Being a sole trader, I can charge as much or as little as I feel like with a gardening job. Today I was asked to quote for a job which was very rightly in the “jungles cleared” descriptor in my advertising.
This, believe it or not, is a garden. A very nice but eccentric lady wants me to clear it all so she can walk around if she feels like it. She also claims that her neighbours are infringing on her garden. With some difficulty, I fought my way through the nettles in the bushes to the centre of this wilderness and found that the fences have collapsed. Is this the sort of job that I wish to contemplate, even though it has every conceivable disadvantage.
What are the main disadvantages?
First, it is not just a little bit overgrown but thoroughly great with nettles and brambles at head height.
Second, the whole thing is on a slope which makes traversing the whole thing is very dangerous unless you have the right shoes.
Third, there is no access. You enter the garden through a set of steep concrete steps. There is no exit at the bottom and no proper exit gate at the top. Everything must be taken up the steps.
Fourth, the road outside is a narrow lane, far too inadequate to accommodate a larger van or truck.
Fifth, the recycle is about 5 miles away from the job so it means return trips. My voluminous Volvo is large enough to accommodate a coffin but even then, many journeys will be required.
How do I quote for this? I work out how long it would take if the ground was level and access was easy. I then work out how much longer would be required given the circumstances above. My estimate is to increase the price by a factor of three.
Non-gardeners will say, “tut tut, that seems a lot”. They will have to go on tutting. Unless you actually tackle the job you have no idea what is involved. I shall give the customer the price tomorrow and tell the then in the nicest possible way to take it or leave it.
*****
I had a lovely time this evening giving remote readings to people, both of whom were in Spain. I love doing readings using Facebook messenger because people have a record of my words and they can refer to them later. It is a natural distraction to have a client with you in the room and I do far better readings if I have not met the person and don’t know anything about them. Such is the world of psychic readings. Long may they continue.
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