Too Many MVR Violations- When a beaver fells a tree, branches break. These breaking branches are the natural consequence caused by the law of gravity. Points against your cdl are death to your water hauling career. Sucks that cdl holders are held to a double standard when it's their very livelihood that's in jeapordy whenever the laws of the land make you suffer the consequences of breaking them. Fight every ticket. Don't admit guilt and don't pay the fine. Hire a lawyer and fight the bureaucracy--no exceptions. If you don't, those points on your record can cost you a job.
Poor Communication Skills- Stay in touch until the job is yours. Check your voice mail, your email and your texts. An employer will move on to the next applicant if you don't keep up with the correspondence during the hiring process. The way you stay in communication during the hiring process says alot about how you'll communicate once employed. A guy that doesn't answer emails, texts and voice mails in a timely manner might just miss that big opportunity due to his own indolence.
Lack of Experience- To succeed in any industry, you have to pay your dues. The only true way to pay them is time. I remember not being able to get a driving job because I hadn't had my cdl long enough. Wasn't that I lacked the experience, it was that there was no bureaucratic evidence of such. It's a waiting game unless you know someone who knows someone who doesn't have corporate policy breathing down their neck. I provide my insight on dealing with inexperience and some ideas for getting some in the ebook. Don't get disheartened. We all have to start somewhere. Never live for the destination, enjoy the journey to the destination--that's living.
Lack of Commitment- A driver responds to a job listing and says he's really interested in working for such and such a company. He sounds like he'd be an awesome asset to the company. The employer asks, "when can you begin"? He says, "Well, I'm going on a vacation in a week and will be gone for two weeks, so I can begin in three weeks." The employers says, "thank you for your time, don't call us, we'll call you".
If you're gonna do anything of monumental import during your lifetime, the most important ingredient for success is committed action.
Disorder in Personal Life- So a guy says I'm interested in the job. The interview goes well and the hiring process begins. As things progress it becomes clear that a shoe string is holding this guys personal life together. He reveals that he's behind on his cell phone bill. He says he'll borrow money from a friend to afford the gas to get to and from work. He blames his situation on his ex wives and the messy divorces.
One red flag after another just keeps popping up and the more this guy talks the more you wonder how all of the disarray in his life will carry over into his work life. There are plenty of drivers who have their crap together. Why hire those who don't? To succeed as a water hauler in North Dakota I suggest the following: You have to have a car, a smart phone, a provider with excellent coverage, able to text and send pictures, enough money in the bank to make it to your first paycheck. The less needy you are, the more appealing you'll be to worthwhile employers.
Ignorant About Water Hauling- For your own sake, educate yourself about hauling water so your skills, experience and hard work are not taken advantage of by fly-by-night trucking outfits. The ebook will give you this education.
Greed- this is most common with job hoppers. These are the water haulers who have become spoiled by the glut of money they made when times were good, but then bounce from company to company always searching for greener pastures when times get slow. Problem is that the oilfield is kind of like a climate with four seasons where green pastures don't grow year round. There are situations where a guy shouldn't stay with a crap company, but good companies will have ups and downs. By sticking with a good company, when times are good they usually reward the guys who stuck it out with the better more consistent work. More on that in the ebook.