Truck driving is one of the biggest occupations in America. More people drive trucks than pretty much anything else. It’s a huge job creator and pays well to boot. With some many people looking for careers in the sector, it’s worth finding out a bit more about it. What skills do you need? What hours can you expect? Is the pay any good? Is it your dream job? Here are six things you need to know about becoming a truck driver.
You Have To Love Driving
When we think about careers we’d like, most of us imagine doing something we love. And that’s no more important than when it comes to truck driving. If you want to become a truck driver, it helps if you actually like driving. That might sound like a statement of the obvious. But too many truckies see driving as just a way to make ends meet. They forget about some of the downsides of the job. And, as a result, end up having a terrible time. Driving a truck requires a particular personality type. You’ll have long periods in which nothing much will happen. And then, suddenly, all chaos breaks loose when you arrive at your destination.
You Need Patience
Patience is a virtue, especially when it comes to driving a truck. As a truck driver, you’ll be driving around 400 miles a day, most of it on the interstate. But that’s not the only time when you need patience. You’ll also need patience when it comes to loading and unloading. As a driver, you’re often not required to load and unload the truck. That means that when you get to customers or docks, you’ll be twiddling your thumbs. Sure, you can get involved in unloading if you want. But this won’t be feasible every time. As a result, you’ll have to be patient. And you’ll have to make your own entertainment in your cabin as you wait.
You Have To Care About Safety
Being in control of a truck is a big responsibility. Trucks are 50-ton death traps on wheels. As a result, the industry is somewhat obsessed with safety. And you can hardly blame them. About 4,000 truck drivers are killed on US road every year.
But it’s not just their own accidents that have truck drivers running to semi-truck accident lawyer. It’s the damage that trucks can do to other people. Trucks are more likely than other vehicles to be the cause of serious incidents on the highway. And that means that companies put driver safety at the top of their list of priorities.
You Have To Enjoy Your Own Company
Truck driving is not a team sport. It’s a job you do if you love to spend time by yourself and be alone. A lot of people need the company and companionship of others. And while you will interact with others as a truck driver, you’ll be alone for long stints.
Some truck drivers share their cabin with a partner. But this is not the norm. And in many truck driving jobs, you’ll frequently switch driving setups. There’s no guarantee you’ll always have a partner by your side. So if you want to work with others, truck driving is probably not the career choice for you.
You Have To Be Motivated
Truck driving isn’t a job where you have a boss breathing down your neck. It’s very much an industry based on individual initiative. If you want to be a truck driver, you’ve got to have a good work ethic. That means getting up early in the morning and making the deliveries that customers need as and when they’re needed. Truck drivers often have to work long days. Some days, you’ll be working more than 10 hours to make deliveries. It’s not unusual for truckies to spend 14 hours on the road.
If you’re an owner-operater, you also need to have the motivation to keep finances organized, and be familiar with financing sources, insurance, and other specialty services provided by companies for freight drivers .
You Have To Have A Clear Driving Record
Truck companies operate at a significant risk of financial loss. Trucks themselves are very expensive pieces of equipment, and their cargo is also valuable. That means that businesses want to do all they can to minimize the chances that there will be an incident. If you want to be a truck driver, you’ll have to prove to a truck company that you’re safe and can be trusted. The best way to do this, of course, is to present the company with a clean driving license. You also want to make sure that they know about your driving history. The fewer road traffic and parking offences, the better.
