It’s been nearly 3 months since UBER was first launched in the city of Lahore and lo and behold there haven’t been any reports of any mishaps by the users of the service. Not only has UBER managed to create a safe environment for its passengers it has also opened quite a few economic gates for its drivers as well by offering them the chance to get the taste of what it means to be a freelancer.
Let’s be honest, freelancing is something that isn’t really understood in our country as to most people the concept of a respectable job is to work 9 to 5 at a desk job and spending the rest of their time sitting idly at home complaining about the state of the country. If you do anything other than that, most of the time our society will just look down upon you. Just take the example of the latest Mayor of London, whose victory headline read: “The son of a local Pakistani driver becomes the mayor of London.” While the headline did showcase the importance of the almost equal opportunities available to people in a first world country, the fact that our news stations kept on emphasizing on the fact that he was the son of a driver was really hurtful. Who cares what his father did? He worked hard and provided for his son and that should always be more than enough! Being a driver is not something you should look down upon as I have personally known drivers who were not only well educated, articulate and charming but often were put downed thanks to their jobs. However, thanks to UBER people are finally starting to realize that driving someone around is not a sin. It doesn’t make the person untouchable; it just states that a person is willing to walk the extra mile to provide a bit more for his family while meeting interesting new people in the process.
While many of you may be skeptical of my claims, the trust remains that even now there are UBER drivers that are students, IT managers, 9 to 5 office workers and much more that just like the idea of being able to make some extra cash in their free time by being their own boss. Sure, to our country it may not seem like a glamorous job but when you factor in the fact that these people get paid for working the shift they want by taking people from one point to another, you can’t help but ask: how is this not a more popular thing? Honestly, in a country where students teach part time at fixed hours or where fathers work 2 shifts to pay for their children’s education, how is this not the better deal? And truth be told, that is exactly what more and more people are realizing as they sign up to being an UBER driver.
Now, I know we still have a long way to go when uttering the words, “I am a freelancer” or “I am a full-time UBER driver” will be taken seriously by our public but it personally gladdens me to see we are finally taking the steps in the right direction and towards a day when people will finally stop asking if you can really earn a decent income by being your own boss and not having a business venture.
