The New Guy- From Start To..... Well We Will See!

Well looks like I am ready to be the new guy once again. I currently work at a call center and have been working here for about 4 years. Just the “call center” part should be enough to explain why I hate this job. The pay is “fine” but for what I do it really should be better. This is not something I see myself doing for the rest of my life. Also the way this place is ran goes against all logic. I know there will be a little of that no matter where you work, but this place takes it to a whole new level. I have been sitting in this cube for too long! It’s time for a change.

I have always been a guy that loves to travel. While I was a kid, I went on road trips all over the US. I have been to Alaska to see the northern lights when I was 10 and it was something to see. I have also been all over the south, tripped all of I-10 from start to finish in both directions. Loved it. About 2 months ago I got to drive my first long road trip. I have been driving for 6 years (I’m 23). I drive a 6 speed T/A and I have raced around Sebring and have had my times at the drag strip. No accidents, No tickets, spotless record. However I have never driven myself out of my home state of Florida. I love to drive, so I offered to take the wheel first. What ended up happening was this, I drove for 10 hours all the way to Virginia from central Florida (Tampa) where I live. I then found myself doing the same thing the next day, driving from Virginia all the way to Vermont! That drive was 11 hours only stopping for gas.

When we reached our final location I started to think back about my drive. First thought- MAN I LOVE TO DRIVE!! Second- The image of truckers doing their thing kept coming up. It was at that point I got the idea to become a trucker. Over a 2 month time, I looked into the idea and did my homework. I found out that I live right by a school that is accredited. The school would be Ptec in St. Pete Florida. So I have found myself in a sweet spot. Since I work nights now, I could do the trucking school during the day and work during the night. And between calls do homework & have some study time. I could pay for school outright and become a free agent and I wouldn't be hurting my bank to much because the flow of that green stuff would remain. Then after getting my CDL and picking my company, I would put in my 2 weeks to my current job and GTFO of there!!

I plan to document everything from here. I go to Ptec today to get some information. If all seems good I will be doing my schooling there. So I guess I am ready to be the new guy once again. I will be as detailed as possible documenting every single step. Feel free to follow me as I go through this process. Just not to close, after all I am a student driver!

Good luck! PTEC is a good option. I'd consider it if I could go a semester without a paycheck! Daytime only doesn't play well with my schedule. However, I understand your pain. I'm a software support analyst for a home health/hospice software company. I've been in my cube (same one) for 7 years...metrics from HDI are, to quote Mama in "Waterboy", "Of the devil!". Anyway, goo luck. I'm planning to bail the first of the year and go the Swift academy route. I'm old enough to "retire" again and start over AGAIN! The High Road material is really good and keeps you on track.