As the capacity crunch takes hold throughout this holiday freight season, time management plays a very vital role in helping boost your bottom line. Whether it is less time spent fueling, less time spent stopping to eat, or less time sitting on a customer dock, getting more done safely in less time will always save you money in the lung run! One way I make more money and save time on the road mastering the art of being in two places at the same time.
Throughout my typical day I happen to see a larger variety of different customers than your average driver due to being local. As an OTR driver will see a shipper or receiver every couple days on average, I happen to see several different ones each day. However, this does not mean I am exempt from the frustration caused by sitting on their dock for hours on end. So giving into the true "multi-tasker" that I always try to be, I see my sitting time as an opportunity to get other time-draining activities completed.
One thing I happen to do all the time that lends itself to this practice is fueling while I am being unloaded. I happen to have a lot of customers where I can unhook my trailer when it's in the dock and go park in a bobtail section while loading or unloading, which makes fitting in fueling time as simple as asking for permission to leave the property for an hour. Not only does this lessen my frustration from dealing with sitting at a customer I might already know will take forever to unload me, but it allows me to effectively use that time in another more productive manner.
As long as you are not responsible for a driver count on the load, many things such as fueling and eating can be done in this manner. With the growing importance of watching your hours and making sure your workday fits within the HOS, it is likewise becoming that much more important to be able to utilize your time as effectively as possible. After all, a minute saved is a minute earned!