How much money do you make?

[late4dinner]

How many times have you been sitting in your truck, or fueling and some stranger walkes up to you and wants to know how much money you make? I believe it's a rude question and none of thier busuiness, and thats what I tell them. Just wondered how other drivers handle the situation

 

[TeamCaffee]

The question we usually get is "Can you make any money driving that little truck?" Our standard reply is we must we own our truck free and clear do you? What I want to say though is nope we are just doing this for our health!

I agree it seems like such a stupid question and it usually comes from drivers for the larger carriers. I have found that many of them think that we are also drivers for FedEx and then are amazed that we do own our own truck.

We usually just blow of the question as someone that just does not get it and answer their questions and try to educate them on what we do. Most walk away amazed about a segment of trucking they knew nothing about. Most also have to say I have no one to team with so I guess that does not sound like something for me.

 

[kangar0085]

I just respond "I do ok."

 

[Tempest]

I drive for my brother and just bought a couple cargo vans to start my own little fleet. My brother has 12 trucks and does not like us discussing what kind of money we make with other people. I have never seen it as a "state secret" and dont mind talking about what we do and how much we make. As a result o this I have, without even trying, recruited 3 of his best drivers for him. All from large national carriers paying 35-45 cpm. they seem to like the 25-35% pay increase in these "funny little trucks".

 

[LDB]

I've found that a lot of times when someone says 'how much money do you make in that truck?' they aren't asking for my specific income, they are asking 'how much money could I anticipate making in a truck like that?' in a poorly worded way. I usually reply that my company's base rate is x and fsc varies load to load and accessorials vary by load so there's no set number for every mile like with a fleet OTR truck. I tell them the current average is around y and what anyone makes off that depends on their debt load and how efficiently and intelligently they operate. By that time the steering wheel holders have left bc they don't want to think about expenses, operating costs, etc. and those who haven't left usually turn the discussion to other topics.

 

[chefdennis]

While i was considering going into this business, I often spoke to drivers that were in trucks that were in the expediting busoness from CV's to ST's, I always asked if they were "kept busy". To me wheels turning dicated the revenue one made and i really didn't care how much anyone I spoke to made persay, while I knew not all loads paid the same, loads and miles and were what i was interested in. Keep me busy with good loads, and I'll mske money.

Years ago I sold light duty trucks and I never cared about how much i made per sale, all I wantedwas alot of sales each month. The money came from the number of sales and the amount on each one. Yea youmade a hoerun commission on a sale here and there, but more often you made more at the end of the month because you sold more then the rest. Same here , keep me busy driving with good loads, and I'll do ok... I don't care how much you make, just give me good loads, i'll make the money.

If i spoke to any of you in my quest for info and offend youj or came off as rude while taking up your time (and i always asked if a driver had a few minutes for me, before i asked any questions) please know that it wasn't my intention, just as i don't think alot of those asking you "how much do you make" now, they just don't know how to ask , and that in itself is pretty telling...............

 

[hondaking38]

had two already ask me today!! i tell the truth, and if report is established i just whip out the book and show them!!! nothing to hide here

 

[dhalltoyo]

My answer is actually a question: "How much do you need to make?"

Once that number is offered, I can then reply whether it is practical, or not even possible, to assume that amount of income from this type of truck.

Moreover, I always ask if they have ever driven a commercial truck in an expediting capacity. Why? Because I want to make sure they understand the "Learning Curve" before they risk all of their "Buy Out" money or personal savings.

I don't mind anyone asking...I just have to make sure exactly what they are asking.

Remember..."No More Secrets".

Given two easily acquired bits of information and a laptop, then finding out your net worth or income is simply a matter of a few keystrokes.

 

[greg334]

I'm with Honda on this one, I tell them what I make and why. I also try to make things as simple as possible when explaining what I do. To complicate things, to ask questions when asked helps no one.

 

[cheri1122]

I just say that what I make is none of their business, and if they want to know about expediting, to check out Expediters Online, where they will find a wealth of info & opinions.

 

[dhalltoyo]

It has been my experience that asking one simple question helps me personally to better understand if they are asking, "How much do I actually gross," or "What is my net profit," or "Can I make a living as an expediter?"

As mentioned earlier on, it is usually the latter.

Why?

Most folks are generally seeking some degree of positive reinforcement for a decision that they have probably already made.

In the final analysis, if 10 O/O's told them, "We can't even pay our bills doing this for a living," they will most likely continue on the course that they have probably already set for themselves; believing that they can somehow alter the current economic slowdown in the trucking industry.

When folks have come to me for advice, and they didn't like the factual information provided, they simply sought out others who tickled their ears with the responses they wanted to hear.

 

[arkjarhead]

One thing I noticed when driving a straight truck was people asking those questions were not trying to be rude, but just curious and very tactful about it. Plus if you take someone who has been hauling bulk loads all their life they think along the lines of payload and capacity. Then they see me in this Class 8 truck with a 22' box and they think there is no way they can be making any money.

When I asked I responed with I make x% of x per loaded mile.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

How many times have you been sitting in your truck, or fueling and some stranger walkes up to you and wants to know how much money you make? I believe it's a rude question and none of thier busuiness, and thats what I tell them. Just wondered how other drivers handle the situation

Rude? your much too sensitive...*L*
Straightforward maybe but to the point no less....
I just usually tell them the average gross of a solo van driver minus all the bills and whats left is the taxmans and the wifes...

 

[moose]

I tell it as it is ,
and if we have the time , and if asked for , they will walk away with a blank copy of my business plan...
a Good luck ,and a hand shake .
nothing wrong with making an informed decision .



Moose.

 

[butterfly610]

I agree...I don't think they are asking to be rude or to have specific numbers of what you personally make...just an idea so they know if it's something they are interested in. Recruiters don't give you an accurate figure, so they figure the drivers will. I always tell them it differs from week to week, and give them general answers about the income. Enough to give them idea of what they could be doing, but not the exact figures I'm making. They seem satisfied with the information.

Also, if they know nothing about this industry, how else would they learn about it? It's not like they are born with the knowledge of the website that would give them info...they ask drivers they see and we tell them where to look into it at. These guys are out on the road, some without internet to look things up, and hey, if I can help them out with a phone number or something, why not?

 

[arkjarhead]

I wish I would have approached an expediter before getting in the business. Maybe it would have been an EO member and they would have pointed me here. I'm not saying I would have been an expediter, but I could have I learned I needed a contract. It might have saved me some heartache.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

I wish I would have approached an expediter before getting in the business. Maybe it would have been an EO member and they would have pointed me here. I'm not saying I would have been an expediter, but I could have I learned I needed a contract. It might have saved me some heartache.

Hindsight is 20/20....never look back Joe....always go forward....

 

[late4dinner]

Interesting responses. I still believe that anyone who would start a conversation by asking a perfect stranger such a personal question is rude and without manners. Asking whether a person can make a living doing what we do, or something of that nature would be a much better way to start the conversation, at least that's my opinion.

By chefdennis's post, I'll bet that he didn't offend one person and he probably got more honest information.

 

[butterfly610]

I agree that it may have "sounded" better for the driver to ask that way....but you have to remember, not everyone has the same social skills. Not everyone in the world talks the same way. Maybe they just don't know how to word things the right way to get their point across. I'm from Texas, and used to friendly people and good customer service, I go to other places and people talk with shorter responses, don't smile or laugh as much as I'm used to...and I could say they're all rude, but it's just how some people are. If we don't try and see the point the person is trying to make, or the real question, we could be offended by almost anything.

 

[LakeSide]

When I started out, I didn't know squat !!

Only thru asking questions & listening to advise have i managed to break away from expediting
and get into trucking as an O/O. Ive got like 3 spiral notebooks full of notes taken since I began driving. When drivers would tell me something I didn't know? I wrote it down !

Thank God for the openness and willingness many O/O's have while sitting around waiting. I got my "real" education thru the 100's of hours of discussion with allot of you drivers. You guys gave me the knowledge to explore alternative sources of income and i'm about to cash in on the schooling.