When I was a chauffeur, I loved it. My passion for driving and natural affability made me a natural. My days behind the wheel began as a job, but became a mission. In my quest to become a better chauffeur, I looked to others to find the secrets of the profession. Good chauffeurs showed up on time and looked nice, but what made a chauffeur great? This is what I found out.
Confidence – Weak chauffeurs brag about their celebrity clients and big tips. Great chauffeurs simply exude quiet confidence. With confidence, a chauffeur can ease a client’s tension and control the run. As the old saying goes, “never let them see you sweat.”
Strength – Service is important, but control is essential. The basic function of limousine service is to safely transport clients from point A to point B in a timely manner. You can’t do this unless you control the vehicle. Maintaining an ALPHA position is imperative.
Clients regularly ask chauffeurs to do all sorts of stupid and illegal stuff. A classic example is the client who is late and wants the chauffeur to speed. Weak chauffeurs get run, ALPHA chauffeurs don’t facilitate the stupidity.
Consistency – A great chauffeur will arrive early, be knowledgeable, look professional, and provide exceptional service on every run. No matter the circumstance, he always does great work. He shapes his personal and professional life around the job.
Integrity – Over the years, I’ve known chauffeurs to do some incredibly dishonest stuff. From stealing gas to swapping out engines on company vehicles, I’ve seen it all. I’m always disappointed when a seemingly great chauffeur has a major character flaw.
Great chauffeurs don’t get involved with this nonsense. The pursuit of fast money is rarely worth the risk.
Salesmanship – When a client asks, “how do you like working for this company,” a great chauffeur sells himself and the company. When clients used to ask me this question, I would respond, “I love it. I have a 401k and medical insurance; and their affiliate network provides great service for my clients throughout the United States.” Without salesmanship, you don’t get requests – and without requests, you’re at the mercy of dispatch.
Passion – Great chauffeurs want to be great. It’s their mission. These guys are always looking for new ways to improve their game. This is particularly true for chauffeurs in bad companies. Even if the company is screwing them, a mission focused chauffeur will stay on point and provide great service.
Cooperation – Great chauffeurs aren’t prima donnas. Cooperation and teamwork are an inherent part of the job. These chauffeurs take the runs as they come and rely on their excellence to secure lucrative hourlies.
Insight – Every client is different. Man or woman, young or old, businessman or rapper, New Yorker or Angeleno – every client requires a different approach. The chauffeur who follows policy and addresses a sixteen year old as “mister” is making a big mistake. A great chauffeur instantaneously reads a client and behaves accordingly. Accurately reading clients is what separates the men from the boys.
The Right Stuff
Confidence, strength, consistency, integrity, salesmanship, passion, cooperation, and insight define highly successful chauffeurs. If a driver cares, he will develop many of these traits with experience. In time, if the chauffeur hones his skills, the job will become easier and more enjoyable. In addition, he will make more money and cultivate valuable connections throughout the industry.
Success is elusive for most, but highly skilled career chauffeurs are a bright spot in an otherwise dreary industry.
Dave, I love your article and I will be providing it to every new start-up operator that I work with from now on. Great work, please keep it up and providing more interesting articles!
Have a great day!
-Phil
Thanks Phil! I appreciate the feedback.
Dave, I love your article and I will be providing it to every new start-up operator that I work with from now on. Great work, please keep it up and providing more interesting articles!
Have a great day!
-Phil
Thanks Phil! I appreciate the feedback.
Great Article! I have already printed it out and it will be sharing it with the driver’s in the morning…I’m always looking for interesting articles to help improve things for our company.
WOW this ” All things Limousine.com” is a HUGE find and plan to spend alot of time on it!
Thanks Dave! I glad you liked the article.
Thanks Dave! I glad you liked the article.
Dave ,really good insight on how to handle yourself & nab those “preferred clients” .As I sit here exhausted (5 days 14 hours a day ,from San Diego to Magic Mountain)finally with a day off .If only you shared this info with me when I first worked with you out of 98th st, lol. (We first met out of 98th st).Hope all is good !
Hey Royce, good to hear from you.
Considering your experience, I really should be getting advice from you! Any chauffeur who can cut it at the Peninsula certainly deserves a lot of respect.
I don’t miss that schedule. I can’t think of another profession that demands the brutal hours of car service. I hope you got paid for the travel time back from San Diego.
At least you didn’t have to drive out to Amgen 🙂
oh the memories! David you were always one of the chauffeurs that I could count on when dispatching. I remember your hours with Kayne and from what I hear he has gotten no better! Royce, you too were reliable. I hope you both have a great holiday!
You to Midge … Always nice to hear from you
oh the memories! David you were always one of the chauffeurs that I could count on when dispatching. I remember your hours with Kayne and from what I hear he has gotten no better! Royce, you too were reliable. I hope you both have a great holiday!
You to Midge … Always nice to hear from you
Hello and thank you for the great information. Our chauffeurs make us what we are today. We can do everything right from the office but it is our chaufeurs that meet the client and get them to their destination safely.
Thanks again for the guidelines, we will use them.
Thanks Karen,
Great chauffeurs are the life blood of any limo company. I’m happy you take care of the people who take care of you.
Hello and thank you for the great information. Our chauffeurs make us what we are today. We can do everything right from the office but it is our chaufeurs that meet the client and get them to their destination safely.
Thanks again for the guidelines, we will use them.
Thanks Karen,
Great chauffeurs are the life blood of any limo company. I’m happy you take care of the people who take care of you.
Nice post regarding excellent chauffeur services. I really like this post and going to bookmark this post and shared with my friends.
Thanks for sharing these useful informative post and keep it up!
Sherry
Nice post regarding excellent chauffeur services. I really like this post and going to bookmark this post and shared with my friends.
Thanks for sharing these useful informative post and keep it up!
Sherry
David, I stumbled on this site in looking for your pictures that your dad had mentioned. I found the egg picture haunting–The Lonely Egg. The only pre-bang object and which produced the big bang because it was so lonely.
Your article about being a good chauffer was very well written. Expository writing is the hardest writing there is: not only do you have to be a good writer but you have to think a certain way; you have to enter your reader’s mind. If you can’t do that your “instructions” always seem to lack something.
Please accept my condolences for your mothers death. A terrible tragedy.
Uncle Simon