Mad at my spineless self!!! :(

[Meeko]

The audacity of some DCP's never ceases to amaze me.

I can just see her face if her boss says to her one day...

."Oh! I'm going to schedule some stuff for after work a couple times a week. I'll need you to stay late....all without pay of course......."

[Blackcat31]

Thank you for all of your advice ladies! I am going to definitely start using, "I'll get back to you." Im still not sure what I am going to say to DCM yet. Im the kind of person too shy to speak up; I would rather term and start over, which is childish of me, I know! I just wih people would abide by their written contract I hate being the enforcer. I think OP called it- I was raised not to stick up for myself and question authority and i never learned how.

But you ARE the authority now so apply that same line of thinking to your business...EXPECT (and enforce) parents to not question the authority in this situation.

Look at each and every person who asks for special as if they were a child....YOU are the adult, the business owner, the rule maker and ultimately the authority. Stand tall and insist that clients follow the rules.

It isn't like you are throwing new and odd rules/policies at them on a daily basis. You obviously had your rules and policies in written format so you know they are all fully aware of what your rules are....so ask yourself, why are you allowing them to play the "I have no idea" card?

They DO know but they act like toddlers who are testing their boundaries....and unfortunately too many providers allow it to happen at the expense of their own self worth.

You are worth every penny you charge and deserve to be respected!!

...If I tell you that enough, will you start to believe it and use that backbone you know you have?

Someone really wise once told me:

"My time, sanity and personal self-worth are far more valuable to me than keepoing clients who treat me like dirt."

[KDC]

For me, those few extra minutes are minutes I am actually AT work since I don't have my child care in my home. THAT is where my issues lies.

If child care is a business, why is it okay to ask the provider to open early or stay late just because they are "working" from their homes?

NONE of my parents ask me for early open times or late close times because they know that I want to leave work just as they do everyday and go home.

They seem to understand that concept well and I personally don't have issue relating to things outside my open/close hours.

I find it sad that parents don't respect those boundaries simply because a provider lives in their place of business.

Those trainings that parents talk about at work are RARELY thrown upon them and usually planned in advance so if they are telling you the day of the training, that is pretty disrespectful IMHO.

I am a people pleaser, and I definitely am like the OP and need to work on my backbone. Neighbors and friends make up most of my DCP's, this convolutes the situation and makes having a 'backbone' harder. This is how I started...reaching out to neighbors and friends. Now that I'm established and have a good reputation I will not be making the same mistake. With that said, I have great DCK's and a steady income that I don't want to 'test' and it influences some of my decisions. My kids are genuine friends of my DCF's, so to them it's a giant play date I used to be one of my DCP's boss, so she think's I'll be more understanding when 'meetings' pop up, as I used to be the one making her stay late... I see through it, and when pushes too far, I'll practice creating my backbone with the help I've received from this site! happyface

[SunshineMama]

The audacity of some DCP's never ceases to amaze me.

I can just see her face if her boss says to her one day...

."Oh! I'm going to schedule some stuff for after work a couple times a week. I'll need you to stay late....all without pay of course......."

That's pretty much how I feel, because I am pretty sure her husband took the day off (he works outdoors and it was thunderstorming yesterday). Whenever he takes the day off she drops off and picks up.

And I dont know what changed, because I have had these client over a year now and it isn't like they got new jobs.

[SunshineMama]

The audacity of some DCP's never ceases to amaze me.

I can just see her face if her boss says to her one day...

."Oh! I'm going to schedule some stuff for after work a couple times a week. I'll need you to stay late....all without pay of course......."

OH and these same people wanted me to transport their kids to and from preschool and (ready for this) they wanted to pay LESS to me (for more work driving and gas) to compensate for the cost of preschool. That was easy for me to say no to. Um... hmm... let me get 6 kids in and out of a car twice a day 3 days a week in the mornings for less money???

[MizzCheryl]

They catch ya off guard and then put you on the spot. It has happened to me alot. I made myself a promise. Now I always answer like this.
"Oh,... I see.
Let me think about that and I will get back to you"

That way I have a chance to run things over in my head.
I hate to be put on the spot. I always regret I answer.

[MizzCheryl]

I had a kid who's mum got cancer, the family was leaving the kid at 6 in the morning and picking him up 7:30 or so. the whole time i knew the mum was home with her mother and they would have the dad leave and pick him up. i went through this for a whole year. and their dp and pu time would keep changing. cut a year later she pulls the kid outta my care and never paid me the two week notice. so sometime you just have to look out for yourself first. You maybe an understanding and a nice person, but most people out there won't think twice before screw.... you over.

I have dealt with this.


Doesn't it really make you mad!
The very ones you help are the ones that screw ya.