CareersinGear: Getting Started as a Trucker

Are you a company driver or owner-operator looking to make big money in trucking? Let me share with you a little industry secret...

Typically, owner-operators lease on and get their loads from motor carriers. Carriers often get their loads from freight brokers. Brokers, in turn, usually deal with shippers directly but sometimes take their loads from other brokers ("double-brokering"). Therefore, when you haul for a motor carrier, you have at least one-- if not three "middle men" in between you and the shipper.

You could be a company driver and make $0.45/mile. Or you could get your own truck and lease on to a carrier and earn $1.15/mile. Or, you could cut out the middle men and earn the whole rate that shippers pay. Put another way, you could have 75% of the pizza... or the whole pizza pie. The way to make the most money in trucking is to operate as an independent owner-operator with your own operating authority... and work with shippers directly.

As a USDOT Practitioner, I've worked with thousands of truckers just like you through my consulting practice and professional development workshops. I've helped them take the next step in trucking.

Read the rest of this article by James P. Lamb, USDOT/FMC PractitionerPresident, DOTAuthority.com, Inc. at CareersinGear.com

Inside Trucking: Healthy Living for Drivers

Inside Trucking has an article about healthy living for druck drivers. I can only imagine it's pretty hard to be on the road constantly. It would seem that you'd probably hit up a lot more McDonald's or other fast food chains moreso than healthier home cooked meals.

Dr. Martin Moore-Ede found that truck drivers have a 10- to 15-year lower life expectancy than the average American male, who lives on average to age 76. This statistic has served as a life-changing jolt for some drivers.

Read the full article. That is a pretty big difference! I'm also wondering how female truck drivers compare as the study seems to only mention male life expentancy. What are some ways that you try and stay healthy while on the road?

Related Posts:
Career Related Dieting Advice

- Rosie Reilman

CareersinGear.com: Trucking Stories

Our most recent edition of Careers in Gear came out this week! You can pick up a CareersinGear magazine at Petro's, Love's, Flying J's and other truck stops on the interstates. Not only will you find great trucking jobs across your region, but you'll also find interesting industry information and stories of other truckers around the country. In the most recent Midwest edition, we have two great stories about a couple who work together on team routes. Here's an excerpt from The Trucking Tandem:

As the Baby Boomer generation has started to make its way out of the office and into retirement, many are looking for ways to stay active without having to work a traditional nine-to-five job. In addition, couples and good friends who want a freer schedule and the ability to be their own boss choose team driving. For the husband and wife duo of Mark and Lori Crocker, team driving seemed like a perfect fit for their lifestyle.

Mark and Lori Crocker hail from Bastrop, TX, and drive for Schneider National. Mark and Lori are very different in their trucking backgrounds. Mark has been in the trucking industry for ten-and-one-half years and has traveled all over the country hauling loads. Lori, on the other hand, just received her CDL from Schneider National approximately two months ago and is new to driving big rigs. “I’ve had to shift gears between being a mother, being a truck driver, being a wife, being a daughter … so that’s really been quite an adjustment, but you just hang with it,” commented Lori...

When asked to give advice to future team drivers, the couple felt that meeting the driver before getting in the truck was essential in determining compatibility. A common theme seemed to be communication between the two drivers in order to make long travels as smooth as possible. The couple advised that a new driver should be open about pet peeves (i.e. loud radio, smoking, snoring, etc.) so that their partner can do his or her best to accommodate. While the couple admits that not all drivers paired together will make a good team, Lori concluded by stating, “There will be some days when all you want to do is just hang it up--but stay with it.”

Read the full article by Matthew Harrell here.

The Southeast edition will soon be out so truckers in North and South Carolina, be on the look out for it. It'll have more great articles like this one, plus the latest trucking jobs in your area.

-Rosie Reilman