Rūta from Vilnius, who works as a freight forwarder, has exposed the truth about customers: this is what saddens me the most

Mom tried to dissuade her from working as a carrier

R. Baronaitė jokes that he often asks clients how he started working as a freight forwarder and what he had done before, that he even considered printing the answer and hanging it in the cabin of the car.

“My main step in life is to get out of the comfort zone, where there is a stable salary and all the guarantees. “My friend, who also drives a Bolt and knew how I like to drive, suggested that I try this job,” he said, initially thinking the job would be temporary. Over time, it became the main source of income.

The woman says her mother tried to dissuade her from working. “At first I was dissatisfied, discouraged. It was said that it was not a suitable activity for the main job here, that it was not suitable for women. But when I saw that it could be my main job, and it was a pleasant activity for me, now nobody tells me anything. I am happy to be able to support myself and I am happy, “says the woman.

According to R. Baronaitė, although he receives these types of questions, he does not believe that this work is not intended for women. “I have done more non-female jobs. I myself do not distinguish in such a stereotypical way what is feminine and what is not, but sometimes I get such comments from clients. Then I ask why people think that, but they don’t know why, ”says the driver.

The woman is surprised but happy

The carrier assures that the farther away, the less surprising to customers that a woman arrives by car. “There are already many women carriers. Sometimes he is happy when a woman arrives. There is always a child seat in my car, he says” here, woman, you have thought of everything at once, you have everything. “Sometimes I also find that I drive better than the guys. It’s still surprising, but weird. And as soon as I started working, the clients even asked me to take a picture of the woman riding with her. I agreed, “says R. Baronaitė with a smile.

According to the carrier, customers sometimes find that they can talk to the girl in more detail; it happens that they tell them almost their whole life. I was stuck on a trip when the client was extremely happy to see a woman driving. “The client said that he goes to work every day and returns with companies that provide transportation services. Retirees who noticed this through the windows were increasingly outraged that the woman was traveling with another man. As a result, the client was very happy when the woman arrived for the first time ”, R. Baronaitė recalls the curious situation.

The driver, who sometimes receives flowers from passengers, says that she has not faced gender discrimination in this job, both men and women have the same opportunities here. “Even when it comes to tips, when it comes to guys, it’s not like I have more of them as a woman. As much as you take away, you will win ”, says the carrier. She does not hide the fact that both women and men often ask about working conditions and says that she would like to try it in her spare time: “I explain what documents are needed to become a carrier. Although, I think people are often afraid to change something in their lives. “

After working on the car, he sits on a motorcycle.

The woman says that the greatest advantage of her job is freedom. He usually goes to the streets of Vilnius during rush hours and takes part in other activities between works. “Sitting in the car and waiting for orders is a shame for me when I know I can do something else. Of course, sometimes I have to wait, I usually read a book, I don’t even notice how time passes. It happens that some plans change, I have a day off or I have nothing to do, so I sit in the car and drive to work ”, says R. Baronaitė.

The woman also worked at night for years, but due to lack of sleep, she followed a schedule without night trips. “I can no longer imagine myself working under an employment contract, I need freedom. Planning your time is the biggest advantage. Of course, not everyone can work like this, because if you don’t know how to plan it will be very difficult ”, R. Baronaitė is convinced.

He also enjoys being able to spend a lot of time between jobs on his exclusive hobbies. The woman sews leather goods and drives a motorcycle: “That free time is very good. Especially in summer: the sun comes out, there is no work or lazy work, so I drive a motorcycle ”.

The driver often also interacts with passengers about the desire to ride a motorcycle, reflecting the need for freedom. “A customer came out and said he didn’t tip anyone, but he gave it to me because he noticed from his driving style that I was riding a motorcycle. Lately, customers are still amazed, wondering if I drive a motorcycle. Perhaps depending on the riding style, because motorcyclists turn their heads in a row, the mirror is not enough. By the way, it is a funny coincidence that he drives a Yamaha model named Bolt. That’s when customers ask what kind of motorcycle I ride, they don’t understand at first, we have to explain to them that Bolt is also a motorcycle model ”, laughs R. Baronaitė.

The saddest attitude of some customers is the most

R. Baronaitė says he often gets questions about whether that job is safe, especially during the dark hours of the day. But he says it was even more fun to drive at night, since most of the customers were relaxed and during the day, people were more tense and angry. According to the woman, it is usually enough to make fun of dissatisfied passengers and sometimes have to argue. Especially when they demand a traffic rule violation.

“Unsafe situations can happen in every job, because there are all kinds of people everywhere. Especially in the service sector. You just need not to provoke an angry person, but to calm him down. I try not to overwhelm myself, but psychology is very necessary in this work ”, emphasizes R. Baronaitė. The woman says that it is the communication, the negative attitude of the clients in this job that is the most difficult part.

“I was very surprised by the way people judge what you do. I once took a girl we had fun with. She explained to me how to enter a courtyard and I told her that I know because I live in that courtyard. This client replied that “it turns out that nowadays anyone can live in the center.” And once the client told me that this job does not require responsibilities. To this I replied: “But your life is in my hands and it seems to me that it is the greatest responsibility.” Then he was silent the whole way. Sometimes people don’t think about what they say. I really got over myself for a few months just because of people’s point of view. After that, I started to ignore the fact that people value others for their work. Although this is changing, there are still several steps to climb ”, opens R. Baronaitė.