23, High School Diploma, Going Into Trucking

Hello everyone. I'm a he, 23, and I live in Tennessee. Due to certain circumstances in life this will be my first real job - if I make it that far. I wasn't really sure this would be the best option but due to pressure from other sources and the fact that I live in a rural area between Nash and Chatt with few career opportunities, I decided to give this a go.

In January I went on a run to Kansas City with a friend who's been trucking for a few years (he drives Star). I went to get a general feel of what it would be like, the conditions, etc. It wasn't like anything I'd experienced before (first time being in an 18 wheeler). He had Automatic and a nice sleeper. It was an overnight run so I just slept in the truck for one day. It took me a while to get to sleep, what with the vibration and noises, but I realized I could do it.

I took a few months to think about it and realized I may as well give it a go. (Plus, it took a while to jump through hoops with talking to various people and entities). 23, no degree, but I want to make decent money now. Why not trucking? I got a WIOA grant due to my financial situation and haven't had to pay hardly anything out of pocket, which is good, since I don't have anything. I'm in the Nashville area going to a school to get my class A CDL right now, I just passed the permit test yesterday and will start actually driving in the range today. Everything's sorta been up in the air what with Corona, but I decided to go ahead and get this over with.

Here's my situation. I live with my girlfriend's parents, my gf and I have been together about 9 months now, and we want to get married and start a life together as soon as I have enough saved up to make it feasible financially. I never was very serious about school, a job, any of that until recently, now I'm determined to get on the fast track. I don't want to go back to school. I was in college for two semesters (failed the first, went back and failed the second) only because, at the time, I had no motivation and didn't like school. But that was before me and her were serious. Bottom line is within, say, a year I'd like to be able to: 1. Buy a relatively cheap used car 2. Rent or buy a cheap house out in the country (could be a shack or barn for all I care) 3. Get good benefits (health insurance for eyes, ears, specialists, dentist) 4. Good insurance overall 5. Engagement ring and possibly others

I figured McDonald's wouldn't cut it so here I am trying to get into trucking. Basically, my options are limited, but the time for dillydally is overwith and I want to have a job that allows me to make $40-$60k this first year (I feel like that's realistic, and any less than that is not really an option anyway), but in order to support a family with her, have kids, move into a larger home with property I'd like to within a few years be making $70-$100k+. I'm trying to stay grounded, keep my expectations realistic, but I really believe I can do it if I keep myself motivated and working hard. Trying to without a degree, in the country, is tough - but that's why I looked into this, knowing it will be hard on me, my girlfriend, everybody.

I was looking at working for Star/Covenant, mostly because that's one that this school I'm in works with, and because the guy I went on run with works there. But I looked up numbers for average annual salary and was a bit disheartened. Basically y'all get the gist, I'm just trying to maximize lack of experience and be paid as much as I can so that my girlfriend and I can move out and start a life together. I have no particular interest in trucking and wouldn't choose it if I had other options, although I have always loved to travel and drive. What do you guys recommend? Certain company you'd recommend? One class of license over another? Knowing there are mostly unknowns right now with corona, will pay increase because of the demand or decrease because of the lockdowns? I won't actually finish with training till early Summer though, if I go with Covenant.

Also, my girlfriend just dropped out of college, no degree, and is looking for a job, we've thought about going into trucking together, if we both did we'd be making a lot more and could potentially even drive together after a year or so?

There's basically nothing tying us down at the moment. Thanks!

Welcome to the forum, Patrick.

Once you decide to jump into this industry, jump in with both feet. Give it your all. Put thoughts of girlfriends, vehicles, and houses aside as you focus on being a safe, productive truck driver. The rest will fall in line in due time. Good luck! Let us know how it's going.

Welcome to the forum. Take a look at these links, particularly Brett's book to see what you're getting into.

• Truck Driver's Career Guide
• Brett's Book: The Raw Truth About Trucking (free online version)
• High Road CDL Training Program
• CDL Practice Tests

The first year numbers are possible but 35 to 40k is more common. Your first year will have a steep learning curve. Most top tier over the road (OTR) drivers can make around 80k. If you're looking for 100k or higher you will likely need to get into a specialty such as line haul or heavy haul. I know you have a grant to do your schooling for free but I still highly recommend Paid CDL Training Programs. My reasoning is the company has invested time and money into you becoming a productive driver for them. Also with your non existent work history you are going to have trouble finding a job. Contrary to what most people believe a CDL DOES NOT guarantee you a job. The driver shortage we hear about is for safe productive drivers. It isn't difficult for most people to do basic maneuvers in a controlled environment to pass a test. It's much more difficult to prove you got what it takes while driving over 100k miles per year while maintaining 100% on time deliveries and no accidents. The average OTR driver works over 80 hours a week when you factor in everything they do while logged off duty. These companies have a huge turnover rate and most new drivers don't make it more than a few months, even less make it a full year. If you don't have work history you're going to hear a lot of "no" when it comes to a job offer. If you go through paid training you're guaranteed a job as long as you pass the licensing tests. Regardless, get 1 year of OTR experience and many doors will open for you. All the major companies will have pretty similar benefits for medical and dental but the price will vary a bit as it does in every industry. Your plan to save a ton of money is very do-able by living in your truck IF you can avoid the temptation of eating out every day. Good luck, please keep us updated.

I'm 30 on a GED and was able to pull in 90k last year, now that was with linehaul which is different than OTR. You should be able to make 70k+ in a few years some of our members here have and there are a few threads around here on it.

Yes your girlfriend could get her license as well and you guys could team with certain companies.