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Would you ever take the job of being a bike messenger? This job probably only exists in cities with large enough Downtowns, but sometimes a few restaurants use bicycle delivery...
I was once a bike messenger for 1 month back in 2005. Quit because of low pay / commissions [made $900 in a month]. Biked up to 180 miles a week and lost 5 lbs while eating well. Worst was making deliveries in complete days of rain at 45 F so I got frostnip in my fingers.
To make money you gotta get the hot jobs and be fast. Worse is when they tell you to pick up a box of papers that you have to deliver by balancing it on your handlebars while you ride.
Bike Delivery jobs are out there, but there's high turnover from burnout. But there are people who thrive this way.
So would you take a bike messenger job? Are you desperate enough in this economy?
After my first experience as a bike messenger I don't want to do this type of job again!
I wouldn't survive, or I'd at least be in traction.
I work in Manhattan, and the bike messengers amaze me. There are bike lanes on many of the avenues, but still...they are riding along with insane traffic and it doesn't seem to faze them.
Nope...they could offer $100k base w/ 3 months paid vacay and a 25% annual bonus and I'd still decline. I live in NYC so I am used to seeing these guys out and about. It's a very Spartan work environment...it is also very dangerous...guys holding onto to trucks so they get past the red lights, the occasional hit and runs (seen quite a few actually), close calls with pedestrians...commissions, quotas...and for what??? $7.50-$10 an hour...no thanks, I'd rather work at the drive-thru lol.
LOLOLOL...no not at 60, I'd starve, I couldn't peddle fast enough - bad knees and back, If I was 20 sumpin' I would, but not now - the heavy duty physical jobs are no longer an option for me.
I'd probably get killed trying to do runs quickly to maximize my income. Plus it seems like a more at-risk-of-disappearing job than being a customer service representative at an American call center.
I love cycling and saw bike messengers frequently downtown in Chicago while I was in college. The pressure to make fast deliveries causes them to take chances that make things even more dangerous, like riding the wrong way down a 1-way street, blowing though red lights, riding on the sidewalk, cycling on unsuitable roads etc. I'd have to say not worth it given the high danger and low pay.
In most major cities, the bike messengers are independent contractors. They set their own hours and that offers a lot of appeal for some demographics. They can work short shifts--as short as an hour or two. That's great for college students who have a break between classes. Or retail workers. Works for lots of other people too, who just want to pick up some quick cash but have sporadic or unpredictable availability, or limited availability.
Personally, I wouldn't do it. I don't need the flexibility and freedom the job offers, so there are other easier ways to earn the same amount of money.
I thought about doing that for a while...I cycle a lot and romanticized messengers in my mind. I thought it would be a great job, and I would get to cycle all day and get paid for it!
Then I realized it is a low paying, manual labor job with no hope for advancement. I am only 24, so I wouldn't mind it now, but would I want to have a low paying job like that when I am 40? Probably not. I want to set myself up for a job where I could support a family one day. The lack of opportunity for advancement is the dealbreaker.
If I were unemployed with little or no prospects, you bet I would--especially if my u/e had run out or was about to run out.
Just because you take the job, you don't have to stop looking for something better. And it's sure better than having no income.
Half the problem witht his country is people thinking they are "too good" for manual labor jobs. Back in the 1930's that entitlement mentality didn't exist.
If I were unemployed with little or no prospects, you bet I would--especially if my u/e had run out or was about to run out.
Just because you take the job, you don't have to stop looking for something better. And it's sure better than having no income.
Half the problem witht his country is people thinking they are "too good" for manual labor jobs. Back in the 1930's that entitlement mentality didn't exist.
It isn't entitlement. It is a desire to have a job with a chance of advancement. Do you work a job that is manual labor? If not, stop being a hypocrite.
Are you calling ambition a bad thing?
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Back in the 1930's that entitlement mentality didn't exist.
