What Companies Should I Seek Out Or Avoid?

What companies should I avoid?

Have you looked at the reviews for companies? We probably should not work for any of them because they are all bad lol

I'm just messing around. I think you said it best yourself...

I'd just rather work with a company that's a good fit for me.

Just do your reasearch of the companies and find whatever fits your needs with things such as benefits hometime, etc.

I can read about companies and how to do this and that all day long, and have already done so, but I joined the forum to get advice from people who have been in the seat.

Matthew, where do you think the advice you'll find on this website came from? Experienced drivers who have been in the seat.

I'd just rather work with a company that's a good fit for me.

You haven't told us what would be a good fit, really. You said you'd like to run long distance and you can stay out for long periods of time. So far that narrows it down to all of the companies in the United States.

The way to choose a company is to first determine what type of freight you'd like to haul and how often you'd like to get home. The list will be narrowed down significantly once you figure out which companies hire from your area and meet your criteria. At that point you go through their pay, benefits, equipment, range of opportunities in other fleets, and things of that nature to determine which one fits you the best.

Is there a dark underbelly to really long OTR driving?

No, there's a dark underbelly to the Internet, actually. That's the biggest problem people face trying to get started in trucking these days - misinformation.

See, it only takes a few sentences for us to know when someone has spent significant time at the wrong websites because they have this negative, cynical attitude toward the trucking industry even though they have no experience with it. You've obviously been to these sites already and your attitude is jaded. I really hope you can shake that view, get a dose of reality from what we have to offer here, and then get out there and get your career off to a great start.

What I'm hoping you can do is understand that most of the companies you'll be looking at have been around for anywhere from 25 to 90+ years, have thousands of nearly brand new trucks, and many millions or even billions in yearly revenues. You don't have to analyze them to determine if they're a "good company" or not. They've already proven that they are. They've been highly successful at this for a very, very long time. They know what they're doing and they do it well. Trust me, if things don't work out it won't be because the company didn't know what they were doing.

So analyze a company based upon how well they suit you. Don't worry about people's opinions. Based upon the misinformation you've come across already you're taking the approach that there's a lot of bad companies out there that are going to screw you and you have to find out from us which ones are the good companies. That entire good company vs bad company thing is a fallacy when you're talking about the major companies that hire new drivers. They're all good companies.

And this is something I like to ask people that have the concerns you have: When you say you're worried about being "trapped" by a company or getting screwed by a bad company, what is it that you're afraid they might do? Give me some characteristics of a bad job or a bad company to work for. Then hopefully we can get rid of those needless worries and get on with the task at hand - preparing you for your career.

I'm going to be highly annoyed if I get stuck in a truck with a smoker, and so are they. I promise

They'll give you the option of a non-smoking trainer. But please don't come into this with any kind of bad attitude or these companies are gonna send you home with nothing but that attitude and empty pockets. If you head out there with the idea that people had better present you with circumstances you approve of or you'll give them a hard time I can assure you nobody is going to keep you around for long. It literally happens every day in this industry. People come into schools and companies with this attitude like they've already proven themselves to be valuable. Maybe it's because they read about a driver shortage so they think they're valuable? I don't know. But I promise you that's not how it works.

In this industry you lay low when you're the new guy on the block. You don't come in shooting up the place. Once you've been out there for a while and you've proven yourself to be a hard working, safe, reliable professional then you'll get the great miles, new trucks, and special treatment the proven veterans have earned. But until then you're just another guy who thinks he has what it takes to make it in this industry but hasn't proven anything. Today alone a hundred guys that fit that description will be sent home from these companies because they weren't as valuable or as good as they thought. You're going to have to prove yourself first and then negotiate for better miles, pay, home time, equipment, and favors down the road.

Most people don't have what it takes to do well in this industry. That's why nobody cares too much about catering to rookies - because most of them won't be around for long anyways. So prove you have what it takes to make it in this industry before you expect to be treated like a proven veteran.

Just like a 9-5 job avoid the companies that are not a good fit for YOU. Trucking is not any different. There will be ups and downs but honestly the job that best suits you and your family is the one to take. I plan on either knight, or going to a private cdl school and running local. ( I was offered a job once my training is over)