A Good Attitude Is Key!

Today while unloading, we ran into a fellow WST driver. He has been with the company for 3 months. He wasnt happy at all. After talking to him for about 5 minutes, I quickly realized that he was the problem.

He whined about lack of miles, a truck that needed maintenance that wasnt getting done and so forth. I was stunned to be honest because as a solo driver I was run so hard, literally within mere minutes on my 70 hour clock and if I had an issue with my truck they took care of it immediately.

So what was the deal? He had yelled at a dispatcher , fussed at payroll, gotten upset with maintenance. His dispatcher left and he was upset that this guy who was temporarily dispatching him wasnt getting home on his "assigned" day. He had refused a longer haul run.. Etc. Etc.

The person he had gotten upset with has been with the company for 32 years and has done everything from washing trucks, to driving OTR , dispatch, safety, and is now in charge of about 1/3 of our dispatchers. OMG! No wonder he's unhappy.

I had a sit down with him and attempted to explain how, if he could repair these relationships with a can do attitude and stop getting upset with people and complaining to the wrong ones, his life would improve drastically. For example, he had NEVER called maintenance about the problems with his truck, he had no idea that only 2 people handle the entire WST payroll, he had no clue the owner still drove and then realized he had seen him in PA after we described his truck lol.. Its definitely one of a kind and you cant miss it as its the only red WST/WSS truck.

Whatever you do, never bite the hand that feeds you.

Carry on...

He he. So true Sue. (that's basically your slogan now). There is definitely something to be said about having a better outlook/attitude in general on making your own life more satisfying and easy. Not to say that there is nothing wrong with sometimes having an issue/problem, but you definitely need to know who you need to talk to in order to fix an issue and honestly, not to really complain but rather be constructive about getting what you want/need. Sometimes people also need to look inward for the solutions as well.

Thanks for sharing :D

Was he young? But yes attitude is everything....

I'm in a job search class at a local JC. We went over the importance of having a can-do, positive attitude yesterday. That's what employers are looking for. It's also what employers say is the hardest thing for them to find. Too many people have a sense of entitlement.

I'm older than most people in the class. It was sad/funny to see that this information was news to many of the youngsters.

Stay Safe Out There, Colin K.

This guy was in his late 30s, im guessing so not real young.

Sue, once I had been out there long enough to know how this industry works I realized that the overwhelming majority of the drivers out there who are miserable have brought it upon themselves. I know Old School has also mentioned many, many times throughout the years that your attitude and your relationship with your dispatcher are critical components in being able to turn big miles consistently and get special favors from time to time.

In fact, on numerous occasions over the years I came across miserable drivers that even had the same dispatcher I had. They hated the same dispatcher I loved and were getting lousy miles when I was running so hard I was almost hoping for a break.

Not only do you have to prove yourself to be a safe, hard working, reliable driver but you also have to know how to get along with the people in the offices at your company and at the customers you're hauling for.

I think part of the reason there are so many drivers with poor attitudes is that they really don't understand that the onus falls on them to make things happen out there. It's up to you as a driver to try to push appointment times forward, lobby dispatch for more miles, and continuously find ways to get the job done more quickly and more efficiently. I think a lot of drivers just expect 3,000 miles a week to be handed to them no matter what. Unfortunately it simply doesn't work that way in this industry. If you think it's your God-given right to be handed big miles regardless of your performance or attitude you're sorely mistaken.

This industry is full of drivers who are shooting themselves in the foot every time they open their mouths. We preach having a great attitude all the time and I've always known that at times that message falls on deaf ears. Some people will get out there and learn how important that message is, others just never seem to get it somehow. Having a great attitude is our probably our best known 'secret to success' and yet it's somehow still the message that fails to get through with a lot of drivers.