# Approved for Lyft. Mentor never gave me a rundown.



## jeebee25 (May 2, 2015)

Hello all! My name is Alan and I just recently moved to the Seattle area from Chicago for a new job my wife got. I'm a stay at home dad and graphic artist. I also perform improv.

My wife came up with the idea that I could drive for Uber or Lyft until I found a new gig. We have a 2007 Honda Element and I was rejected by Uber before I could even get out of my car because our car can not seat five people. So I signed up with Lyft and the Mentor said "No problem as long as you pass your inspection you're good!"

OK... So I went and got the inspection, it passed. Submitted my documents and was told to wait for confirmation that I had cleared. I assumed that after that I would do a drive around with my mentor and he would give me the run down on how this all works and pointers. Then I got this email -

_Congrats on Passing Your Welcome Ride!

Your Mentor couldn't stop bragging about you. Great job on your Welcome Ride! You made it to the last step: background checks.

Hang tight - your national and county checks are now running. They can take up to three weeks, but should be done sooner. We'll send you an email as soon as they're complete.
_
Huh? I never even met the guy! (who shall remain nameless, since he did seem like a nice fellow.) Then of course I was cleared to start driving the next day! So while I am happy to have the opportunity to pull in some money for my family and meet new people... I have NO idea what I am doing and in reading through this forum all morning I am starting to think that I missed some insight by not getting to do the "Welcome Ride".

Somethings I have read or gleaned - 
- I did set up Waze on my phone.
- I give a pretty good fist bump. (I had no idea that was a Lyft thing. Do you guys do that? Do passengers expect that?)
- I am going today to get supplies to detail my car and a case of water and things like breath mints and fruit snacks. (any advice here is appreciated.)
- One email I got said "Be creative! Wear a funny costume!" I have full Ghostbuster gear, is there an advantage to this idea or wishful thinking on Lyfts part?

I am thinking of starting Monday night and seeing what happens, but I thought I would ask you good folks some advice before I blindly go out giving strangers rides and fist bumps in my Ghostbuster gear... Cause, you know. That sounds strange.

Thanks in advance!


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## Beur (Apr 14, 2015)

Save your money in the water and mints. Just get out there and drive and meet some new people. Oh and leave the costumes for Halloween.


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## TeleSki (Dec 4, 2014)

I don't fist bump, either. Just make sure you know how to use the GPS. Don't forget to start/end the ride. DOn't stress. As long as you're friendly, can follow a GPS, and drive reasonably well, you'll do fine.


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## rjenkins (Nov 30, 2014)

Lyft has backed off a lot on the "cutesy, quirky" image. They might still do fistbumps in SF, but they don't do it much here in Dallas, and most passengers sit in the back seat.

As for your mentor being a "nice guy," well he likely got paid for not meeting with you...I don't know how he cleared you without meeting, but the whole point of the mentor program is to have someone actually meet with you in person, and make sure you and your car are for real. That's one of the things that makes Lyft a better company than Uber.

I do not know if the procedures are the same in your market as in mine, but if there's a Mentor out there shirking his responsibilities, he should be reported.


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## jeebee25 (May 2, 2015)

Yeah, I feel lucky to have the opportunity, so I was not wanting to rock the boat so to speak. I wonder if I could request meeting with another one? I was reading about the fines you get if you pick up or drop off at SEATAC Airport. It would be nice to have more info like that.


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## rjenkins (Nov 30, 2014)

jeebee25 said:


> Yeah, I feel lucky to have the opportunity, so I was not wanting to rock the boat so to speak. I wonder if I could request meeting with another one? I was reading about the fines you get if you pick up or drop off at SEATAC Airport. It would be nice to have more info like that.


There's no way I know of to request another session from Lyft without rocking the boat, as you say. But it's really not necessary. You can just as easily network with other drivers in your area. That's all mentors are, anyway. They're just drivers with a good rating and a few trips under their belt that Lyft chooses to meet with prospective drivers. Depending on the mentor, you might find someone just as experienced, or even more so, by looking on the forum here in the Seattle section.

Offer to buy lunch or coffee...I'm sure you'll find someone who will answer a lot of questions for you.


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## jeebee25 (May 2, 2015)

Went into the city tonight and did my first drives. Got three one after the other. I think I could have done more but I needed to pee and wanted to get home. One woman lost her lipstick in the car. I told her I would mail it but did not know if there was a way for her to contact me. Another guy would not buckle his seat belt? That was odd and I wanted to say something, but kept my mouth shut since I am a noob. The next people I simply asked them to "buckle up please". 

Interesting night.


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