Not Sure What The Next Step Is

Things are just nuts right now. My dispatchers are going nuts with load planning right now. Loads are booking, then cancelling or pushing out daily from what they are telling me. She asked me to please be patient for the time being.

Same thing's happening to me. In the last 3 weeks I've had 3 loads canceled 2 of which I was on my way. Still getting miles until this week. Had a good run to start the week but now I have a 300 mile run not due to deliver for 2 days. That's the ones that drive you crazy. Called about getting in early and my dispatcher apologized saying you have to deliver at the time stated. So gonna take a 34 that I didn't have to.

I don't know how that can be true. I'm hearing reports from quarantined folks that are gaining weight. 

You don't have to eat more to gain weight. You just have to be less active. For example person a and person b each consume 2000 calories a day. Person a hikes regularly and person b sits on the couch all day, person b will gain weight. And snack foods also make you gain weight, that's not consuming from the sources shutting down.

I don't know how that can be true. I'm hearing reports from quarantined folks that are gaining weight. 

You don't have to eat more to gain weight. You just have to be less active. For example person a and person b each consume 2000 calories a day. Person a hikes regularly and person b sits on the couch all day, person b will gain weight. And snack foods also make you gain weight, that's not consuming from the sources shutting down.

That's only partially true. It's more of what you consume, not how much of it. Calories are a terrible way to gauge food intake.

That's only partially true. It's more of what you consume, not how much of it. Calories are a terrible way to gauge food intake.

I know, but that was the easiest way to explain it. My main point is that people aren't sitting at home eating normal meals. They're sitting in front of the TV snacking and that's the fastest track to weight gain.

What do I do now?

Do I just suck it up because things Really are slow now and will hopefully pick up in the back 1/2 of the year?

Do I Work my way up the food chain and reach out to my FM’s boss?

Should I ask for a different FM? Or different fleet? I pull refer now thinking that would be consistent and it pays a bit more CPM. But the CPM doesn’t help me if I’m not getting miles.

I hope that doesn’t come off as too selfish with all the other things going on in the world. Like I said, the lack of Or inconsistent miles for me goes back to way before the crisis. I just don’t know if it’s the crisis or me right now.

Hey Wild Bill, I meant to answer you earlier and got sidetracked by the other twists and turns in this conversation. It sounds like you're doing a great job, but just not getting the results you want. I'm thinking most of this issue is more rookie related than pandemic related. It just takes some time to get yourself established at this career. Inconsistent miles and paychecks are on almost every new drivers list of things they wish were different.

Here's my suggestion... Increase your efforts at communication with your FM. After each time you've put in your "loaded call" send a free form message to your FM stating exactly when you'll be empty at your consignee ,and how much time you'll have available. Add a personal note in the message stating something like, "I'll be chomping at the bit, and ready to roll. I'm ready to move some freight!"

It helps them (especially if they are new to this) to have as much information from you as possible. It also pushes them a little to see you're eager to get more done. Always make the message positive. Don't sound like a complainer, but a team player. This barrage of communication is important because other people see how you are communicating with your FM. Those other people are responsible for making sure your FM is getting the job done. If anything, it should feel to you like you are over communicating. You can even send a reminder later in the day. Something like, "Hey, I'm just rattling your chain a little - remember I'll be MT at 0700 in the morning with 10 hours available on my clock - I'm ready to take the ball and run!"

I'm serious when I say over communicate. it's really important. You want to feel like you're giving too much information. Try that for the next three or four months and see if it helps. Also it's very important to always do what you say you will. You've got to build a relationship of full trust with your FM. Anytime you drop the ball it creates a lack of trust. It's extremely important that you build a consistent track record of success without little blemishes here and there.

Hang in there and focus on doing a great job while over communicating. It takes time to get this career established. Keep it up - don't worry about things outside your performance. I have never concerned myself with all the many reasons people come up with to explain why freight has slowed down. Pandemics, recessions, election years, people eating less - none of those things have ever slowed me down. You create your own opportunities in this business. Try my suggestions and maybe come up with some of your own, but you can keep busy while others are slow. You will have to master the art of creating your own demand, but intense communication will help.

Wild Bill, what is going on out here with freight for the past month is completely unprecedented. Everything is changing daily, or sometimes by the hour. A lot of this seems like management is making it up as they go along because they have to. Nobody has ever seen it like this. Ever.

Some aspects of the industry cannot keep up, while others have locked up their doors.

Hang in there is all you can do. You're in a tough spot as you're just starting, AND having to do it at a bad time, too. I maintain a positive outlook that it will get better. Will it be sooner or later? Nobody knows, but it will happen. Change is the only "constant" out here that you can count on.

Wild-Bill, I'm not in the Game yet, but one thing I think of is...you're kinda stuck with the contract, breaking it could be costly. And if you can make it through this 1st year, certainly (hopefully!!) these tough times will have passed, you'll have the experience that you'll need to look for other opportunities. You've been an inspiration to many with your Training Diary, and look to be on your way to being a kick ass Freight Hauler!

The sad part of that is that I’d make significantly more on unemployment than I’m making on a week like last week. That’s a pretty tough pill to swallow.

That is obviously frustrating. But more importantly, you're out there moving your life forward. You're having far better life experiences, building your skill set, developing important relationships with the people at your company, learning to manage your clock effectively, and learning how to manage life on the road. This will all prepare you to take advantage of stronger freight volumes so you can maximize your pay as a well-established top tier driver.

Stay positive, stay in the game, work hard, keep learning, and become better every day. Have faith that when you do the right things the payoff will come.

One thing I can't emphasize enough - THESE AREN'T NORMAL TIMES! I understand it can be hard to keep up with current events while OTR , so let me give you a few highlights:

22 million Americans have lost their jobs in the last month.

A third of the nation's renters didn't pay rent this month.

More than half (55%) of the people in Los Angeles, CA who had a job a month ago are now on unemployment.

Several US cities have lines at their food banks more than a mile long.

A barrel of oil is selling for -$37 dollars. Not a typo - you take a barrel of oil off their hands and they will pay you $37. Gas in many parts of the country is selling for less than $1.00/gallon.

You don't have to look too far in this forum to find stories about folks unable to start their driving careers because DMV offices in their states are closed completely, truck driving schools are closed or company sponsored training is being delayed. You can do the math to extrapolate on some of these circumstances - ie if they didn't pay rent this month they're probably not going to be able to pay next month either, if they can't afford rent there's a good chance their other bills aren't getting paid either (phone bills, car payments, insurance, etc.), if they don't have enough money to pay their bills they probably aren't buying many knick knacks on Amazon. This all contributes to a drop in freight volumes.

Your next step is simple - wait it out. There isn't much hiring right now and a lot of people wanting jobs. If you try jumping ship now to make more money driving for a grocery store chain you'll be competing with hundreds of drivers with decades of driving experience wanting that job. Intermodal , Department stores (Macys, Nordstrom, JCPenneys, Gap), Energy (oil, fracking sand, LPNG) and a several other industries have laid off most/all their drivers. You'll be competing with them for the jobs that are hiring and won't be eligible for unemployment.

Thanks all for the input and advice. To be clear. I wasn’t considering quitting or changing employers. Rather I was looking for input on whether my struggle with keeping busy is the current state of the world or rookie blues. Sounds like a bit of a combination of both, maybe a little heavy on the coronapocalypse side. As well as input on when/if I should move the conversation a level higher. Again sounds like the consensus is to hold off until the world normalizes (with whatever normal is going to look like after this)

Old School, I appreciate the actionable advice and put that to use this morning. I had another conversation with my FM later in the afternoon when I hadn’t gotten a response to my update. She said more communication is better and she has no problem with me pushing for more. So, I’ll try that for a while and see how it goes.