Driver Lifestyles

Are You Stressed Out?

If there is any career or lifestyle that has the potential to generate stress and lots of it, it would be trucking - specifically, expedited trucking. 

And why not? 

The expedited owner-operator is concerned with making the truck payment and the other bills along with separation from loved ones back home.  Now, throw in traffic, weather conditions, nasty dock workers and the fact that he is under a time gun from the moment he accepts a load.     

The problem is that the emotional and physical tension of stress does not help the situation that caused the stress in the first place; it actually prevents you from being productive and getting on with the rest of your day successfully.

It's easy to fall into stress traps. Here are some ways to calm the stress that creeps up on you, especially at work.

Counting

We've all heard of slowly counting to ten.  Don't laugh, it can work! This technique helps you step away from the stressful moment mentally, and gives you those 10 seconds to remove yourself from the situation at hand.

Terry and Carolyn Amos are straight truck owner-operators with 11 years in truckload, before coming to expedite a year ago.

Terry says, "We lessened our stress level by getting rid of our tractor and going to a straight truck!  When you get to the shipper or consignee in an expediter truck, they're a heck of a lot more attentive!"

"In a semi, they'll say, 'just park over there and we'll come get you when we're ready.' Then, hours later, you may or may not get unloaded.  Being unloaded more promptly and reducing that waiting time is a big stress relief, for one thing."

Terry continues, "Our previous expedited carrier had an aversion to letting us call the customer for directions.  With our current company, they give us a name, contact number and directions for the delivery and they don't bother us after that.  It's up to us as professionals to get the freight delivered and that eliminates a lot of the pressure."

"With the world the way it is today - with the possibility of terrorism and hijacking - we're on edge.  We haul AA&E on occasion and that generates its own stress level.  We have some stress relief with the technology we carry:  we have a panic button, the Qualcomm, three cell phones, a GPS unit and routing software on our laptop.  When you're online and in touch, it reduces some of the tension."

He adds, "Let me tell you, if you want a real stress reliever, go from a 13-speed to an Autoshift!"

 

Take a walk

If you feel like a stressful scenario is getting the best of you, remove yourself from the situation physically. Get up, take a quick walk and get some air. Give yourself a few minutes of downtime to clear your mind when things get too hectic.  Do whatever you can to get your mind off the situation for a few minutes. Once you're calm, you can properly think about the best alternate route to take to work.

Release the tension

Carry a stress ball or an object that you can squeeze when times get tough. Physically squeezing something other than your co-driver's neck is another effective way to release your tension and stress.

Lighten up

Taking situations a little more lightly and cutting yourself some slack will ease your stress level and alleviate the amount of pressure you place on shoulders.  I'm only saying that when the going gets tough, think of the situation as a challenge you can win and if you fail... learn from it.

Between changing companies and some truck breakdown issues, straight truck owner-operators Tom and Tina Evans say that they've had their fair share of stress, but "you've just got to laugh about it," says Tina.

"For us, the most important thing is to keep a good credit rating in case you have one of those catastrophes.  If you have access to financial resources with money in the bank, you can handle those curve balls and that's a great stress reliever."

She says, "I think most people's stress in this business is caused by financial concerns.  Everything builds from there.  If you have a cash reserve in the bank that you can fall back on, a two or three day layover won't matter as much.  Everybody wants to keep running, but if you're laid over in an area and it seems like there's no freight, if you have something to fall back on, you can breathe a little easier."

"Some of the folks out here aren't financially stable, so sitting somewhere for a couple of days, spending money to eat and idle their truck, will stress them out.  Some people can't stand to sit for long in the truck, they're like a caged beast."

"If you find yourself getting stressed out and burnt out, go home!  Take a vacation!  About the longest we stay on the road is five weeks at a time and that's about as long as we can stand it.  If I don't have my dog with me, we might go home before then.  Having an animal in the truck is a wonderful thing.  It’s been proven that pets have a calming and relaxing effect on people and we love our beagle."

"Another great stress reliever is our Garmin GPS unit.  I don't know how we got along without one all this time!"

Take some deep breaths

Breathing is more than just a function that keeps you alive; it actually helps clear your mind and calm you down, take deep breaths to physically and emotionally calm yourself down.

Don't push

If you are feeling overwhelmed by stress, it may be that you are pushing yourself too hard. Slow down for a while, and make sure that your expectations are in line with your current abilities and resources. If not, adjust the plan.

Billie Johnson and Amy Richardson are straight truck drivers and Billie tells us, "For stress relief, Amy and I try to get out of the truck whenever we can.  We try to find a movie, go shopping, anything to get away from the truck.  It's worth the money to get a motel room on occasion.  If you don't, it will burn you out." 

Billie says that she and Amy have gotten a group of friends together and played miniature golf, raced go-karts - "we just do different things."

As if running one truck doesn't provide enough stress in their lives, Billie and Amy recently accepted the responsibility of fleet management for a truck owner.  They now oversee a fleet of seven expediting units while maintaining their own truck operation.

Although they're available to their drivers on a 24/7 basis, Billie says that it hasn't been as stressful as one might imagine:  "I train the drivers myself and they're a good bunch of people - very professional."

"I tell our drivers; I don't want them to get burned out.  Work three or four weeks and then go home for five or seven days.  I don't want them to stay in the truck all the time and think that's their whole life.  That's what leads to stress."

"Amy and I don't really have a problem with the pressure - we're both pretty laid-back people and we figure what's going to happen is going to happen." 

Talk to others

You don't have to do it all; everyone has limitations. It is okay to ask others for help, even if it simply means seeking insight from someone with more experience on a given matter. Discuss problems with a trusted friend or family member. Sometimes, just talking through a problem can help create a solution, once a person has the chance to calm down and think it over.

Peace!