Marketing Yourself in Trucking
When beginning a new job, many people simply want to learn their role and focus on only what they were hired for. If they're hired to pick up a phone to answer and make calls, then they'd make sure to just learn that job. That's it. If they're brought into a company to process paperwork, or maybe they're a sales or tech specialist, then that's what they do. Focus on the task at hand and only do what you were brought in for.
Some folks out there excel at more than just one thing making them more indispensable than those who are only masters of one solitary craft. Please keep in mind, though, there's no reason to call out anyone who is just doing their job. Those folks and their skillsets matter, too.
Jack of Some Trades
When dipping your toes into the waters of expedite freight, it's encouraged to wade into such a new situation with an open mind. As has been discussed on many an occasion, hauling expedite freight is entirely different than your typical over-the-road gig. So why wouldn't someone want to learn all they can about this opportunity in the industry?
Learning each nuanced possibility within the expedite realm will keep drivers up to snuff with what's going on around them. Understanding that some areas of the country are better for expedite freight than other areas, this is an education that is best reached through experience. Sometimes a driver might pick these lessons up from watching or listening to someone else, perhaps another driver who is just slightly more seasoned. But that's precisely why conversations around the truck stop countertop are hard to ignore. To pass along information, to learn from someone else's experience, successes, and mistakes. And to dole out your own brand of wisdom when it's asked for.
Becoming an individual who knows how to do most things well, but also one who knows how to do a few other things exceptionally well, is a key to succeeding in this industry.
Master of Other Trades
It's also more than okay for a driver to become exceptional at performing certain tasks without feeling the need to be great at everything. Again, that's how growth and education affect people who are trying to be the best they can be. Know your weaknesses and work on improving them. Know your strengths and find ways to accentuate them. Figure out what you're best at and pass along what you know to the next driver. And the things you're not exceptionally great at, keep working at them until you're more than adequate. That way, when your moment comes to stand-out and shine, you'll be able to perform your task(s) admirably.
That's what's great about marketing yourself as indispensable to your company, your truck, or your partnership. Get to know how to operate and manage in different situations or learn how to properly pre-trip, or accept a load offer, and then pass that knowledge onto the next person. Making yourself vital to the cause, or company, provides opportunities to grow and to seek out further success.