Becoming A Truck Driver Pt 2: Will Life On The Road Be Lonely?

There's plenty of information out there that talks about the technical aspects of becoming a truck driver. Things like "How to get your CDL", the requirements for getting your CDL, and list after list of trucking companies looking for drivers. But what about all of the other aspects of being on the road? What is life really like? Are the meals good in the truckstops? Is there anyone to talk to in the evenings? Is there help when you need it with routing and mechanical issues? Will I be homesick all the time? There aren't too many places to find answers to these, but after almost 15 years on the road I have a lot of them.

Now I can't tell you if it's right for you or not, but I can give you an idea of what it's like. For starters, the first thing that comes to mind is the amount of time you spend alone. It's a ton. I can honestly say you will be alone, mostly in your truck, for an average of about 18 hours per day. The other six you will spend talking to waitresses, dock workers, and other drivers. But the vast majority of the time you'll be alone. I came to the realization in the early months of my career that I could either learn to enjoy being alone and make the best of it, or I could suffer through it, but I really couldn't do much to change it.

Back then, you didn't have computers and the Internet to keep you connected and entertain you. The information, emails, pictures, fun websites, news sites, and all the goodies that come with being online just didn't exist. After years of being on the road, the Internet and computers started to take hold. Slowly the truck stops began coming out with connections for cable TV and internet in your truck, and that really changed everything.

Nowadays, most truck stops and many of the places you'll find yourself will have some sort of wireless Internet connection. Laptops have gotten far less expensive, and you can add to that the ease of putting satellite television in your cab, and of course cell phones. The ability to stay connected to the news, entertainment, and your loved ones is a thousand times better than it was ten years ago. A thousand times.

But the one thing you cant replace is the amount of time you'll spend away from your family and friends. A lot of companies can get you home on the weekends. Some will keep you out for two to three weeks at a time. The choice is yours. Generally speaking, the longer you stay out at a time, the more money you'll make. There are jobs that will get you home every evening in fact, but you'll put in fifteen hour days and be lucky to bring home $150 per day. You can stay out one to three weeks at a time and make $50,000/year pretty easily, but there's a lot to consider when it comes to being gone that long.

I'm going to tell you something flat out - if you have a family, especially if you have children, please do not consider a job that keeps you away from home for more than five days at a time. I've heard countless stories, and I mean countless stories, of families that fell apart from the time spent away from each other. It's too hard on the spouses, and devastating for the children. Even being gone five days a week is hard on everyone, but there is a huge difference in the money you'll make being gone five days at a time compared to being home every night, and life is always a compromise. Sometimes you won't have a choice.

I was young and single for most of the years I spent on the road, and I wasn't a bit lonely. There were truck stops, the CB, books, and places you could go in your free time like malls, night clubs, and sporting events to keep you entertained. It really was a ton of fun! But to have a wife and children to leave behind would have been almost too much to bear. In fact, probably more than almost too much. I just don't think I could have done it.

Every decision we make in life is a compromise, and every compromise has its side effects. We all need the money to get by, but there's so much more to it than that. Be prepared to spend an enormous amount of time out there alone. If you have a family, especially children, please set a limit of five days gone at a time, and try to get by with even less. Time spent away from your family and friends has been made a million times nicer with the technologies that have come along, but holding your wife and children in your arms can never, ever be replaced, and neither can the time you lose without them by your side.

I have a website called TruckingTruth.com with tons and tons of free helpful information for anyone considering a truck driving career. I also have a book called "Becoming A Truck Driver: The Truth", that covers a million topics that will help you decide if trucking is right for you.

Thanks for your time. I hope this helped a little bit. Good luck.

Becoming a Truck Driver: How I Got Started In Trucking

I don't believe there is anyone in America, or a multitude of other countries for that matter, who hasn't considered becoming a truck driver. We've all wondered from time to time what life would be like traveling the highways day in and day out ... living on the road, seeing the sites, meeting people from far and wide, and watching the sunrise and set from one coast to the other...what would it be like?



I did exactly that for the better part of fifteen years and I can tell you one thing - I wouldn't trade my time on the road for anything in the world. I was blessed with the ability to do any number of other things. Becoming a truck driver was never any goal or consideration of mine, and I never knew anyone who had done it. I simply came across it by chance once upon a time on a hot summer day in Atlanta....and everything changed in my life from that day on.



Working for $5.50/hr in a warehouse as a 21 year old man-child I arrived at work one day to find a Ryder truck parked in the lot. I was told we had to haul some pallets of literature downtown and exchange them for yet another group of pallets to bring back. It was the largest straight truck that Ryder offered....and I had never even seen the inside of one. But I was determined to be the one to make the trip in it. So how was I going to convince them to let me do it? The only way I could - I was gonna lie my brains out. I told the boss my aunt had moved twice and my grandma had moved once and all three times I drove the truck...same size truck as the one out in the lot.



Amazingly enough they gave me the OK to take it downtown. What were they thinking???? So away I went. The trip went perfectly and I did what I was supposed to do. I went downtown, they unloaded me, reloaded the truck (after their lunch break of course), and I returned safe and sound. Upon arrival I immediately went to my best friend and joyously exclaimed that not only was that a lot of fun, but I didn't even have to do any work that day...."all I did was drive" - and the light bulb came on.



I went home and looked up the only trucking company I knew of and found out that I would start at $40,000/year. I was making $15,000 at the time...including overtime!  Becoming a truck driver was exactly what I was going to do....and a month later I was in trucking school.



I graduated, got hired with a great company on graduation day, and had an awesome career. I made excellent money, met thousands of people, saw many of the most famous sites in America, and many others that were just as beautiful but mostly unknown.  It's not an easy life - but if you're the right type of person for it there is no other job like it in the world. You'll learn so much about yourself, your country, and the people you share it with. You'll experience the differences in culture from city to city and region to region. You'll make very good money, have a ton of fun, and have a career that keeps our economy moving and makes you feel like you've accomplished something worthwhile....and you have.



The moral of the story? Lie. Lie like crazy! No, I'm just kidding. The real moral of the story is that sometimes you have to take chances in life. If you ever want to get anywhere worth going it will take risk, courage, and faith in yourself to get there.



I'll be writing about a lot of issues regarding the trucking industry and life as a truck driver in the coming weeks and months. I've already written a book about becoming a truck driver that has tons and tons of stories from my years on the road and advice to anyone considering a career as a truck driver. I also have a website with tons of free content - it's at www.truckingtruth.com, which has truck driving stories from my years on the road, links to trucking schools and recruiters, advice about becoming a truck driver, and some excerpts from my book. You'll like the site...there's a lot of helpful information there.



I'd love to hear from you and answer any questions you might have. Email me from my website at www.truckingtruth.com and I'll be sure to get back to you.



Til next time.....take care.