| Now if you've chosen a private truck driving school, | | | | state will have some unique rules you must be familiar |
| which is the road I chose, you won't have nearly the | | | | with. Now don't let this scare you... everybody has |
| bologna to deal with. The schools are independent of | | | | learned to deal with it and you will too. |
| all trucking companies and they've already gotten your | | | | The learning curve is really steep in the beginning. The |
| money so there's no reason to push any sort of self | | | | schools have to give you all the information they can |
| serving agenda. | | | | because if you get out there and make a mistake |
| They have no reason to BS you. What they DO need | | | | your company may call the school and say,"didn't you |
| to do is give you the very best experience they can | | | | teach this?" The school can usually say they gave you |
| while you attend their school and give you the best | | | | the information but you must not have used it. That's |
| chance they can give you at being successful once | | | | the schools job... to give you the information. It's your |
| you've graduated. Their entire future is based upon | | | | job to learn it and use it. Again, please don't let this |
| their reputation. Word of mouth from former students | | | | scare you. It's intimidating at first, but you'll learn as you |
| and recommendations from the trucking companies | | | | go. Everybody goes through this steep learning curve |
| they send students to are the key to their future | | | | in the beginning and you will too. |
| survival. | | | | So you'll spend a week or so in the classroom and |
| If you don't like your experience and the students | | | | generally the next couple of weeks will be a |
| coming out of the school aren't satisfactory to the | | | | combination of classroom time and learning to back up |
| companies they go to work for then the school is | | | | the truck through a variety of different obstacles. Now |
| going to die a long, slow death. Nobody will want to | | | | if you're like me you may have never even been in a |
| attend. So they will get straight to work filling you with | | | | big rig until now... and let me tell ya it's really, really fun.. |
| information.... and tons of it. | | | | especially at a private school. |
| No matter which type of school you decide upon the | | | | Private trucking schools will take their time and won't |
| first week or two will be similar... classwork. Videos, | | | | pressure you. Remember, they want you to enjoy |
| slide shows, workbooks, charts, and a few written | | | | your learning experience so you will recommend their |
| tests sprinkled in here and there. To be honest the | | | | school to others. Trucking companies are hit and miss... |
| work is really pretty easy. But be aware... they are | | | | some of them may push you and pressure you to |
| going to completely and totally overwhelm you with | | | | keep their agenda alive... it's YOUR privilege to be |
| the sheer quantity of information... and they know it. | | | | working there so you BETTER perform. Now not all of |
| Becoming a good truck driver, especially over the road | | | | them will treat you this way. A lot it will depend on the |
| or regional, requires far more knowledge than most | | | | individual instructors. |
| people outside the industry would ever begin to | | | | But a lot of the instructors at the trucking companies |
| imagine. Every state has its own set of rules, | | | | have worked for these companies for many, many |
| regulations, and procedures. Go from New York to | | | | years and so feel like they're the king and you better |
| Los Angeles and you will cross through about a dozen | | | | revere them. It's just like anything else.... some people |
| states. That's a dozen different sets of rules. | | | | let a tiny bit of authority and experience go straight to |
| Some rules will be common to each state but each | | | | their heads. |