Networking

We are in SNOWY Denver CO all week for a CMC offered by Kevin Rutherford.

In this wonderful economy it is amazing that there are over 100 Owner Operators here at this conference as the price for the conference was not cheap nor was the hotel. Education is part of our key to having a successful business and the old saying this is how I have done it forever does not work. We are in a huge time of change with lower rates, higher costs and more competition. We have made the choice to stay ahead of the game by education and networking. Attending seminars and trucking shows can be a hard choice to make as we are taking time out of our schedule and not being available for a load. We have toned down some of our travel to these events and are trying to stay more informed by listening to educational shows on the radio, through reading, trucking forums, and also the network of people we stay in contact with. We have an awesome network of friends in different divisions of trucking. We have Henry Albert who is an alternate to the OOIDA board, we have Miguel from Detroit Diesel who is a component specialist, we have Vince who has just had his own authority a few months, we have Craig who is leased to Schneider is their program where they find their own loads, we have Lawrence who is the owner of Expediters Online where I am a moderator, we have Leo who is a fleet owner and then we have a awesome list of expediter friends.

We have found that by caring about our industry and drivers we are the ones that are really enriched. Everyday we learn from our friends on something that is happening in the trucking industry. If we (I)get out of kilter and try to make a goofy decision one of our friends will set us (me) straight pretty quick. With the network of friends and the involvement we have in trucking organizations we are constantly amazed at how much fun we have and how much pride we take in our choice of a way to make a living. Who would have ever thought that “just being a truck driver” could be such a rewarding career. I know our families are constantly amazing at how much more we are involved with our life styles then we were when we had the typical 9 to 5 jobs and could not wait for Friday and the weekend.

More on CMC when I can post my pictures of an awesome group of people.