The Trucking Industry- Should We Keep Everything a “Secret”?
by Donna Smith
I have to say that I am pretty annoyed with a lot of folks out there who are continually trying to pretend that everything is “peachy keen” within the trucking industry. It appears that their goal is to create a rosie picture in order to get more people to join an industry that , well, ” just isn’t for everyone.”
I watch Allen spend hours online researching all the “stuff” that goes on in trucking in order to alert folks and thus make things better for everyone. I couldn’t believe an e-mail he received from another website. I won’t mention a name or the site, but it pretty much said in so many words, ” don’t make such a grim picture out of the trucking industry… you can sell more products by talking about more of the positive aspects of trucking.”
Do you believe that? Sell more products! So, in other words, we should paint an unrealistic picture, get more folks to look into trucking, so we can then sell them a bunch of stuff about trucking, right? If that’s the case then we’d be no better than the recruiters and trucking companies that promise them the moon and stars…only to allow them to then get a good glimpse of the 128% turnover rate… and the reality of it all…..YUK!
No, I’d rather someone tell me the truth about something, and then give me the amunition to fight them head on and be successful. Yeah, you may lose some who don’t want to fight, but chances are those are the folks who would have ended up quitting after a few months anyway…after losing a few thousand dollars in CDL training costs and lots of lost time and heatache! Is it worth it to disillusion people and make them go through all that …just to sell a product to them? I don’t think so!
The reality is this: If you want to get into trucking you can make it, but you need to be aware of the “dirty little secrets” that go on so YOU CAN MAKE IT. That’s why Allen wrote “The Truth About Trucking “ back in 2000 and recent follow up books… not to scare people out of trucking, but rather to reveal the red flags so they can be successful in trucking.
Recently we have had a courageous women post to this blog and expose many of the industry “secrets”, that quite frankly, even shocked Allen. She has been posting on other blogs also and should be commended for her efforts. She does all this while driving OTR. Here is an example of a fighter! SHE LOVES OTR TRUCKING and is not going to give it up, but rather is willing to fight and make it better for both men and women. A women after our own hearts.
I encourage you to read her posts. So, get a cup of coffee and get comfy, ’cause there’s a lot of insightful reading!
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Couragious comments Donna. Thank you.
IR