He quit a seven-figure Bengaluru job for mental peace to be a delivery agent: ‘Now realise how good my life was'

Time of India

2 days ago

The Rude Customer Who Mocked His Accent
A Sudden Fall—and an Attempted Theft
The Security Guard Who Went Out of His Way
Cruel Words on the Fifth Floor
The Lady Who Noticed a Small Act of Kindness
An Easygoing Customer Who Offered a Recharge Break
Waiting in the Rain for an Entitled Customer
Lessons from the Road
How Reddit Responded
Not too long ago, his life embodied the corporate dream. He occupied a plush position in the finance sector, drew a seven-figure annual salary, and worked from a climate-controlled office where his responsibilities were complex yet far removed from the struggles of the street. But in the space of a few turbulent years, everything changed.By 2025, this former high-earning professional was no longer poring over financial spreadsheets. Instead, he was navigating traffic on a two-wheeler, making meal deliveries for one of India's largest food delivery platforms. The sharp contrast between his past and present made him reflect deeply, and he decided to share his candid thoughts on the subreddit Indian Workplace.In his post, he described how personal turmoil — including a painful divorce and a series of other difficult events — had prompted him to quit his lucrative finance job. Attempts to re-enter the job market were unsuccessful, and as months passed without any offers, he took up work as a delivery partner. His days now began before sunrise at 7:00 a.m. and ended late in the evening at 10:00 p.m., with only an hour set aside for meals and charging his phone.Rather than hide his new reality, he recounted a series of memorable encounters from his days on the road — some uplifting, some demoralising — that had left a lasting impression on him.One delivery began like any other: he picked up the order from the restaurant and reached the customer's address promptly. After ringing the doorbell several times without response, he called the customer. The woman answered the phone with irritation, accusing him of being in the wrong location and calling him incompetent.As they spoke, she detected his slight accent in English and began mocking it to someone in the background. She exaggerated his pronunciation of the word 'delivery' while laughing with her friend. Eventually, she clarified that she was at a parlour about 1.5 km away—although the app showed her home address.When he arrived at the parlour with the drinks she had ordered, she dismissed the mix-up as a possible technical error and walked away without apologising. Choosing not to escalate the situation, he smiled politely and left.On another day, while heading to pick up an order, an unexpected danger appeared from his blind spot — a cow leapt into the road. He swerved to avoid hitting it and fell off his bike, sustaining bruises to his knees and feet. His foot became momentarily trapped in the wheel, leaving him limping.Several bystanders rushed to help him up and move his bike to safety. But before he could fully process their kindness, he felt a tug at his neck. Someone was attempting to snatch the gold chain he wore, which was tangled with his waterproof mobile pouch. As they pulled, he felt his phone lift slightly.Reacting quickly, he clutched his chain, but in the crowd gathered around him, he couldn't identify the culprit. Bleeding, shaken, and still high on adrenaline, he got back on his bike and pushed on to complete his delivery.One rainy day, when orders were scarce, he parked near a cluster of restaurants to wait. Limping toward shelter, he was spotted by an elderly security guard who ran over and urged him not to strain himself. The guard offered to collect any orders on his behalf so he wouldn't have to walk in the rain.The delivery executive explained that he didn't have an order yet and was simply going to have tea. Even so, the guard's unsolicited kindness left him feeling grateful and unexpectedly emotional.Not all encounters were compassionate. At one drop-off, the customer asked him to come to the fifth floor. As he limped upstairs, he overheard two women speaking in Malayalam . One mocked his limp with a crude slur, while the other joked that by the time he arrived, it would be nighttime.Although he was walking at a perfectly normal pace, the remarks stung. He pretended not to understand their language, smiled politely, handed over the package, and left.While delivering another order, he spotted an elderly man with a walking stick struggling to put on his footwear. Without hesitation, he bent down to help. The man spoke words of thanks in Kannada , which the delivery partner didn't fully understand, but the sentiment was clear.When he reached the delivery location, the woman waiting at the door greeted him warmly. She had seen him helping the old man and praised his kindness. She even invited him to lunch, but he politely declined, saying he had just eaten. Still, she insisted on offering him lime water and snacks for his journey.Her genuine smile touched him deeply. Despite the many moments of rudeness he endured daily, it was these rare glimpses of human warmth that brought tears to his eyes as he rode to his next order.Late one evening, his phone battery was critically low. At the delivery location, he asked the customer if he could plug in his phone for five minutes. Not only did the man agree, but he invited him inside, offered water, and even gave him sweet peanut candy before he left. The simple gesture filled him with warmth and appreciation.One delivery took him to a residential facility, possibly for medical students or doctors. Security guards barred entry to delivery personnel, so he called the customer to come out. She asked him to wait, but after ten minutes and a few follow-up calls, it began drizzling.By the time the light rain turned heavy, twenty minutes had passed. He spotted the customer outside talking to someone, but she continued her conversation, leaving him standing in the cold. When she finally came over, she collected the package without acknowledging the delay, apologising, or showing the slightest concern.Reflecting on these incidents, he admitted that life as a delivery executive was vastly different from his former corporate world of weekday meetings, air-conditioned comfort, and stable income. Yet each interaction — good or bad — had shaped his resilience and given him a deeper understanding of human behaviour.He still wished there were more kind people in the world, but he accepted these experiences as lessons, shaping him into someone tougher and more self-aware.The post drew varied reactions. One commenter recalled seeing his earlier updates and wondered why he hadn't considered a lower-paying office job instead. They acknowledged that personal challenges could spill into professional life but felt there might be less physically demanding alternatives. Offering to help through networking, they encouraged him to explore other opportunities.Another Redditor pointed out that India's job market is struggling and argued that delivery work can be less toxic than many corporate or BPO roles. They noted that while teaching could be rewarding in the government sector, private institutions often exploit teachers, and tuitions might offer better earnings.A third commenter thanked him for sharing his journey, saying they had learned a lot from his experiences. They hoped readers would treat delivery personnel with empathy, recognising them as human beings rather than faceless service providers.