Smiley Sharing Uber St. Louis Ride-a-longs
Smiley Ridesharing: Pretrip Mental Checks and 5 Star Service (PMCS)
Good morning, St. Louis! This is Smiley and Michael wishing you a happy Thursday morning. We began this morning a little differently than usual—Michael woke up and started his morning by making improvements to SmileySharing.com. He got so wrapped up in his work that he almost didn’t make it on the road and online with Uber at 5am as he had planned!
Michael lives just outside of St. Louis County in Jefferson County, and in his experience, he had to cross over the Meramec River into St. Louis County before he could even turn on his Uber app, much less receive a ping. Because he wanted to turn his app on at precisely 5am, he did. To his surprise, he received his first ping while he was still in Jefferson County. It was for a passenger in St. Louis County, however this relieved Michael because he found that he could go online and receive pings even before he crossed the border into St. Louis County.
Smiley Ridesharing: Passenger Ratings
One of our riders wondered how they could view their rating, so we’re sharing that information here.
Uber Rider Read: I’d Like to Know my Rating
Next, another rider asked Michael, “What do the ratings mean?” To Uber, five stars mean that the driver did everything that was necessarily to get riders from point A to point B comfortably and should continue to drive for Uber. Anything less than a 5 star rating is telling drivers that their performance is inadequate, and they shouldn’t be driving on the platform. If a driver’s rating falls below 4.6, Uber will shut off their app and no longer allow the driver to work for them. Riders, please keep that in mind when you rate your driver. If they did a great job, please rate them five stars!
Read More here: That Four-Star Rating You Left Could Cost Your Uber Driver Their Job
And
Read More: Smiley Ride-a-longs: Beer Champs & 5 Star Ratings
Smiley Ridesharing: Driver tips
Our riders so far have consisted of people commuting to work using our service. It’s raining again, and Michael feels like a plant that is being overwatered, but we always have a lot of riders when it’s raining, so rain is good for business for us.
Drivers, if you have an umbrella, Michael has discovered that meeting passengers in the rain with a smile and an opened umbrella is a great start to providing five-star service.
Smiley St Louis Uber Ridesharing: Ride-a-long Trips
It’s been a pretty busy morning for a Thursday, and Michael just had the pleasure of giving a ride to someone who had ridden with us back before Christmas. The ride was like catching up with an old friend!
Michael and I stopped by our favorite Blue Iguana to prepare White Lightning for the evening part of our shift. The plan is to work from 3pm-9pm so that Michael can get to bed early and catch the Friday morning airport runs. If business is booming, though, we’ll keep going until 11 or midnight, because it’s important to pay attention to the rhythm of demand to make the most of our time online.
Our first ping of the evening had us picking up some flight attendants in training. They were graduating on Friday, so they had a lot to celebrate! It’s an exciting time when one achieves a goal, and taking the time to celebrate and/or relax is just as important as working hard to meet one’s goal.
What are you celebrating today? Let us know in the comments section!
Our next rider was another flight attendant school graduate who had a multi-stop ride. While Michael had taken passengers on multi-stop rides before, he made a mistake on the method of entry for a multi-stop trip and accidentally prematurely ended the trip. Rather than charging the rider extra for his mistake, Michael went offline and took the rider the rest of the way to his destination. The rider was so pleased with Michael taking responsibility for his mistake that he tipped him $10 to cover the last leg of the trip.
Smiley St Louis Uber Ridesharing: Driver Integrity
Here at Smiley Sharing, we want to urge you to do the right thing, even if no one would notice if you didn’t. If you mess up, take responsibility for your mistake. Even if you aren’t rewarded for your honesty financially, your passengers will recognize and appreciate your integrity. Riders are also more likely to forgive mistakes if you admit them and do your best to correct them.
Smiley St Louis Uber Ridesharing: Mental Health and Wellness
It might not seem like it when you meet him, but Michael struggles with anxiety, especially when he’s working and it has been a while since his last ping. Since rideshare driving is his primary source of income as he completes graduate school, Michael knows how crucial it is to stay in the flow, so when he’s out of the flow and not getting pings, he feels like a fish out of water. And much like a fish, he’s tempted to flail around in a panic until he gets into that flow again. Fortunately, his training as a psychology student has helped him learn ways to cut anxiety in himself and take productive steps that lead to the next ping and the next ping and eventually getting back in the flow.
Smiley St Louis Uber Ridesharing: Back in The Flow of Ride-a-Longs
When the pings started coming again, we picked up two more passengers who were graduating from flight attendant school. They had to decided to celebrate their success with a lovely dinner at Midland Wok. They said that it’s the best, which piqued Michael’s interest, so look for a review from Smiley Recommends soon!
Our next ping was a short ride, but the next ping was a long XL trip for a group of business people heading for their hotel to rest before their flight out of St. Louis the next morning. Michael plans to pick the passengers up tomorrow when they need him.
Our next group of passengers were three very educated professionals, and one of them was a counselor. The subject of ethics came up, and the gentleman asked Michael what he thought ethics was. Michael, being a psychology student, shared the textbook definition of ethics. They all had a really good conversation about ethics and textbook definitions versus personal definitions. Michael also shared with them about his work and how enriched his life is because of the diverse people he encounters as he works as a rideshare driver. It’s not always easy, but the moments of being able to touch people’s lives in a positive way makes the hard struggles worth it.
The next people to ride with us were an older couple who were appreciative of veterans and their service. One of the passengers had a Master’s Degree in Social Work, so she and Michael were able to have a lovely conversation as he drove the couple to dinner. Conversations like those make Michael happy, because he is able to connect with the community and glean wisdom and insight from his passengers. He also hopes that the conversations he has with them will positively impact their lives as well.
Our last passenger was a newcomer to St. Louis who hailed from Puerto Rico. She’s only been in the area for two months, and she was a bit worried about her English skill. Fortunately, Michael speaks Spanish, so they were able to hold a conversation that allowed her to practice her English and him to practice his Spanish as he got her home safely.
Smiley St Louis Uber Ridesharing: Going Offline
After a productive day, we’re headed back to Southern Command to rest up and get refreshed for tomorrow. Wherever you are, we hope it feels like home to you!
Michael just passed the 800 trip mark, which is a milestone! If you’re thinking about driving for Uber or another rideshare company and wondering how you can make 800 trips, stay tuned! We will be sharing all the mental health and wellness tricks and tips Michael knows to help you make the most of your rideshare driving experience and give consistent five-star service.
If you’re reading this blog and think, “Hey, ridesharing might be a great way to earn money,” check out our referral link to learn more about Uber and sign up if it seems right for you.
Sign Up To Be A Driver
If you are a fan of our content, please consider using one of Michael’s referral links if you plan on signing up to drive.
Sign up to drive for Uber and get up to $1,000 (depending on your city – e-mail support@uber.com to verify the amount)
Sign up to drive for Lyft and get up to $1,000 (depending on your city)
Juno is now accepting pre-registration. You can sign up here using our referral link or our code: 5415-302
We also have a link to “Smiley” pillows on Amazon, so whether you choose to drive for Uber, or not, you can have me (Smiley) riding with you when you like!
Take Me With You!
I hope you know that with me you’re never riding alone and that I may bring a smile to your face. 🙂
Ready to Drive? Ready to Rideshare? Want to Support Smiley Sharing? Consider: Smiley Supporting