Considering A Career As A Trucker... Any Advice?

As far as employment options in the meantime go, sometimes we have to deal with jobs we don't like until we find something better. I have experience in wireless, and if you're good at sales it isn't bad for something temporary. How are your typing skills? Maybe there's a data entry position available nearby. Sometimes you can do it from home. If you are fast and accurate enough it's easy money.

Hey, you know what, get your license and think about delivering pizzas. I did that for a while in high school, and I always had cash in my pocket, did a lot of driving, and gained experience finding customers and delivering undamaged goods in a safe and time-sensitive manner.

But, after re-reading your posts, I'd say you need to work on passing that driving test. Being nervous is something you have to deal with. I passed my car test on the first try. Truck test second try. The school was sending us home on a bus with a student loan still to pay if we failed it a third.

Something to think about. Man up and get 'er done.

Hey, Christopher W. We have the same first name and middle initial lol.

Oh, the W actually stands for Williams, my middle name is Collin. :P

Man, I was living at home when I was 22. That's actually the year I moved out and started in retail for the first time. I had moved out and moved back in before that.

Yeah, the thing about it though is, sadly I didn't really have a choice. All throughout high school I was going to be that guy who goes to college for an IT degree, but when I graduated for one reason or another my parents decided more or less that they didn't want anything to do with me. I moved in with my aunt for a while but after she started stealing and selling my video games, I decided I wasn't going to deal with her anymore. I ended up moving in with my grandpa, which wasn't so bad, but he lives too far out in the country to walk into town, and even then none of the local places were hiring because they tend to hire people and keep them for years and years. I guess to make a long story short, it was a commuter town and I didn't have a car. No car no job, no job no car.

I am just going to share my personal opinion with you. Take it for what it's worth. I am not an official spokesperson for the website or anything like that.

My personal opinion is that, despite a lot of what you hear, driving experience of any kind is beneficial before starting trucking. Highway driving as well, since that's when you're usually going the faster speed and posing the most danger to the public as well as to yourself.

Well yeah, it's really common sense and I'm kind of kicking myself now for not realizing this sooner. Then again, up until now I knew little about trucking other than what you learn from TV and movies, and this website has really changed my opinion. I've even gone and watched a few trucking vlogs, and it seems like a fun job. I understand it's not all sunshine and puppies, but compared to anything else you can do for a living, especially at my age, it looks nice. :P

My advice would be, go take the test and get your regular operator license as soon as possible. Drive as much as possible. Get a cheap car, or ask your parents or whomever to let you drive as much as possible. There are instincts in driving that develop over time that can't be learned any other way than actually driving. In a car, a close call is nothing to shrug off, but in a truck, that margin between a close call and outright catastrophe is mighty slim. Let me tell you, I don't doubt that if I hadn't had over 25 years of experience driving other vehicles before starting in a truck, I would have had a major accident or killed someone or myself by now. People will do stuff around a truck they normally wouldn't even do around another car, and it takes every bit of skill and luck combined sometimes to avoid a messy, messy situation. Truck drivers can go to prison over accidents.

Yeah, I was looking into getting a $500 Craigslist beater before I thought about becoming a trucker, rationalizing that when I can afford the Beetle I want to eventually own I can give whatever I get now to my friends. As for asking someone to let me drive, the closest thing I have to parents is my roommate, sometimes she lets me drive on grocery runs but never anything major. Driving a truck does seem like a somewhat frightening task, but I'm sure they wouldn't pass me for my CDL if I wasn't ready, y'know? I'm pretty careful, but I realize sometimes accidents happen... It's a sad fact of life. I considered bus driving, but that will hardly earn you a living wage. :c

A lot of the ability to determine in advance what the vehicles around you are about to do is the knowledge of having been in their similar situation yourself, and having observed other drivers' behaviours around you when you are driving in general, truck, car, bicycle, whatever.

I am not saying you can't start driving a truck and learn and develop the necessary skills without any other experience, I am saying IN MY OPINION - ANY experience helps. Sure, trucks shift different, and you have to learn how to properly shift a truck, and if you've shifted synchronized transmissions all your life it takes some getting used to, BUT there are aspects of driving a standard transmission that experience, synchronized or not, helps.

Yeah, sadly almost every vehicle I've driven has been automatic, but whenever I get my Bug I do plan on getting one with a manual transmission. Sadly that's going to be a while from now, as I want to make sure I get one that's been taken care of and will likely end up spending $5,000 or more on it. I did learn to drive manual in a 1968 Beetle, so I know a little about it, I just never drove manual on the road yet.

During the time you are developing driving skills in general, one year if necessary, see if you can find a place to access a truck simulator, or heck if you got a computer get 18 Wheels of Steel on Steam, or Euro Truck Simulator, and play that a little. It's not an actual truck simulator by any means but can give you an idea of why a truck turns wider and slower than a Porsche, etc., and practice backing it. After crunching a few light poles and little 4-wheelers in a game or simulator, you might see how easy it is to do, and reflect on how each of those incidents could be a trucking career-ender or ticket to prison time in real life.

I would highly recommend an actual professional truck simulator if you can somehow find access to one. I don't know what it would cost. When it comes time to go to a trucking school, I would recommend finding one that is NOT fast paced. (Unless you find you are particularly gifted when it comes to driving... which is possible.)

I'd look into it, might help me to get a wheel as well rather than just playing with the xBox controller I usually use. I have used the Freightliner in Midtown Madness 2 a few times, but that's hardly an accurate simulation of anything. :P

However you choose to pursue your trucking career, I think the most important thing right now is to get your actual driver's license as soon as possible. Focus on the basics. General rules of the road are universal. Signal before turning and 300ft on a highway before changing lanes. Come to a complete stop at signals and stop signs, etc. How to merge onto an interstate. Stuff like that. Following distance, etc. Knowledge is one thing. Experience is another.

The advantage you have is that it doesn't sound like you have a lot of aggressive or bad habits. You can start this with a pretty-much clean slate. And, you know what your goal is, and can devise a plan to obtain it.

Like I said, this is all just my personal opinion.

Yeah, I'm generally pretty relaxed. I get nervous easily, but it's pretty difficult to get me angry or upset.

Thanks! :)

As far as employment options in the meantime go, sometimes we have to deal with jobs we don't like until we find something better. I have experience in wireless, and if you're good at sales it isn't bad for something temporary. How are your typing skills? Maybe there's a data entry position available nearby. Sometimes you can do it from home. If you are fast and accurate enough it's easy money.

Yeah, sadly... My typing skills are actually very good, I've been looking for data entry since I started looking for jobs. They always seem to have plenty of them in Dallas, but that's a 30 minute drive away. I've considered getting a bike and commuting to Dallas VIA bike -> train -> bike just until I can afford my car.

Hey, you know what, get your license and think about delivering pizzas. I did that for a while in high school, and I always had cash in my pocket, did a lot of driving, and gained experience finding customers and delivering undamaged goods in a safe and time-sensitive manner.

The funny thing is, there's actually a pizza place right down the street within walking distance and my roommate told me I should see about getting hired on as the phone guy. Might be worth a shot, I've heard you can get promoted from phone guy to delivery pretty quick.

But, after re-reading your posts, I'd say you need to work on passing that driving test. Being nervous is something you have to deal with. I passed my car test on the first try. Truck test second try. The school was sending us home on a bus with a student loan still to pay if we failed it a third.

Something to think about. Man up and get 'er done.

Yeah... I'd call it more stage fright than anything else really, thinking way way back, when I had first got my learner's permit I actually drove my aunt's family home from Cartersville to Rockmart in a 1980s Buick Skylark in the middle of the night and handled it pretty smoothly. If the DMV let you listen to music or anything like that in the car I'd probably have a much easier time passing. :P

Mmmm... generally speaking, I wouldn't recommend turning on the radio while taking your test.

The best thing to do right now is get your roommate to let you drive as much as possible, with a focus on taking your driving test as soon as possible. She could let you take it in her car. Ask her to let you drive more. If you can get that data entry position 30 minutes away, see if you two can figure out a way for her to help you commute if you help with gasoline cost. And, if you can do the driving... BONUS.

I would imagine that driving as much as possible before you take your test will take care of most of the testing jitters. If I hadn't driven that much before I took my car test I would have been nervous as heck, but, I started driving out on the farm at about 4 years old, doing the steering and shifting while sittin' in grandpa's lap. I learned to drive ol' Allice (tractor) out there, and the fear of her flipping over on me and killing me was enough to teach me smooth clutching. By the time I was 6 I was driving the ol' Dodge in the fields with a trailer next to the bailer while the big kids loaded the bales of hay on it, which was when I learned the basics of trailer backing. By the time I was 12 I had my own '64 Chevy with 3 on the tree, blazing my own trails through the fields, much to grandfather's dismay. When I got my permit at 15 1/2, I drove a lot. I went to test in my dad's Buick automatic, and the tester refused to test me in it because it had Missouri plates (I'm an Okie.) So, we went back and got my car, a Mazda with a standard transmission. I think since it was my own car I did even better than I would have in the automatic. The tester took a look at my red winged wiper blades, and the newly installed Sparkomatic radio, and figured out it was my car. I think I hit the curb on the parallel park, but he passed me anyway.

I am not trying to brag or anything, but the thing is, even after all that, and 25 years later of driving experience, when I got in the truck it was a challenge. I almost cried in school once because I struggled with my self confidence as a 40-year old (at the time) whether or not I was going to be able to pull it off. I am a single parent with a 15yr old (he turned 13 while I was in school) and that was a lot of pressure to be under. I was NERVOUS, you can bet. Even with all the life experience I had up to that point. Even yesterday when I got back to the yard and had to back a trailer in-between two crooked trailers that were double-stacked (in front of) the two trailers that were aside my spot, I struggled with it. The lot is dirt, and the engine fan and air-dryer puffing dirt all up around everywhere, I couldn't see much of anything, and the sun was either in my face, or reflecting off a surface somewhere into my eyes. I recently got a different truck and I am still getting used to it. Even after acing the last several drops I had to do, I was over-steering and over-correcting, and there were students watching me laughing their butts off. But I got it in there without hitting anything, pulling up at least 4 times. Dealing with nervousness and pressure is a trucking job requirement. I would dare to say, a LIFE requirement. Tackle your driving challenge. Even if you don't go into trucking, DRIVING is something I highly recommend taking seriously and would delay no further in your progression. You can see how a 30 minute commute is a challenge now, and how your life's progression in being hindered by your driving situation. Working and saving for a car may be your only alternative, but I would really be trying to work something out with your roommate if at all possible. Make a pretend driving test course around where you live and get her to let you do it a few times, and then go test.

Just my opinion.

Hey, one thing I forgot to mention. I wish I had started this when I was 21.

You can live in your truck, with no rent and utilities, car payment and insurance, and those types of expenses to worry about, and just make and save money. As a company driver, fuel, maintenance, and expenses like that won't be a concern. If you control your spending on food and stuff, you can find yourself well on the way to a debt free lifestyle, money saved, ready to move on to whatever you want later in life. Buy a house. A car. When the time is right.

If you can focus and put forth the effort, your whole life situation can change for the better. In one sense, you've got a 20-year head-start on me for a better life situation when you're my age.

Hey, one thing I forgot to mention. I wish I had started this when I was 21.

You can live in your truck, with no rent and utilities, car payment and insurance, and those types of expenses to worry about, and just make and save money. As a company driver, fuel, maintenance, and expenses like that won't be a concern. If you control your spending on food and stuff, you can find yourself well on the way to a debt free lifestyle, money saved, ready to move on to whatever you want later in life. Buy a house. A car. When the time is right.

If you can focus and put forth the effort, your whole life situation can change for the better. In one sense, you've got a 20-year head-start on me for a better life situation when you're my age.

Oh wow... Even when you're not on assignment? I suppose I could get a P.O. box for mail and if I end up getting my own car before the year is up, I can either leave it with some friends or drain it and rent a storage unit... And then two to four years down the road when I know what I want to do long-term (Right now I'm thinking either move to shorter distance trucking like UPS where I can be home on the weekends or get an associate's degree in the IT field on the road, then go two more years for a bachelors on campus) I can get a nice little two bedroom house and sort of "retire" into a more sedentary lifestyle. I know I wouldn't be rich, but in this economy owning your own house before 30 seems like an accomplishment in and of itself, and not having to pay $700 in rent every month would be nice too. :P

You have to have a physical address, they won't accept a PO BOX. Family member, friend... somewhere that is a physical address that you can put down as a home address. The same address that's on your driver's license. An address that is in the same state as your driver's license.

I've got some friends I was going to move in with after the lease here ran out, they might be willing to help me out with an address. They might even let me crash on their couch from time to time if I need it.

Okay, looks like a new roadblock... Now I'm being told that even once I've had my Class D for a year, there's a physical exam and I'm highly unlikely to meet it because I'm overweight and therefore, will most likely have high blood pressure. Is this true? Should I just give up here? Is this a career killer?