Can a taxi driver get rich without winning the lotto?
Some of the strategies I employed to max out my take when I drove a cab: * Got to know one section of my city really, really well. Thus, I became one of the go-to guys when there was a good fare out there. In other words, I made sure the dispatchers knew I could find any address quickly in a certain area and wouldn’t leave fares out there hanging while I cruised around lost. (Our company covered not only our city, but outlying suburbs as well. People who could do the “deep west” could nail a $50-60 airport fare at least 2-3 times a week.) * Created playlists on my iPod for certain times/places. Three years into my driving, I could easily extract a 50% tip from certain fares by playing certain music. Gotta know your audience! * Before I knew my way around like a pro, I was honest about that fact. If I wasn’t sure where I was going, I made sure the fare knew that, and knew that any mistake on my part wouldn’t be reflected in the fare. More often than not, when I got lost I still got the
