Well That Took Long Enough...

So after being strung along since September waiting for a formal job offer from a large tech company that shall remain nameless, I decided to start looking at other employment options, including getting my CDL through one of the paid driver training programs. Back when I drove before, TMC was who I really wanted to work for, but I wasn't old enough at the time. Now they're wanting me. I got a voicemail from my TMC recruiter today wanting to know when I will be available to come to Iowa for orientation and training. Then I got a call from the tech recruiter telling me that FINALLY they should be able to put together a job offer for me by the end of the week.

I'm kind of at odds about what to do. I should probably take the tech job. Even though I'm sick of doing IT work, it's something that I am very good at, and the pay is awesome. But at the same time, I've already invested time in studying for my CDL permit and gotten myself excited at the prospect of working for a company that I've wanted to work for since 1995. How do I politely hold off the TMC recruiter until I get the final word on the other job? I'm kind of worried that the IT job might not pay as well as what I'm hoping, but I won't know until I get the formal offer.

I hate being left hanging and don't really want to do that to somebody else.

You don't have to worry about TMC. They're well prepared to handle it. You should probably take the IT job because trucking isn't going anywhere. It'll be here if and when you decide you want to give it a shot.

Jeff, I know it seems like a problem, but it's not really. If TMC is interested now, they'll still be interested later. I've been getting emails from their recruiting department for five years now. These trucking companies always need people.

Just tell your recruiter you don't have all your ducks in a row yet, and you should be able to let them know something in a few weeks. They've heard that ten thousand times. It won't hurt your chances with them, it will only delay your start date.

They may try to pressure you, but that's because the recruiter wants to close the deal. Do what you need to do - those jobs at TMC aren't going anywhere - when you're ready, they'll be ready.

Well, as it turned out, that tech job offer didn't materialize either. So it's back to trying to be a truck driver again. But I've decided that TMC isn't really for me. I'm going to be training with Millis Transfer starting February 5.

Any Millis alumni in here?

Yes, there are some here from Millis. I was there until December 2017.

Yes, there are some here from Millis. I was there until December 2017.

How often did you have to sit and wait for loads? I know most of their DMs don't like to do preplans, but it sounds like they manage to keep everybody more or less moving without them. More specifically how often did you have to hang out in Cartersville waiting for loads?

Frequency and amount of freight/loads comes down to where it is in relation to how many drivers are nearby. Something else to consider is the season and the type of freight. Some months may be slower. Good thing is, many items are always in demand: beer, food stuffs, paper goods. Millis hauled all of these. Every terminal is within 15 miles of a major beer brewery or distribution center. Personally, I seldom had to wait for a pre-plan. My dispatch already had one for me, ready or not. I think the longest I sat in Cartersville was overnight, or 12 hours. I would use the time for sleeping, showers or laundry. Wheels turning equals money, but it's also good to sit every now and then.