Road Tested - Company Driver Survival Guide
Description
You survived your first 90 days. Now learn to thrive.
You know how to communicate with dispatch, execute pre-trips, and manage your hours. You're no longer the rookie who doesn't know which end of the fifth wheel puller to use. But here's what you've probably noticed: knowing how to do the job and excelling at the job are two different things.
Some drivers get better loads, faster service at customers, and higher pay running similar routes. The difference isn't luck or seniority-it's professional competence.
Road Tested Book 2: Professional Operations develops the skills that customers notice, dispatch values, and that translate directly into better treatment and higher pay.
What you'll master:
Professional Shipper/Receiver Relations - Build relationships that get you loaded faster and treated better. Dock approach, check-in procedures, and handling difficult customers professionally.
Load Security and Weight Management - Securement that protects cargo and careers. Tandem sliding, scale house procedures, and avoiding the overweight citations that destroy your safety record.
Fuel Management and Route Planning - Work your company's fuel card system strategically. Balance savings against efficiency and stop burning money on poor planning.
Delivery Execution and Documentation - Complete deliveries so professionally that customers request you specifically. Proper documentation that protects everyone when problems arise.
Equipment Maintenance - Preventive practices that minimize breakdowns. The difference between drivers who sit on the side of the road and those who keep rolling.
Financial Management - Understand your pay stub, maximize accessorial earnings, and stop leaving money on the table.
Written by J. Baldwin, who worked his way from company driver to VP of Operations. The same practical, no-nonsense approach that made Book 1 essential for new drivers.
You've proven you can drive truck. Now become a professional driver who drives truck.