Profile For Cameron S.

There is certainly something to be said for such a relaxed approach. I did some intense research before deciding which company to go with. But after I had gained all the information I could through my research, had to make a decision. Ultimately I found that you just can’t get a feel for which company would be the best fit for you until you have some actual experience. I guess if you wanted to go to all the truckstops around your town and ask drivers how they feel about driving for their company, that would be the closest thing you could get to actually knowing. I did this as a driver. I talked with drivers that worked for companies I was interested in working for, and I learned a great deal from that. But until you really know the industry and what driving a truck is like, none of the information you will find in your research will mean much to you.

Is there any chance at all that I show up in Springfield and the safety department disagrees with my recruiter and sends me home?

Quite honestly, yes, there is that chance. But don't sweat it. You can only do what you can do. You've disclosed everything, you'll jump through the hoops they require, and hopefully it will work out with Prime. If not, don't sweat it. There are a ton of great companies out there. You'll get your chance.

Almost everyone that's new to the industry believes that their choice of company is an incredibly big deal. In reality it's not a big deal at all. You can be very happy and successful at any of the major companies, which are the ones that do most of the hiring of new drivers. They all have piles of money behind them, excellent equipment, tons of freight, and all sorts of opportunities for you down the line once you've gotten a little experience.

Here's how I chose my first company. I went to school in 1993. We graduated on a Friday and had a graduation ceremony, complete with pizza and wings, on Saturday morning. About an hour into the ceremony a recruiter from Gainey, a company a few miles up the road from the school, came by and asked one of the instructors who the top three drivers were in the class. I was one of them. He gathered the three of us together and said, "You guys were the top three in the class and you all have jobs waiting for you with us. If you follow me to the terminal we'll get your drug tests and paperwork out the way this afternoon and by the end of next week you should all be on the road with a trainer. "

We all looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, and said, "Sounds good. Lead the way." And that was that. We all did our physicals, drug screens, and paperwork that day and within a few days we were all on the road with our trainers. Simple as that.

People spend months sometimes researching companies and to be honest I feel a little bad for em because they're mostly wasting their time. You can evaluate every possible detail about every company on the planet but in the end you're going to get the miles, home time, equipment, freight, and treatment you deserve based upon your performance. If you're a great performer you'll do great anywhere you go. If you're a lousy performer you'll get terrible miles and be miserable anywhere you go.

So don't sweat it. If it works with Prime, great. If not, great anyhow. No big deal.