What Did You Do Before Becoming A Truck Driver?

Some people were chiming in on Laura T.'s "I hate Nursing" topic about what they did before they became interested in trucking. I put the question in the title for others to tell what they did "before".

I taught middle school math and science for eleven years. Finally I "had it" with both student attitude and administration pressure to get my students to pass the annual testing.

Also, rookie truckers make just about as much as rookie teachers do, without all that college!

So, what did you do in your "previous life"?

I was a purchasing and logistics manager for a small produce distributor in Phoenix. Before that I was a food and beverage cost controller for a resort here in town as well. I have always been on the receivers side of the industry and always enjoyed talking with the different drivers who would come daily.

Since my layoff I figure its time for a fresh start, and with team driving the money is hard to ignore. I don't have any kids or responsibilities so I figure why not?

Worked in IT. Specifically in software quality assurance and customer program development for a large corporation who develops inventory management programs on handheld units for some of the largest retailers in the country.

I took home about $480 a week doing that, as a guy who makes sure the program Lowe's, CVS and Kroger use every quarter to count their crap works correctly.

Now I make almost double that on a good week doing flatbed with much less pressure and BS. Every time I get covered in tarp juice I remember that I could be in an IT meeting instead.

Nothing fancey but i just worked in dead end warehouse that sucked and didnt care about its people at all. They had an extremely high turn over rate which is sad cause they are the second largest sporting equipment company in the world. I was there for 8 years and asked to get off 30 mins early to go to school they were like nope. So i quit and signed for school to be a trucker. I was thinking about going on and on about how bad they did me other people but its a waste.

Pipeline (Steam, Petroleum, Gas, Water, Sewer, Storm Drain) As a little kid I grew up picking up the pipe or heavy equipment, chaining it down, delivering it. As I got older I learned to dig trenches and install it. Then I thought going to school to learn how to design it would be a good idea. Had a skateboard company for a couple years out of highschool thinking id get famous. Genetic Genealogy and Hot Rods as a hobby.

I spent the last 17 yrs as an Appliance Repair Technician, the last 10 of which I owned my own business. Just got tired of fixing people's stuff, only to be told (1) sorry, i don't have the money today, can you take a check (which will bounce like a golf ball, and i will never pay unless i need you again.) Or (2) Do you really need to charge me that much, your in business so you can afford to cut me a break. Funny thing though while i was home this past weekend someone came to my house and informed me that my shop phone wasn't working, they had gotten the message that it was disconnected, I told them that I was driving truck now, because i wasn't making a living on the repair business anymore, and they tell me that I was selfish "Your the best we ever had around here, you were fair, and honest, so now what are we suppose to do?"

I installed telephone systems for large and small business. They ranged in size from 3 phones to over 10,000 phones. Used to fly around the country and perform upgrades and installations. There were times that I had to fly in to fix an issue that nobody seemed to be able to figure out. Most of that was dealing with lightning. I can find where that stuff is getting into the phone system.

Auto restoration, custom body and paint. It really is and will always be a passion of mine but with the economy up and down so much it makes it tough to make a good living off of it. Unless of course you have a tv show with 500 sponsors and you don't have to pay for equipment and materials. Then it's easy.

I was under 21 so I couldn't do any "big boy" jobs. So I worked overnights at Sam's Club as a stocker/forklift operator.

I'm making 4 times what I made doing that and I was fulltime!

I was also 21 when I started trucking. I was working for $5.50/hr in a warehouse when the idea came to me and I went to trucking school. That was in '93. I used trucking as a jumping off point into other interests. I graduated from Motorcycle Mechanics Institute for Harley Davidson and turned wrenches for a few months but went back on the road because it paid better and was a lot more fun. Became a certified tig welder during that time also.