Hired At Con-Way ... Everything Was Great!

I'm a hired mountain girl.

-mountain girl

You know, sometimes God has a way of protecting us from ourselves! There are times I just know what I am supposed to be doing, and then there is a big roadblock in my way I cannot get around....come to find out that wasn't the road I was supposed to be on anyway!

I totally agree that sometimes it seems like divine intervention when things work out well. But I was hoping God wasn't going to be given all the credit for helping to make this happen because the way I see it, things are working out for Mountain Girl because:

1) She has an amazing attitude. Stellar in fact.

2) She worked very hard at school then equally hard at researching companies and seeking out opportunities

3) She listened to the wonderful advice she was given by so many different people along the way. This is truly a victory for Mountain Girl and our entire community because so many people contributed their wonderful time and thoughts along the way....exactly how the system was designed to work.

The only reason I mentioned this is because time and time again people drop out, fail out, or get kicked out of the trucking industry and if you ask them it's never, ever their fault. Not even 1%. It's the company, the trainer, the truck, the school - it's always someone or something else that's to blame.

I don't think God or any other entity should be given too much credit for our successes and failures. We all receive help along the path of our most difficult journeys. But we as individuals are still the ones who have to walk that path. Its our hard work, preparation, persistence, attitude, and decisions that ultimately make or break any endeavor.

So I think placing too much credit or blame elsewhere can be detrimental to our chances of success. If we don't believe we control our own destiny we may not be willing to do what's necessary to succeed or be ready to accept the blame for our failures so we can learn from them and improve ourselves for the next time. Not to mention, credit is often misplaced. Like when you see football players thanking God for their success. Hey, what about your parents, coaches, teachers, and teammates that busted their *sses every single day of your life to help you get where you're at? Yeah, let's not forget to thank them or the next time you might truly find yourself alone with God on your long, difficult journey.

Congrats Mountain Girl! You've earned it and you deserve it. Now go out there and earn yourself an awesome reputation as a safe, productive driver with a great attitude - a true professional. That's clearly within your capabilities so I know we can expect that from you the same way you expect it from yourself.

And to anyone else coming into the trucking industry - you control your own destiny. Go out there with unbreakable resolve and make great things happen. Ignore the garbage you read about trucking companies or the industry itself. Ignore the complaints, the misplaced blame, and the cry-babying. Take responsibility for your own attitude and work ethic and prove to yourself and everyone around you that you are willing and able to earn a reputation as a true professional out there. That's the approach that will get you to the top of the mountain.

Good for you! truckload or LTL part of Conway?

Thank you! I'm exhausted, looking, worrying, applying, researching, and now I'm relieved that the vast abyss of non-employment is almost over.

It's LTL. I got lucky. This terminal does both and they do a lot of delivery to the edge of Colorado or just inside bordering state to another driver who picks up the trailer and pulls it from there. For this method of doing things, I am eternally grateful to Con-Way already.

I'm required to stay local because my "board of trustees" - my kids - voted me home and the vote had to be unanimous for me to go OTR. LOL. Of course, the young adult "members" would have been delighted to have the house to themselves for 3 weeks at a time, but the younger "members," still need me around. And they all still like my cooking.

By the way, your suggested question about extraboard was AWESOME! I actually hate it when they ask you if you have any questions in the interview because what you really wanna' say is what's really going through your head, "Are you going to hire me or not?" and "Can I start now so I can have a paycheck ....like ....yesterday."

It was keewwwwl. I asked a simple question or two and then I told him I'd heard this term that was new to me and could he explain it? Extraboard. Oh way, cool. He was surprised I even knew to ASK. It doesn't sound too bad. I really don't think they screw the new guys over around there because when you walk into a place, you can feel whether or not people are mal-contented and everything was calm and moving smoothly. It sounds more like a situation where your times for going in to work might change week-to-week, whether it's mornings, evenings, or nights, but it's not as though Monday, you'll work evening and then Tuesday you gotta' come back in, first thing. He told me, they need drivers like crazy, so you'll go in and work the dock for an hour but then you're gone in a truck. Or if a senior guy calls in sick, you might get the chance to take his load. I am catching them at the very, very beginning of a major hiring push and he told me, I'm at an advantage over the next few months because after I've been there for a couple of months, there will be many others hired, right after me ...So my position on the extraboard will "move along" pretty quickly. I've worked on a dock before and I agree with you - I'm here to drive a BF Truck, not load 'em.

The other thing is, if you're working on the dock and your number comes up to take a load, I thiiiink at that point they switch you from hourly pay to cpm and so you have the opportunity to make good money. I have to clarify that one because I know I'm being hired at an hourly rate but at some junctures, they pay you as they would have paid the driver who called in sick, but at your cpm rate.

Overall, the system seems fair and once you've made it past your first year, you're gonna' be "hooked" for the long term and diggin' it.

It sounds to me like ...if you want the work, you'll get plenty of it. Sorta' like Old School with Western Express.

(HUGE sigh of relief) This is what I want.

-mountain girl

If that isn't the way it came across I apologize!

Oh you came across just fine and no need at all to apologize. I just pick up on little things and run with em sometimes.

When you said that, it made me think about how often people blame others for their failures, and that kind of thing is rampant in the trucking industry. If you took a poll and asked anyone who was unsuccessful in trucking if it was their fault, 99% of the people wouldn't even take 50% of the blame for their failure. It's always someone else's fault.

But even the thought that you're not in control of your own destiny can be crippling. It keeps people from putting in the time, energy, and effort it takes to be successful because ultimately they really don't believe they have control over the outcome anyhow. So why bust your *ss, struggle, suffer, and sacrifice if it won't be the deciding factor in the outcome? Just put in the minimum effort and wait to see what happens. And that's exactly what an alarming number of people do when coming into this industry. They think their destiny will be determined by the company they choose, the truck they drive, the trainer they get, or a million other factors. Cuz you know how most people are - we're always right! We don't make mistakes - others do. We don't create bad plans - others do. We don't fail to put in the effort it takes to learn - the teachers fail to teach us! So heck....it can't be me that's the problem. It must be someone else.

So anytime I find an opportunity to help people understand what it takes to get their trucking career off to a great start I run with it. And the attitude problem is by far the biggest problem people face. If you look at all of the people that get booted out of trucking, often times it doesn't have much to do with driving. They may tell you it's your driving. But quite honestly there are times a company or company-sponsored school might not think you have the right attitude or approach to become a safe, productive driver so they tell you that your driving stinks and they send you home. It's safer from a legal standpoint to say you aren't capable of developing the skills than it is to say you're arrogant or unwilling to learn.

Anyone who has ever attended a company-sponsored school or company orientation will tell you that about 20% of the people that show up have horrible attitudes. They think they know it all or they're skeptical about whether or not the company is any good. Don't forget, the average age in trucking is in the late 40's and rarely is it someone's first career. Most people come into trucking from other careers and they have a lot of life experience. They assume trucks are basically big cars and they have to drive them around to deliver things. Big deal. What's to know? Get out of my face, let me practice a little backing and shifting, give me a load, and let's start making money, right? How hard can it be?

That type of attitude gets people killed in a hurry. Trucking companies try like crazy to make sure the people they put behind the wheel take safety seriously. And common sense would tell you that 80,000 pounds rolling down the road is seriously dangerous, but once again we're all heroes in our own minds. Some people simply don't realize how challenging it is and how quickly things can go wrong.

SEE??? I told you I run with things!!!

But you said absolutely nothing wrong and I wasn't directing any of my last two posts at you personally. I just spotted a generally applicable teaching moment and ran with it til I ran out of gas. Such is my style.

Congrats!!! Look forward to hearing about how you like it. :)

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Good for you! truckload or LTL part of Conway?

Congrats! Let us all know how the next few weeks go.

Congrats Mountain Girl! GJ!

I am so excited for you Mountain Girl! I look forward to hearing your tales of the road too!

Good for you! truckload or LTL part of Conway?

Thank you! I'm exhausted, looking, worrying, applying, researching, and now I'm relieved that the vast abyss of non-employment is almost over.

It's LTL. I got lucky. This terminal does both and they do a lot of delivery to the edge of Colorado or just inside bordering state to another driver who picks up the trailer and pulls it from there. For this method of doing things, I am eternally grateful to Con-Way already.

I'm required to stay local because my "board of trustees" - my kids - voted me home and the vote had to be unanimous for me to go OTR. LOL. Of course, the young adult "members" would have been delighted to have the house to themselves for 3 weeks at a time, but the younger "members," still need me around. And they all still like my cooking.

By the way, your suggested question about extraboard was AWESOME! I actually hate it when they ask you if you have any questions in the interview because what you really wanna' say is what's really going through your head, "Are you going to hire me or not?" and "Can I start now so I can have a paycheck ....like ....yesterday."

It was keewwwwl. I asked a simple question or two and then I told him I'd heard this term that was new to me and could he explain it? Extraboard. Oh way, cool. He was surprised I even knew to ASK. It doesn't sound too bad. I really don't think they screw the new guys over around there because when you walk into a place, you can feel whether or not people are mal-contented and everything was calm and moving smoothly. It sounds more like a situation where your times for going in to work might change week-to-week, whether it's mornings, evenings, or nights, but it's not as though Monday, you'll work evening and then Tuesday you gotta' come back in, first thing. He told me, they need drivers like crazy, so you'll go in and work the dock for an hour but then you're gone in a truck. Or if a senior guy calls in sick, you might get the chance to take his load. I am catching them at the very, very beginning of a major hiring push and he told me, I'm at an advantage over the next few months because after I've been there for a couple of months, there will be many others hired, right after me ...So my position on the extraboard will "move along" pretty quickly. I've worked on a dock before and I agree with you - I'm here to drive a BF Truck, not load 'em.

The other thing is, if you're working on the dock and your number comes up to take a load, I thiiiink at that point they switch you from hourly pay to cpm and so you have the opportunity to make good money. I have to clarify that one because I know I'm being hired at an hourly rate but at some junctures, they pay you as they would have paid the driver who called in sick, but at your cpm rate.

Overall, the system seems fair and once you've made it past your first year, you're gonna' be "hooked" for the long term and diggin' it.

It sounds to me like ...if you want the work, you'll get plenty of it. Sorta' like Old School with Western Express.

(HUGE sigh of relief) This is what I want.

-mountain girl

Congrats Mountain Girl! GJ!

Thanks David! Yep. Everyone was wearing blue, gray, and white in their uniforms. The terminal is very clean and streamlined. Even the loaders have uniforms which I think is good because if you're going to have 'em, everyone should. At UPS, the drivers have uniforms and the "lowly" loaders don't. I think that's bad for moral. It's a non-union company and it's all good. I'm hoping I will be allowed to at least choose my own pants and yeah, I made sure I left my "May Company" baseball cap at home. LOL.

-mountain girl

I am so excited for you Mountain Girl! I look forward to hearing your tales of the road too!

Jolie

OMG! Thanks Jolie! I am totally stoked. You know, all that "crying" I did over my food-grade tanker company and Con-Way offered me way better pay. I ...am ...cured. Like the tanker company, Con-Way and my school have put together a special arrangement where they are paying my school's graduates more than students from other schools because of the quality of training they offer. But the pay they're offering is way better.

Plus something's up with the tanker company because less than a mile away from Con-Way, at their terminal , the terminal manager just walked off from the job, two weeks ago. The more I think about it, the more I'm happy to walk into a very large company that has their systems all figured out and everyone seems happy. It's clean, it's organized and maybe the tanker company isn't paying their people enough for all the brain damage.

I am also surprised, very surprised ...at how much I truly MISS climbing into a big tractor and driving it. I can't wait. Can't wait. In such a short time, I really got to lovin' it!

-mountain girl