12 Trucking Tips to Drive Safer This Winter

12 Trucking Tips to Drive Safer This WinterI dont know about where you are, but here in New York, autumn has finally caught up to us. All the trees are racing to turn to yellow and red, and if this years anything like the last two, weve got some frigid temperature and blustery snowstorms to look forward to. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1472832551951-0) ) Many drivers who find themselves in winter conditions forget some basicsthey dont change their driving skills or brush up on maneuvering and skid control. Make sure youre up-to-date on the preventative safety skills that could save your life or someone elses.If youre still on the road this time of year, here are some important safety suggestions from the experts at Smart-Trucking.com.1. Slow DownThe speed limit may tell you the legal max, but it cant read road conditions or understand delays in stop time the way you can. Dont let your eagerness to finish a trip make you hurry when its elend safe.2. Foll ow SafelyWhen possible, leave 1/4 mile between you and the vehicle in front of you, and try to give space to the vehicles next to you, too. Remember that if youre driving with a group, the mistake the front truck makes can impact everyone else.3. Get Out of the PackFor that reason alone, try bedrngnis to drive in the packs traffic tends to organize itself intoyour goal should be attaining the maximum distance around your vehicle.4. Dont Fixate on Tail LightsIt can be tempting to focus on the lights of the car in front of you when visibility or weather conditions get overwhelming, but if you can see them youre probably too close5. Dont Stop on the ShoulderOther cars and trucks in low visibility may not be able to figure out your truck has pulled over or even that its stopped, and they could slam into your rear axle before they knew what was happening. Try to get to a truck stop or weigh stationanywhere you can pull fully off the road.6. Dont Try to Be a HeroEven if you pride yourself on always being on schedule or arriving before your deadlines, remember that pushing yourself when the weather is inclement is not worth risking your safety. Balance the pressure you feel coming from dispatches or service rules with concern for your life and others on the road.7. Dont Jake BrakeBe especially aware of the risks of employing your jake brake and over-using your footbrake on icy and snowy roads. You may find yourself sliding and spinning out of control, especially when the trailer is empty.8. Pay Extra Attention to your Circle CheckMake sure all your systems are fully functionalyou dont want the defroster, the heater, the wipers, or the lights (particularly the brake and tail lights) to go down on you in the middle of a scary stretch of road. Make sure everything that has a level is full to capacity. If possible, have extras stored away in case you need to refill mid-drive.9. Stay Fueled UpFull fuel tanks mean extra weight on your drive tires, which helps with traction and stability. Make sure your tires have enough pressure for winter driving, as well.10. Keep Your Lights CleanWhenever you can stop, make sure to clear off your head and tail lights, particularly if youre equipped with LED lights. Make sure youre visible, so other drivers can adjust if they need.11. Pack an Emergency KitYour kit should have necessities for servicing your truck, but also the basics to help you hunker down if necessary a change of warm clothes, a bottle of water, hand-warmers, first aid kit, batteries, a flashlight, and flares. Also,consider investing in portable chargers for any electronics you carry regularly.12. Get off the RoadWhen in doubt, use your common sense and best judgment about when its time to get off the road. It may make for a great war story to power through a terrible blizzard and make your delivery dates, but I guarantee people would rather remember the time you arrived a day late, alive and well, than the horrific accident that kept you from arri ving at all. Know when to pull off the road. Remember that youll be the one ultimately held accountable for whether you drove or parked to wait it out.

Technical Skills Resume Writing Tips

Technical Skills Resume Writing Tips How to show tech skills on your IT resumeFeature your tech skills on your resume so you stand out. Employers often screen candidates based on their technical skills, so technology job seekers naturally want to make koranvers they present their skills properly. As a result, creating the skills section of a technology resume section can be a challenge.So what are technical skills, exactly? Technical skills, as listed on a resume, includeprogramming languages, tools and operating systems you have a high level of experience using either through employment or otherwise.Typical resume issues technology professionals wrestle with includeWhether to list skills alphabetically or in order of importance.Whether to include every skilland how muchdetail to provide.How to differentiate between expert knowledge of a technology with passing familiarity.Dont exaggerateOne recruiters advice is simple Dont obsess over the skills section of your resume to the point of embellishment. In adding a skills section to their resume, a lot of people have a tendency to exaggerate their level of expertise in various technologies, says Scott Hajer, senior corporate recruiter for Software Architects. They figure the more keywords, the more exposure.Such tactics are likely to backfire, especially during a technology job interview. We had a candidate who had a big grid on his resume, listing all the skills he had and rating himself on a scale of oneto 5 in them, says Hajer. One of the skills was J2EE, with a 3 (for average ability) tagged to it. When asked to talk about J2EE, he could elend even define the term, much less talk about his experience in it, he says.Some employers provide questionnaires asking candidates to rate themselves on particular technology skills, but they dont expect such ratings in a resumes skills section. Keep things simple. Denote each technology skill with the number of years ofexperience, orif youre intent on includi ng a rating, use rankings like novice, intermediate, and expert.Skills and their usesThe skills section should be buttressed with job descriptions detailing how those skills have been used in the workplace. For example, a resume listing Java, Oracle and UML in the skills section should describe how each technology was employed on a particular project. Those details provide employers with genuine insight into the depth of a persons knowledge and experience with those technologies.Stay relevantConsider these tipsDelete outdated skills or those with no relevance to the job youre pursuing.Separate technology skills into familiar categories such as operating systems, networks and programming tools.List skills in the order of their relevance to your objective, rather than alphabetically.If youve only read about it in Computerworld or on News.com, dont include it.Resume organizationTechnology job candidates may want to place the skills section after the job objective and before the experie nce section. But there are exceptions. If youre just starting out, you may want to place a greater emphasis on education and internships. If youre seeking management or sales positions, you may want to avoid crowding the resume with a list of technical skills. Instead, consider placing the list below the experience section or adding other elements, such as communication abilities and foreign languages, to the skills section.Here are examples of one job seekers technical skills sectionParagraph formatthe most commonTechnical SkillsLanguages Java, XML, C, C++, JavaScript, SQL, hypertext markup language, UML.ToolsJBuilder, Dreamweaver, Rational Rose, UltraEdit, Borland C++Builder, Oracle SQL*Plus.Operating systems Windows XP, Linux, Mac OS X.List formatgives employers a quick overviewTechnical SkillsLanguagesToolsOperating systemsJavaXMLCC++JavaScriptSQLHTMLUMLJBuilderDreamweaverRational RoseUltraEditBorland C++BuilderOracle SQL* PlusWindows XPLinuxMac OS XList format with years of exp erience and skill levelmore detailAn alternative is to denote only the years of experience.Technical SkillsLanguagesYears experienceSkill levelJavaXMLCC++JavaScriptSQLHTMLUML63646462ExpertIntermediateExpertIntermediateExpertIntermediateIntermediateNoviceTest yourresumeFiguring out the right way to present your computer skills on your resume is the first step in your job search. Now you need to make sure what you wrote is enough to get a hiring managers attention. Would you like some help with that?Get a free resume evaluation today from the experts atMonsters Resume Writing Service. Youll get detailed feedback in two business days, including a review ofyour resumes appearance and content, and a prediction of a recruiters first impression. Think of it as QA testing for your job search.