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Common Mistakes Truck Drivers Should Avoid

I am 45 years old, and road transport driving is the best job I have ever had. That said, trucking requires commitment, hard work, determination and a positive outlook on being successful. Unfortunately, many new drivers are sabotaging before their careers ever start. Let's cover some common mistakes that new truck drivers make.

Prepare for the challenge ahead

The first thing you need to understand is that trucking will be one of the most challenging endeavors of your life. You will maneuver through an emotional obstacle course before reaching your goals. CDL Training will push you to your limits, and sometimes you may even regret your decision to take a shot in this career. Remember, pain is only temporary. The challenge of taking on a few months of CDL training and a year of apex hurdles is nothing in the big scheme of things. Keep a good attitude and persevere.

I survived a decade and a half of postal hell so you can survive a year of making mistakes and refining your trucking skills. Eventually, you will learn how to handle the 70 foot long 80,000 pound beast of a truck. You will also master the art of managing time, getting into the lanes and finding parking even in the most congested areas.

At that point, the stress of learning decreases. The only stress you have now is the stress of everyday life in the trucking world. The background becomes less difficult. You communicate well with dispatch and you understand what they expect from you. You have experience with mechanical failures and know how to identify and solve these problems. You have gained a lot of experience and the confidence that comes with it.


Life is magnificent!


Have the right expectations
To help you survive your apex year in trucking, you must first clear your mind of everything you think trucking is. Whatever your romanticized version of it, forget it. It's as much a lie as the dream I had last night about Gerard Butler and his loincloth from the movie 300.

There will be days when sweat is poured from your body, and even after two showers, you still feel sticky. There will be evenings when the wind is violently rocking your truck during thunderstorms or snowstorms and you realize you need to go to the bathroom. There will be days when you will beat your annoying coach, take a hammer to the truck and tear the head of the ignorant driver who does not want to give you room to get back in a dock.

Things out here can change in an instant, so you need to be flexible. A mechanical problem or a backup of the traffic can delay you. Maybe you came to the dispatcher to find out that they canceled the load. You may only be towing a load a thousand miles to find that another recipient needs the product quickly, so you will be redirected. Trucking is a very dynamic environment. Adapting to ever-changing circumstances is the reality out there.

You need to be a flexible problem solver to handle these types of situations. No one does these things on purpose. It's no-fault. You are not a victim of anyone's incompetence. It's just a truck, so deal with it. If this environment makes you miserable, trucking is not for you. So be it. But give it a try for a whole year before you quit.

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