Here at Dolly, our Helpers are the strongest people we know – literally. Many go from their full-time day job to their furniture-lifting side hustle, all to achieve their goals. And some of our strongest Helpers are our female Helpers. These women certainly keep a busy schedule – but that doesn’t stop them from being some of our best Helpers.
In honor of International Women’s Day, we sat down with two of our top Helpers: Laprecca, a Chicago Helper who might help with your move between trips to the gym, and Christine, a Denver Hands who took her first Dolly just a few weeks after giving birth and hasn’t looked back since.
Laprecca: Lifting Furniture & Lifting Weights
In Chicago, Laprecca is one of Dolly’s top Helpers with hundreds of Dollys completed since she joined almost a year ago. She works as the lead Helper while her husband, who found out about Dolly through a Craigslist ad, is her Assistant.
“In my spare time, when I am not with one of my 5 children (especially my 10 year old twins), I request Dollys to take.” Laprecca’s helped move just about everything you could find in a home: countless beds, couches, and chairs, plus a few oddball pieces. “[There was a] 350 pound tree trunk dining table, and a nine-foot long couch that was over 300 pounds. I don’t know how we got that one done, but we did it!” Thankfully, Laprecca’s no stranger to lifting heavy things – when she’s not taking Dollys or spending time with her children, Laprecca can likely be found working out at the local gym.
Despite her tough workout regimen, some customers still doubt Laprecca’s abilities. “Some [customers] underestimate me. They think when they see me that I can’t do the job. [But] we pick Dolly’s according to my ability. I don’t pick Dolly’s that I can’t handle. I want all my Dolly customers to be happy because I aim to please and my rating shows just that with a 5-star rating that I try very hard to maintain.”
But Laprecca loves being a Helper nonetheless. To future Helpers, she has one particular word of advice: “Moving can be very stressful and in some instances it’s not mutual move, like between 2 people like roommates, couples, business partners, tenants & landlord, family disputes, or estate sales. So always have compassion for Customers.” Between her rave reviews from customers and her high-level ratings, it’s clear that Laprecca’s compassion has worked, and even made her one of the best Helpers yet.
Christine: From Diapers to Dollys
Across the country in Denver, Christine quickly learned the ropes of Dolly and became one of our top Hands – just weeks after her daughter was born. “My chapter with Dolly started 6 weeks after giving birth to my first child. My brother in law, who is a Helper as well, really enjoyed the physical work, knew I was looking for something part time, and suggested I give it a try.”
Just after starting, Christine connected with a Helper who’s become her go-to partner on Dolly. Not only did he teach her some proper techniques for moving, he also has completed hundreds of jobs with Christine as his Hands. “Being postpartum, it was not easy at first. There was struggle. There was pain. There was growth. But with the assistance of my Helper and the team at Dolly, they made such a good impression I stuck with it and have now been doing Dolly full time for the past 8 months.”
And just like Laprecca, Christine has moved some weird things along the way. “Let me tell you, we’ve definitely had some bizarre, challenging moves.We’ve moved a 700 pound vending machine, truck axles, and 550 pounds of huge sliding glass doors. Then there was the job where we unloaded a truck filled with about 220 Rubbermaid totes, filled with books, weighing about 50 pounds each!” But Christine is up for the challenge – she stays in shape, too, although her preferred workout is spending time hiking or at the rock climbing gym.
Christine has learned to be tough on the outside, too. “Being a woman in a physical labor job has its ups and downs. It’s not uncommon for customers to contact the male Helper I’m working with and ask if I will be able to complete the job. On the flip side, some of our customers tell me it’s really neat seeing a woman show up at their door. And some shake my hand and tell me how impressive it was to see a woman do the heavy lifting.”
Hopefully there will be more heavy-lifting woman Helpers in the future – and for them, Christine has some advice. “Listen to your body, get a foam roller to keep those muscles loose, and drink a ridiculous amount of water. And of course, us girls know what a good pair of shoes can do. So treat yourself and get a real nice pair of steel toe boots!”
On this International Women’s Day, thank you to Laprecca, Christine, and all our female Helpers!
Ready to start your side hustle? Learn more and apply to be a Helper or Hands here.
Dolly helps you move on your schedule and at an affordable price. Book now and see the difference: https://dolly.com.