feel like quitting

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claire 1

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2004
Messages
216
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Location
Somerset
Hi everyone,

I have been doing nails now for about five years as a hobby and finally took the plunge to open my own nail studio at home, which looks fantastic, the builders did a great job, its all cream and glass with wooden floors bla bla bla.

I have regular clients who love what i do and for the most part i love my job.

The other evening two new clients (my daughters kindergarten teachers) booked in to have french tip L&P overlays, I charge £25.00 at the moment, which was great.

I have four children and am a single mother, my sister agreed to come over to mind the kids while I did nails, but at the last minute she had to cancel, now I could have asked my neighbour to pop in for the four hours, but she would have wanted £5.00 and hour so decided to talk to the kids first.

So I sit the kids down and explain what is going to happen, they are aged 10,8,5 and 3, the conversation goes like this.

At 7oclock mummy has got two ladies comming over to have there nails done,
the two boys start yawning (thats the 8 and 5 year old) the 3 year old daughter hasnt got a clue what im talking about and the ten year old daughter is busy applying lip gloss, After a long chat they all agree to be on best behaviour.

So a 7oclock the clients arrive, 3yr old daughter is asleep in bed, as is five year old son, so start prepping first client, get half way through tipping when all hell breaks loose, five year old son has woke up, forgot everything we talked about has woke up 3year old to tell her her teachers are in the house, 8 year old son starts fighting with 5 year old son to try and make him be quite and 10year old daughter is in bedroom reading latest pop mag without a care in the world.

Anyway to cut to the chase while I am doing one client other client is babysitting in the end i only charged them a tenner each.

I felt so let down and embarrassed, kids were full of apologies the next day bless them, but have now decided to stop doing evening appointments.


I also feel the whole of the Nursery staff are having a laugh at my expense.


Thanks for listening

Claire x
 
Claire u poor thing i alsways found with my two boys when they were young that if i wanted them to b on there best behaviour it was the totall oppisite they were always a nightmare indoors but if i took them out butter wouldnt melt in there mouth everyone thought what little angles they were.
Have u thought of getting a regular babysitter to sit for u while u do your nails they dont all charge 5.00 an hour i hope u can work this out good luck n take care
 
LOl well your kids did what most kids do........the unexpected but usualy happening thing...............They where afterall just being kids lol...............
I don't think the nursery will think much of it lol............afterall they are used to kids doing the kid thing!!!!!!
For the 4 hour slot, It might have been cheaper to pay the £5 an hour and have quality time with your clients......and you would have been a tenner better off lol........

But hey don't quit over something as funny as this........... well it is funny now and will be one of your............Oh god, remember when this happend moments..............
Just chill and have a brill weekend and don't worry xxxx
 
Basically I think you're worrying too much. The nursery know your home situation & if they know anything about kids they'll know that they can show off & show you up at the most inappropriate times it's their jobs, they're only kids once.
Also as they know you & your 'little angels' they themselves may be able to help you out. Ask at the nursery if any of the staff babysit out of working hours or if they know of someone who does, often one of them has a child who needs to earn extra pocket money. Maybe you could do their nails along the lines of a supermarket offer scheme, you know buy 2 get 1 free in return for a nights sitting for you.
Ask the mums at the primary school if they have kids at senior school who might be suitable to sit for you & offer a standard fee per evening, perhaps a CD (£9.97 at Asdas) if it works out cheaper. It's not as if you're leaving them in the house alone so you can be a little flexible & on hand in a dire emergency.
This really could be turned around to your advantage so give it a go
YOU'VE GOT THIS FAR DON'T STOP NOW.

Very best of luck let us know how you get on & maybe let the 3 eldest children read your letter so they know how sad it made you.

Sonia
 
Thanks Girls,

I think I will do that, I just feel with this profession, one minute your on top of the world and the next you can feel so down and crap, I know I need to get a grip but for some reason I feel really depressed.

Claire x
 
my god, i can't believe it i feel soooo guilty, i like yourself am a single parent, with a slight difference i only have one little girl age 7, and she tries my patience so much when i have people round, she normally is good but she shows off knowing there is nothing i can do about it, and there is me feeling sorry for myself, after reading your post you could do what i do standing on your head.

being a home based tech is better than any other job you could have ,your kids will feel far better knowing that you are in the house. and yes this was a bad night but not allways gonna be like this.
 
claire 1 said:
Thanks Girls,

I think I will do that, I just feel with this profession, one minute your on top of the world and the next you can feel so down and crap, I know I need to get a grip but for some reason I feel really depressed.

Claire x
Claire your not alone we have all felt this way at some point for whatever reason it may b weather its the kids a bad day at work whatever lets just thank our lucky stars we have the geeks to keep us going n cheering us up they have cheered me up many a time njoy your weekend by monday you will feel on top again
 
Thanks everyone for all your support I do feel a little better, but next time banardoes come collecting Iam considering donating the kids lol.

Claire x
 
i normally work from a salon but yesterday agreed to do a favour for a friends daughter and had her round yesterday afternoon for a full set...my children managed to overturn a whole pot of Perfect Pink powder....! Never mind!!!! I shall be sticking to the salon until my new 'shed' is built!

Anyway, far from your children's teacher thinking anything untoward about you they are probably very respectful and full of admiration that you are out there as a single parent trying to earn yourself some money.
 
hey there,
don't feel too bad, have you read some of the stories of what happens when a tech goes to clients houses? you cannot control what kids are going to do, they just don't understand, but anyone who has kids themselves (or teaches them) will!! last week i went to a brand new clients house and a friend of hers came around with her two kids, one of whom promptly pinched the file i was using, then afer battling to get it back, ran off with my master series brush, and started to paint the table with it!!! i got my brush back (a bit stunned though it was) but didn't even get an apology. you sound like you were very apologetic (is that how you spell it?) and even more than halved your price (which i am not sure you needed to do) for ladies who know exactly how children of that age behave.
feel better, and get yourself a regular sitter, as suggested earlier you are in the house anyway so ask a local girl to sit and watch them for you for the price of a CD, you will still be quids in.

don't give up, think of all those ladies you will be depriving of your beautiful creations.

Lots of Love
Beck.
 
Oh bless - chin up!

I can' understand completely how you feel. I've been doing Hair (and most recently Nails) from home for a good few years now. Home suited me better coz the kids (Clark 9 and Cole 5) know their own home and just play as normal instead of playing up. They get a couple of minutes of showing off then are told firmly (but lovingly!) to go and play etc. The novelty of people coming in and out has worn off - they're used to it. Thankfully, no major hiccups have occurred during these times - I guess I'm lucky! They sometimes come in for a small chat or for crisps and juice but generally they get bored with the adult conversation and resort back to the Playstation or out playing with friends.

Try not to be disheartened - they will get better as they get older and the novelty of people being in the house will wear off.

When my youngest one was a baby, one of my clients sat with him in her arms and bottle fed him while I blow dried her hair! She loved it and was doing me a favour!

Sherry. x
 
My Goodness, I so know how u feel, It' does get better as the the children get older. I think it's best to ignore them and find something/anything to attract their attentions to. And the promise to buy them that novelty magazine u saw at Asda.
 

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