reads to help with understanding:

Becoming A Truck Driver: The Raw Truth About Truck Driving

Truck Driver's Career Guide