As a truck driver, we are subject to some quite severe working conditions. Long hours, rough weather, and lack of quality nutrition or sleep, just to name a few.
Our lives revolve on the conditions of the road, and sometimes we have little to no say in what we run into. This is the reason a lot of us need something else driving us forward in these hard times.
It is not just about enjoying the good times of trucking, this will only propel you so far. You need a reason outside of trucking to keep you steady.
Without it, you might sink into a slump of depression or anger towards your job. These are some major concerns living out on the road by yourself.
The Wide Array of Possibilities
There is no rule book to tell you what you should be doing with your life. Contrary to some main social constructs, your life is yours, and doing something that makes you happy should be one of your main priorities.
Many of us find comfort in our jobs or lifestyles. We find it functioning well, allowing smooth transitions day-to-day, and disrupting something like that might be, for lack of a better term, devastating.
Many of us will refer to this phenomenon as “settling”. We find peace with the status-quo and do not want to risk the turmoil that may ensue after the disruption of such a predictable life.
Have you ever wondered if you could do more, or be more, other than what you already are? I’m not talking about climbing the ladder here. I am referring to “taking the leap” into something new and exciting! Find a spark and foster it.
There are so many pathways we can take. The greatest thing about our current situation is that we have a great amount of time to explore our hearts.
So Much Time
You drive for hours a day. Some of you even drive all day (agriculture guys – I know you are out there). Yes, you are restricted to what you can do while you work, but that restriction isn’t as tight as you think it is.
Your mind is such a magical place. Your brain is so powerful it can make you incredibly sick, and then turn around and give you superhuman strength in times of need.
What are you doing to care for, and recharge your mind?
What are you doing to fuel a passion your mind would feed off of, and guide you through the rough days?
Where To Find Your Spark
What I find incredibly astonishing is that many “sparks” in our lives go unnoticed.
What I mean by this is: Take, for example, you are walking down the street and you notice an artist at a pop-up tent teaching small children how to paint with watercolors.
In this particular event, you may recognize how you smile at the sight in remembrance of a time when you used to enjoy painting in high school.
You may chalk up this moment to just that, a fond memory, but with some exploration, you may find that you like painting more than you originally thought. With this logic, you are putting up walls to ideas that do not fit into your already pre-planned life.
You will push away those things that bring you joy unknowingly because the thought of adding them to your life just seems too odd.
This is what happened to me with trucking. I was on my path towards a desire to be a pediatric neurologist. I was never “supposed” to like trucks or want anything to do with them. It just didn’t fit.
I needed a push to convince myself that it’s okay to stray from the predetermined path.
You are allowed to color outside of the lines! Hell, while you are at it, you can throw away the box you’ve been keeping yourself in too!
Changing Your Mindset
Part of changing the way you interact with the world around you is changing your mindset to think differently about things.
Most of the time, this can be exploratory mind shifts, and not necessarily an overhaul.
Try to focus more on recognizing those things which bring you joy. So often we experience them in passing, and never indulge ourselves.
Maybe this will be your cue to finally dive into something that truly brings you joy.
Here are some videos, and a list of podcasts to get you started.
Use them as an opening to a deeper rabbit hole. Don’t stop here, keep looking until you find something you are truly passionate about, and then chase that thing!
Videos To Start
Podcasts To Start
