Hire Truckers Podcast

00:00 - 00:10
Aaron Craddock: Welcome to the Hire Truckers podcast where we interview experts in driver recruiting. We provide industry insights, marketing trends, and motivation to help you level up your recruiting game.

00:10 - 00:34
Ginger Craddock: Welcome to the Hire Truckers podcast. I'm your host, Ginger Craddock. Today, we're diving into a topic that many of us face, but few of us talk about it openly, job transitions. What happens when the role that you've poured yourself into suddenly shifts or even disappears. I felt that.

00:34 - 01:20
Ginger Craddock: Have you felt that? Well, today's guest, Alicia Grayson, knows firsthand how to navigate these unexpected career pivots. She's experienced the challenges, the emotions, and the opportunities that come with transitions like this. In this episode, Alicia and I are gonna explore what it means to face risk and uncertainty in your career and how maturity and emotional resilience play a role and why technology and human connection must work hand in hand for the future of trucking. And most importantly, we're gonna uncover the treasures in transition.

01:21 - 01:33
Ginger Craddock: The unexpected growth, resilience, and hope that can come out of the hardest seasons. So let's jump in. Alicia, welcome to the podcast.

01:33 - 01:36
Elisha Grayson: Thank you. I'm so excited to do this.

01:36 - 02:00
Ginger Craddock: You are just an incredible, courageous leader, and it it just shows in your willingness to come to the table and and walk through this important topic with us. So Alicia, take us back to that moment that you found out about your most recent transition. What was going through your mind?

02:00 - 02:20
Elisha Grayson: Oh, shock. Initial shock for sure. Fear, anger, disappointment, all of the emotions, you know, initially thinking, man, I've put so much into this company. You know, why is this happening to me again? The second time, you know, it had happened.

02:20 - 02:36
Elisha Grayson: What am I gonna do? What are my next steps? You know, how am I gonna leave here my work family behind? There's a lot of emotions. And, you know, I've learned from this, it's okay with that initial shock to be a little bit emotional, but be emotional professionally.

02:37 - 02:57
Ginger Craddock: Oh. Be emotional professionally. And I appreciate the clear way that you identified what those real emotions are in the moment. Mhmm. And then also thinking about what you felt in that moment.

02:57 - 03:31
Ginger Craddock: I also know as a leader, you've had to have difficult conversations on the other side of the coin. Yeah. And so experiencing it on both sides, both as a leader having to have a difficult conversation, and then also as a leader respecting other leaders in an organization that have to give us difficult information, handling that with respect and maturity, have you developed more empathy from feeling it on both sides?

03:31 - 03:46
Elisha Grayson: Yes. Yes. I think I have. You know, where a lot of times, you know, people look at tears not being okay in the professional world. But when you get shocked like that and you don't expect it coming, I think tears are very acceptable.

03:46 - 04:05
Elisha Grayson: You are upset. You know? It's hard to hold that in. What's not acceptable that I've had happen to me, you know, of pointing fingers, getting in your boss's face, being loud, you know, those things, people remember that. So where when you leave a company unprofessionally, your boss is gonna remember that.

04:05 - 04:26
Elisha Grayson: But as long as you're doing it professionally, tears are okay, asking questions is okay, it's shock. And people handle shock very differently. It's just knowing to control the anger that you're feeling in the moment and the things, you know, sometimes you're thinking things that might be negative, but saying them professionally.

04:27 - 04:50
Ginger Craddock: That's key. That's key. And so how did you balance in that moment? It's nice that you've got a few weeks away from it. So in that moment, as you look back, how did you balance those initial strong emotions that come in an unexpected moment with practical realities of needing to figure out your next steps?

04:51 - 05:16
Elisha Grayson: So initially, you know, I kind of sat in it that evening. I came home. It all kind of happened around 03:00 that afternoon. I came home, you know, vented to my husband, let him know, let him hug me, kind of release that emotion that I was feeling. And it's okay to state your emotions, you know, the day that it happens, the next day, kind of think your next steps.

05:16 - 05:46
Elisha Grayson: I'm a little bit of a go getter where I knew I wanted to get out there right away. So the one thing I did that evening was hop on LinkedIn, use chat GPT to come up with a really good explanation of how I was feeling and what had happened, and just quickly posted something out there so that people knew, hey, I'm looking in case because you never know. There could be someone getting close to close a position, you know, in that moment. So I think it's really important. You know, you don't have to update your resume right away.

05:46 - 06:00
Elisha Grayson: Nothing like that. Just getting the word out there as soon as possible that you're open to work, that you're looking. And then I took the next day after that to kind of still sit in my emotions. And then but you can't stay there. You gotta get up.

06:00 - 06:19
Elisha Grayson: You gotta get going. You gotta, you know, use the time wisely. Think of taking the opportunity of, you know, spending time with your family, getting projects done that you haven't been able to do. You can't just sit in the emotion. You have to get going and network and use your time wisely that you're off.

06:20 - 06:50
Ginger Craddock: Well, you just hit on you just hit on two key things is feeling the emotions but not sitting in them, but also actually three things. And then that you you control the narrative. Like, you didn't delay in communicating the appropriate narrative that, like you said, you never know in the moment who's looking. And as a leader, you were directing that narrative. Here's where I'm going.

06:50 - 07:26
Ginger Craddock: Here's what I'm looking for. And then you gave yourself that personal space. But what I also love is you didn't only take action on the work piece. You because there's kind of a gap in what you can do with the work once you've let your network know. And I love how you're like, Ginger, I took action on some things in my personal realm and how that nurtured your soul, helped you move forward, helped you take action.

07:26 - 07:28
Ginger Craddock: That's beautiful. Yes.

07:28 - 07:45
Elisha Grayson: Yes. It really did. I really leaned on my family. I took my boys to the zoo, to the state fair, had date nights with my husband, dusted off my Xbox controller and played some Xbox. I love to cook.

07:45 - 08:11
Elisha Grayson: I love to bake. That's my happy thing. So I've done a lot of that just really nurturing myself to keep myself in good spirits and in a good position, you know, to keep keep going and keep being excited about what the future is gonna be and just, you know, it's we don't get these breaks very often and work can be very stressful. So when you get these breaks, really taking the opportunity to enjoy them.

08:12 - 08:34
Ginger Craddock: True. And it's a beautiful reset for vision for work and vision for all the other pieces. I love the forgotten hobby of Xbox, you know, just reentering that. And I'm a huge advocate of the date nights with my man. Like, I wanna make sure I'm front and center with him.

08:34 - 09:02
Ginger Craddock: He's my favorite person. He knows even after forty two years of marriage, he's still my number one. And so just that and sometimes that that can get spread out just with the pressures of life. And so I love that you guys were able to lean into that and that was part of your healthy navigating through the difficult emotions, having that support from him, but but also creating some really positive memories in this transition. That's beautiful, Alicia.

09:02 - 09:04
Ginger Craddock: Yeah. It was great.

09:04 - 09:29
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09:29 - 09:35
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09:35 - 09:49
Ginger Craddock: So many people in trucking and recruiting are facing long job searches right now. So what do you see as the biggest risks and fears in this season?

09:50 - 10:10
Elisha Grayson: Yeah. When I think about it, you know, it's, you know, are you gonna have to step down to keep growing? Am I gonna have to take a position, you know, that is a step down from what I've been doing the last few years to keep growing? And, you know, I I think that's okay. I don't think that is a bad thing.

10:10 - 10:35
Elisha Grayson: I really wanna stay in the industry. Then the gap in employment, you know, some people look at gaps of employment as not good things. You know, my position was outsourced. So when sometimes when people hear that word, I've kind of got feedback of, well, she wasn't doing what she should have been doing. But that's not always the case, especially right now where in the trucking industry people are looking to save money.

10:35 - 11:02
Elisha Grayson: Just because a position was outsourced doesn't mean that the person wasn't hitting their goals, wasn't doing what they were supposed to be doing. It's there's a lot of companies out there right now looking to save money, looking to try something different, to even keep the company just going. So those are kind of the risks that I see, kind of the negatives, the feedback that I've heard a little bit, that I've seen people post that were concerned about different things. Those were the risks that I really see.

11:03 - 11:27
Ginger Craddock: Agreed. And again, those are all real important risks to evaluate in these times of transition. And so there's risk, but there's also opportunity. Where do you see the opportunities in times of transition even with the uncertainty that can sometimes feel overwhelming? Yeah.

11:27 - 11:28
Ginger Craddock: Just kind

11:28 - 11:56
Elisha Grayson: of like what we've hit on just a minute ago, the breathing room, spending time with family. That's the biggest opportunity that I'm seeing in this. Being there for my son's first week of kindergarten, all of the things that I've been able to do the last month that I haven't been, you know, working every day is spending time with family is the biggest opportunity in this for me. But the other opportunity that I've been thinking about is recruiting is very transferable. You you can recruit.

11:56 - 12:17
Elisha Grayson: I've seen a lot of people in the trucking industry that have gone to different industries. I've seen people go into the health industry. I've seen people go into manufacturing. You know, recruiting is it's a sales position, so you can go into sales. It's the recruiting is very transferable where you're just selling something.

12:17 - 12:27
Elisha Grayson: So it doesn't matter if that's trucking or if that's health benefits or anything like that. With recruiting, it's very transferrable as an opportunity that I've looked at as well.

12:28 - 12:31
Ginger Craddock: It is so true. And it's a people business.

12:31 - 12:31
Aaron Craddock: Mhmm.

12:31 - 13:23
Ginger Craddock: So that's something from the first moment I met you several years ago, you have excellent people skills, whether you're interacting with executives or vendors or drivers or people in the office or with your team or cross departmental, you have excellent people skills. And so to your point, it's transferable in so many different ways. So you've touched on maturity and emotional resilience and how these times of transition have matured you in different ways. So what does maturity mean to you now compared to earlier in your career?

13:24 - 13:44
Elisha Grayson: Yeah. So maturity used to mean to me that everything had to be perfect. It was all about perfection and everything. Now that I look at maturity, I don't think that's that's what it is. It's more about knowing yourself, your strengths, your patterns, your blind spots, your weaknesses, you know, what you need to do.

13:46 - 14:00
Elisha Grayson: It's not about, like, acting a certain way. It's more about not running, like, on autopilot. It's knowing how to respond. But, you know, back in the day, used to think, well, I'm mature if I'm perfect in everything I do. That's not the case.

14:00 - 14:03
Elisha Grayson: It's more about knowing yourself, I think.

14:03 - 14:38
Ginger Craddock: Wow. And how that connects back to the very first opening thing that you shared with us about what it felt like in that unexpected moment. What what a beautiful connection to help us actually see that in real time. We see that maturity in you. So what advice would you give someone about handling the raw emotions of a layoff, the shock, the fear, and even the anger while still moving forward with professionalism?

14:39 - 14:51
Elisha Grayson: Yeah. I say don't act on impulse. Don't let that dictate your behavior. Take a moment, breathe, pause. It's okay to process for a second before you say anything.

14:52 - 15:11
Elisha Grayson: I think that's very important before you respond, is to take a moment. I think it's less about looking good and more about living wisely is something that, you know, really it's not about looking good. You're going to have emotions. You're going to feel a certain way. It's more about what you say and how you react in the moment.

15:13 - 15:27
Ginger Craddock: Wow. That is powerful. Acting with wisdom in whatever situation you're navigating. What a beautiful representation of maturity. And I loved your point about it's not perfection and we haven't arrived.

15:28 - 16:20
Ginger Craddock: You know, I have shared with my kids and my family as they're growing up. I'm like, I hope until I draw my last breath, you're able to look back over the last year, the last quarter of my life and go, we saw our mom grow in this last year. And so that's how that that has helped me to frame my growth and keep leaning in and keep growing no matter what decade I'm in, no matter what point I'm in my career, my parenting, my relationship with my husband, my relationship with my friends, like, keep leaning in and growing as a human being. And so I love how you framed that for us, Alicia. Can you share an example of a reset or a small joy that helped you reframe your season?

16:20 - 16:24
Ginger Craddock: I've been hearing little bits of those little joyful pieces.

16:25 - 16:51
Elisha Grayson: Yeah. Just the personal reset. Taking time, enjoying life, doing those things that, you know, you wanna do when cooking, like I said, is my favorite. I love to cook for my family, posting my recipes on TikTok and seeing the joy of other people, you know, seeing my recipes. And it's it's funny because my network of even my my trucking network, people have seen all these fun things that I've been doing.

16:51 - 17:05
Elisha Grayson: They're like, wow. I didn't know you like to do that. Wow, I didn't know you did that. And so it's people out there gonna see another side of me of the things that I do enjoy. But, yeah, the personal reset has just been the best thing that's come out of this for sure.

17:06 - 17:38
Ginger Craddock: Agreed. And and the authentic we're we're making a pivot into AI and technology. But what's gonna win with AI and technology are the authentic individuals that are helping to make those decisions and using them. And so I love how this season of reset is helping your network see other aspects of who you are. It actually deepens the relationships is what I've found.

17:38 - 18:02
Ginger Craddock: And so when we think about technology and recruiting, recruiting in trucking can feel like, not just feel like, but be a seven day a week race. Yes. How do you see AI and automation shifting that pressure? Is there any area where you might see a lift or a help in that pressure?

18:02 - 18:15
Elisha Grayson: Yeah. So recruiting definitely is, you know, can be a twenty four seven job. You know, my president used to say that recruiting is one of the hardest positions in trucking. And it can be. It's a huge weight.

18:15 - 18:59
Elisha Grayson: And it's if you're not getting that driver, you know, before somebody else does, it you can easily lose them very quickly. So I think that AI is really gonna help handling the technology side of things. So like your chatbots, maybe screening people before so the recruiters aren't wasting their time calling people that are qualified, helping you schedule interviews, all that technology part of it. It's gonna take a lot of weight off recruiters because they do a lot, you know, the initial cold calling. So if you're not getting leads sent to you, you know, looking for your own leads, getting that first phone call, getting the driver to actually answer the phone, you know, because they're driving, or maybe they don't wanna answer the phone until they know who's calling.

18:59 - 19:22
Elisha Grayson: So multiple phone calls happen before you actually get in contact with the drivers. And then you do the interview. And then sometimes the interview can last thirty minutes and then the person not even be qualified by the time the interview is done. And we all know that drivers love to talk. So having them keeping you on the phone and having to struggle to get off the phone sometimes when they're not a qualified driver that you're looking for.

19:23 - 19:56
Elisha Grayson: Then you go into processing. And we all know right now the verification of employment is getting harder to obtain with some companies out there, you know, now charging to get the verification. Or I've seen something on LinkedIn the other day where a company, it was a current driver, so they weren't gonna give up that verification for twenty one days until so it all takes a lot of time. So, you know, let's say that it takes twenty one days to get that verification of employment. So keeping that driver warm, checking in with them, you know, making sure they're not going somewhere else in that meantime.

19:57 - 20:28
Elisha Grayson: And then the closing pieces of it, of getting them into the facility and getting them started and getting them to stay and checking in with them, you know, thirty days, sixty days, ninety days to make sure they're happy here and that, you know, it's everything that you told them it was gonna be. And it's a lot of work, the whole cycle. It's not just getting them even in the door. It's making sure they're staying. So I think that those chatbots and screening apps and any technology that we can use to make recruiting jobs easier, AI is gonna be huge.

20:29 - 21:20
Ginger Craddock: Agreed. And again, it doesn't replace the human. It helps us or or the human expert. It helps us do some of those redundant things more efficiently and faster So then we can do these pieces, these relational pieces, this wowing this potential new driver, keeping them connected as we're navigating the VOE challenges that are going on now and just the things that we can automate opens up space for recruiters to do the other things that only recruiters can do that are connected with the real human connection. So looking ahead, what do you think the recruiter's role will look like in five years?

21:20 - 21:33
Ginger Craddock: There there are sometimes some chatter of, oh, in these different industries, AI is gonna do away with the human. But when you look ahead, what are you seeing for the recruiter's role in the next five years?

21:33 - 21:54
Elisha Grayson: I don't think it will do away with recruiters because you still need that human connection. Drivers wanna be heard. They wanna feel valued. They wanna be respected. And I think it's taking AI and pairing that efficiency of where AI is really helping with the technology piece and the recruiter is helping with the empathy piece.

21:55 - 22:21
Elisha Grayson: So it's bringing them together. So where AI is handling all the things that are more technology based and then the recruiter's doing that closing piece with the human touch, letting them know that they are feeling valued, building that lasting relationship so that those drivers know once they started the company, they can reach out to that recruiter for anything. I think that will always be important is that empathy piece from a recruiter.

22:22 - 22:58
Ginger Craddock: True. There's there's a book that I read years ago called The Liability Factor, and and we've all heard some version of people do business with who they know, like, and trust. Yes. And to be known is human connection. We can appreciate technology and have preferences for it, but liking someone that comes from some type of human connection, and then trust is foundational to all human connection.

22:58 - 23:22
Ginger Craddock: And to the extent that we can build that Yeah. It really determines where we go in the future no matter what technology unfolds. Mhmm. We need this element of the very best humans leading the way, participating in the solutions, and and addressing the concerns that will come up from it. Yeah.

23:22 - 23:44
Ginger Craddock: Yep. So you've had to give up to go up more than once in your career. That's something that I heard John Max Maxwell talk about very early in my career. It was in one of his earlier books. I think it's in the 21 irrefutable laws of leadership that just really kinda opened him up.

23:44 - 24:22
Ginger Craddock: And he talks about how you have to give up to go up. And I always thought coming up and transitioning in the workforce, I thought if I did my job really, really well, that I would never be let go, that I wouldn't be caught in what I've been caught in a couple of times, you know, in the banking industry when it had a downward turn. I didn't get caught in the first layoff, but I got caught in the second one. And intellectually, even though though I knew it was a business decision, I I knew they were keeping the bank afloat. I knew that big picture why they were doing that.

24:22 - 24:41
Ginger Craddock: It to your point, it didn't change the big emotions that I felt. It it was still a gut hit. But it gave me opportunity to start my education business. Mhmm. But I gave up some things to ultimately go up in my business.

24:41 - 25:14
Ginger Craddock: And so the times of transition can be uncomfortable, but boy, did it open up opportunity and let me grow professionally, financially. Like, it was really cool. I got to do things and start my own business that I'd always envisioned, and then I sold it a couple of years ago and and came into trucking and in building some really exciting things here. And so when you think about to give up to go up, what treasures have you discovered, Alicia, in these transitions?

25:14 - 25:28
Elisha Grayson: Yeah. You know, I'll start off with transition is always hard. You know, it feels like a loss. You don't get to see your work family every day like you have for the past so many years. You know, I'll say I watched my dad go through this.

25:28 - 25:47
Elisha Grayson: He was at a company for a really, really long time, probably close to twenty five, thirty years, and they decided to close their doors. And I remember watching my dad go through that in high school. So it can happen to anybody, any of us. You know, his job at that time, they moved to Mexico. So it just it wasn't anything that he did wrong.

25:47 - 26:09
Elisha Grayson: You know, this is now my second time I've been through this. Both times, I wasn't ever let go for anything negative. First time, I wasn't able to relocate, and so that ended up eliminating my position because they needed someone in house. And then this this last time, they decided, you know, to outsource to save some money and try something different. So it can happen to anyone.

26:09 - 26:34
Elisha Grayson: It doesn't matter if you're hitting your goals, doing what you need to, showing up every day, it can happen. But the treasures that I found out of this is new paths, you know, meeting new people. The first time that it happened to me was very heartbreaking, but transitioning to the last company that I was at was amazing. My coworkers were great. I loved working with the people that I worked with, meeting all the new drivers that I met.

26:34 - 26:51
Elisha Grayson: Their standards were a lot higher than other companies that I'd been at. And, you know, at first that was hard, but learning to appreciate that, learning to appreciate that we want good drivers on the road, not just to hire. You know, I've been at a company where you hire people. Are they breathing? Do they have a pulse?

26:51 - 27:05
Elisha Grayson: Let's get them in here. You know, I don't like that. I like that we can appreciate a good driver. But then new maturity, like we've talked about, you know, going into the unknown and growing from that. And

27:05 - 27:05
Aaron Craddock: then

27:05 - 27:24
Elisha Grayson: new resilience, you know, that makes you stronger, that you've been through it. You know the fact that I've been through it once. And it was really heartbreaking and hard, but knowing that there's something else out there that's going to help me get to the next level, to the next growth area, to do something different, I think is the treasures that you find

27:25 - 27:56
Ginger Craddock: in transitions. I 100% agree. And my husband's health care, where it's happened to him in health care and where it's happened to me, in each scenario, we leveled up and had greater opportunity in the future. And so I'm so excited for what the future has for you. So for someone listening right now who feels stuck or scared in a drop a job transition, what encouragement would you give them, Alicia?

27:56 - 27:57
Ginger Craddock: Yeah.

27:57 - 28:19
Elisha Grayson: First of all, don't navigate it alone. Reach out to your network. Reach out to your peers. You know, be open to talk to people about the transition that you're going through because it's hard to be open about stuff like that, you know, and letting people know how you're feeling and your emotions in the transition and that you're looking. But really, just don't walk the road alone.

28:19 - 28:32
Elisha Grayson: Be open to talking to people about it. And I would say, you know, change isn't always comfortable, but sometimes the best chapters in our life come from that change. So just be open to change. Be excited about what's to come.

28:33 - 29:23
Ginger Craddock: I agree. Alicia, thank you for sharing your story so openly and authentically because your journey reminds us that transitions aren't just about endings. They're also about beginnings too. And I hope everyone who's listening to this is encouraged if they find themselves in a a season of transition. Also, for the executives and the leaders that are out there, I hope you see the the talent that is out there right now and just what's on display with Alicia today, the type of courageous leader she is, how she develops and leads teams, and how she if we know anything about the trucking industry, it is full of transitions.

29:23 - 29:41
Ginger Craddock: And and I think you can really see here in this conversation how we all learn from this even when it's painful if we're teachable and if we keep leaning in and going forward. And Alicia, you are a courageous, remarkable, excellent leader, and I appreciate you so much.

29:41 - 30:01
Elisha Grayson: Thank you. So Alicia, where's the best place for hiring executives and those looking to network with you to connect? LinkedIn. LinkedIn is, I'm checking on it every day, working with my network. So if you want to connect with me, just shoot me a message, follow me, add me.

30:01 - 30:04
Elisha Grayson: LinkedIn is the best way to reach me right now.

30:05 - 30:41
Ginger Craddock: Excellent. So for our listeners, if you're facing a transition, whether you're in trucking, recruiting, or any part of life, I want you to remember there's risk, there's uncertainty, but there's also opportunity. And often, the treasure you discover in the transition is what sets you up to go to the next level. So I'm Ginger Kratik with the Hire Truckers podcast. Until next time, my friends, keep moving forward no matter what's ahead of you.

30:42 - 30:54
Aaron Craddock: Thank you for joining us today. Our goal with the Hire Truckers podcast is to provide industry insights, marketing trends, and motivation to level up your recruiting game. If we added value, take a few seconds to share this with your network. Have a great week.