2023-11-16 - 8:29 p.m.

It is the weirdest thing. I bought a plane tix for a kid of mine who is off helping a friendt that had a fall and sprained an ankle and can't get around very well, and I can't for the life of me find where the payment for the transaction came from.

It is just not showing up on my credit cards, or in my bank accounts.

So weird.
I know it was a bit more than $450-
as I got a great deal on the price point due to the travel being
1. Booked a couple weeks ahead and
2. Catching a flight back ON Thanksgiving Day itself. ( I mean really, who wants to fly that day.)

It was reasonably priced however, to send this kid off to the west coast for about 10 days ( 8 or 10- I forget, but more than a week. I could figure it out but honestly am tired just now. )

In looking for the payment ( to tell my friend what she owes me, as I was booking the tix and she was to reimburse me- well really reimbuse my kid as I agreed to just give the kid the cash.)

I am basically paying my kid to help care for my friend.
Which is why it was shocking to me when she was then demanding about supporting having my kid carry her belongings that had been in storage here in VA to the west coast to where she moved.

This is a little break to chill as I am working tonight.
I have some drafting to do for a client. AND I filled in for a full time gal at the one healthcare place working 2nd shift all week. I worked the past seven days at the healtcare places, and actually double shifts over the past weekend.
I logged 18.5 hrs for my own company consulting clients last week; and this week I don't have the total hrs yet...
BUT
I was up until 2AM drafting last night. I was in a good flow state. I was pretty efficient. NOW I AM NOT. FOCUS hard as tired. I just had coffee.
I need to get into flow.
I have a complicated and very long draft I have to FINISH to get it out for review by tomorrow, CAUSE it has GOT to get done.

It was one of those where no one sent me the statements of work, so I am drafting them. AND there are multiple ones. IN GOOD NEWS for one client today I received and ask which was SO WELL DONE !! YEAH!!

One team of an SME and a Project Manager just ROCK!! THEY ROCK because they are not full of ego and have taken feedback and gentle guidance as being helpful. They THANKED me when I gave them insight in what I usually see in the space they are working on business development in. They were GRACIOUS and GRATEFUL when the first stuff they flipped to me months ago was edited heavily by me.

They asked to learn more.
They were inquisitive.
We worked together in true collaboration. I learned some things from them, and they learned some things from me.

LIKE Don't just put a signature on a proposal and make a payment and call it a contract. SURE you CAN DO THAT
BUT the language is often very loose

so sure in your interest if you are a service provider and want loose langauge so you can set up time and materials and bill for whatever you do, and great then to have a really unclear proposal that allows for...
"payment if you do whatever...."

And a clietn that trusts your jugemetn to do "whatever in theri interest"

I SWEAR that is how some contract actually really read to me when it comes down to it.
So I try to trust but verify that the realionship is actually clear, and that the paper matches the expectations.

It can get tiring,

A Good negotiation TAKES TIME and PATIENCE and EFFORT
but I think worth it.
(unless for low value item or really low risk)

Enough rambling.
Back at it.
I was up til 2 AM cause I worked so had to work on the document due before and after the other healtcare job. Its a rare week where covering for the one gal's vacation. She literally almost NEVER takes vacation. I think management told her she HAD to!
IT does not all roll over to the next year. She has banked so much time off likely and was going to lose it!

I've got this.
I just have got to get it done.

It was a delight I got the one does so quickly and effictly this AM because:

YEAH
The SOW was well crafted!

That team worked with me and basically has a template that we worked on together at some point-
and they use it !
: )

I want to do a training for my one client on how to draft a clear SOW.

The "do whatever you like and bill me for it" is just not a good idea

(I am quite serious. Cut out the MARKETING language and they you will see more contracts than you would expect that have no clear scope but just pricing, and dumb langauge like "may invoice for work completed, as determined by Service provider"

without requirement of approval of invoices. JUST STUPID language .

I have to say however I think it almost funny, just kinda amusing , to see smart folks play dumb and argue nonsense that just doesn't make sense.

Perhaps my risk tolerence is higher than some. I try not to sweat the small stuff.

And in my world, honestly if the contract value is less than six figures, I try to figure out what the work is, what the risk is
and am fine with liabilty caps and stupid langauge if it is a short term project and there is some sorta high level of trust OTHERWISE
even though it is a bad sign when someone plays dumb and acts like they don't understand contractual language.

I mean unless someone was really intending to do harm....

can't see how they could really do damage for some services when not touching a back end operations system...

I just let it go.

But I guess writing cause it somehow makes me laugh still at when people play dumb
and in a way I just play dumb back.

I would not call myself non confrontational, but I pick my battles. Some are not worth the energy AND There is value in moving business foward.
I get a sense the last person insisting on an agreement benefitting them will also insist on quality when doing work for my client. Hope I read that correctly.

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