RSG020: What It’s Like to Be a Brand New Rideshare Driver

Even though I’ve only been driving for Uber and Lyft for about a year, I’m actually considered one of the experienced guys.  There’s a lot of turnover in this industry and more importantly, there are lots of new drivers joining every day.  In fact, according to Uber, they are still signing up 30-40,000 drivers each and every single month.  That’s a whole lot of drivers and on today’s podcast, I wanted to interview one of those brand new drivers.

I think a lot of us may have forgotten about what it’s like when we’re first getting started and I think Ned provided some great insight into the initial challenges he faced as a new driver and what tools/methods he used to solve them.  In the interview, we talk about Ned’s motivation for becoming a driver, how his expectations lined up with reality and all the pros/cons of being a new driver.

If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.

Intro

  • Finished up Business of Rideshare course – you can get it completely free at Maximum Rideshare Profits
  • This course will teach you how to set up an LLC, business credit cards, and more
  • Shout out to iTunes reviewers for leaving awesome 5 star reviews
  • Interview with a brand new rideshare driver, Ned Malone

About Ned

  • Drives in Washington DC
  • Drives for Lyft right now, driving for Uber eventually
  • Gap in income and decided to pick up rideshare driving
  • Liked being a passenger and wanted to check out driver’s perspective
  • Driving for 2 1/2 weeks, 63 rides given total

New Driver’s Perspective

  • Enjoyed being a Lyft passenger & Lyft had better signup promotions
  • Driving gets easier over time
  • Need to be patient to get a real understanding and feel comfortable with driving
  • Naive about how much money could be made
  • A lot more goes into driving than you originally thought – more than going from Point A to B

Helpful Tools for the New Driver

  • Sherpashare helps you dig deeper into the numbers – how much do you actually make driving?
  • Helps to track data, analyze it, and become more strategic when driving
  • Rideshare Guy Blog
  • Gas Buddy app
  • Gas rewards credit cards
  • Maps navigation tools
  • Driving encourages you to manage your time better

Benefits of Driving

  • Meeting new people
  • Pay has been good, as long as you’re working smarter and not harder
  • Favorite thing: autonomy! You’re your own boss
  • Driving has lots of carryover among industries
  • Can work for other companies like Instacart and Postmates

Cons of Driving

  • Will not make as much money as advertised
  • Need to be patient and strategic
  • Sitting for long stretches of time
  • Driving can be addictive, especially when you have downtime at home
  • Need to remember to maintain relationships
  • Don’t get into the trap of driving just to drive

Outro

  • Hope this episode helped some new drivers understand rideshare driving a little better!
  • Maximum Ridesharing Profits ridesharing course helps new and veteran drivers
  • Be aware of return on investment – don’t drive just because you have time. Work smarter, not harder
  • Any topics you want to hear covered? Contact me!

Sign Up To Drive

Show Notes

What did you think about our interview with Ned Malone? What do you think new drivers should know before they start driving?

If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.

-Harry @ RSG