PhileasFogg

$150 is $150 more than you’d have if you do nothing. All else equal, like transportation distance etc. $150 is a gateway to regulars. When your available time is so booked from regulars that you have no room for more clients, then you have a commodity to barter with. That’s when you raise prices to maximize value on your time and make more doing less So the question is, would you rather do two clients a day for $150 each and make $1,500/wk to cover fixed costs, or wait in hope that someone will fly in from SoCal by chance. But if you wait, you may have made $3,000 in those two weeks AND still had the time for fun with the guy from SoCal. i come across a lot of folks (in many skills and trades) who say my time is worth $x. Unfortunately, until other people know they’re worth $x, then they’re not getting the calls. A decade ago, my half brother, a tradesman, once said “I will only work for $50/hr.” I guess that’s why he’s 54 yrs old and living with his father with plenty of time on his hands just my two cents… And btw…STL is not a wasteland….its just full of guys who will do basic stuff (or more) for $150. The market sets the price AND the expectation of “value for the money”…that capitalism. In my retirement, I consult for $150/hr. I’m booked full time with a six month backlog. Now’s the time for me to raise prices. And I’ll sent you a bill for $37.50 for the 15 minutes I spent on this consultation…😉

Onions, peppers, garlic, gluten, dairy….yeah, my oven is REAL clean Oh yeah…and I avoid sugar too but, I’m accustomed to it and have no complaints. no, I’m not celiac, but I have a direct cause/effect outcome. Dairy causes my retired complexion to act like a teenager. Onions and peppers make me belch. Garlic makes me self conscious.

If I’m reading the table in the link correctly, zero%

Viagara is not an override to lack of arousal.

Honestly, I've had some very good experiences with guys who were "panned" on here. I'm sure that some of the bad reviews here are justified in the moment. But having met some of the guys, I think it was either a bad circumstance, poor communication, or unreasonable expectations. But that's sheer speculation.

I agree with consulting medical professionals. My research indicated 7 days was sufficient. Keeping also in mind that the risk as a top WITH an + partner is 0.11%. Of course, having been around in the 80's, I will admit that the odds of transmission in the table I've linked seem low.

If I recall, one can't actually reverse search an image FROM rentmen, correct?

I guess now I know the difference between sensual and erotic? Always wondered

shhh, its illegal to employ illegal aliens 😂 beyond that, I can’t think of a time when I’ve encountered someone I thought was illegal. We will still have immigrants but I suspect it will be at a controlled pace favoring immigrants with attributes more favored by seekers of escorts

First you’re right to be either suspicious or skeptical. Money is money and the idea that someone has a better mousetrap on how to use or manage it is ludicrous. You receive debits and spend credits. Remember, YOUR debit (money) is a credit to the bank or fintech (a DEBT). Anything beyond posting debits and credits is like concierge services at a hotel - you either use the service well or it’s wasted - but it’s rarely worth what you pay Fintechs activities are usually very low margin businesses that require very high processing volumes leaving room for mistakes if they get too sexy in design or careless in programming Fintechs are almost always dependent on traditional banks for processing or liquidity. So, Fintechs are essentially adding a layer of middleman, not subtracting. Plus, regulators are getting to the fintechs through their processing banks. Now, that ultimately protects the consumer, but add costs that make the fintech model potentially more costly and less efficient…and irrelevant over time. Some have been real home runs. They carved a marketing niche in traditional channels and dominated them and created a brand with appeal. But just like your Wild West analogy, some find gold and some find nothing…and there’s a lot of work with no effort. i always advise against using Fintechs that provide revolving credit. They need daily securitizations and are especially susceptible to black swan events and can melt down faster than a Texas power provider in a freeze. On the depository front, I use Venmo etc, but the money never sits with them. These Fintechs that give you analytics on spending and subscription cancelling etc….well, guess what…you just unlocked the door to all your spending … a marketers dream…or a mad scientist’s? REMEMBER: IF YOU ARE NOT PAYING FOR THE PRODUCT, THEN YOU ARE THE PRODUCT. .

Something seems unhealthy

See, it comes out of your pores like that and, I’m guessing, that why it affects your business. There is not a single statement you made above that did not originate with use of a harsh tone and with words of aggression. Your “rules” of booking imply the same harshness, just in more polite ways…that is, approach you on your terms or don’t approach you at all. You can’t push that reality away with a promise of a big smile and a firm handshake. Put my thinking cap on? Why don’t you take your blinders off and your ear plugs out? Sticking my nose in matters that don’t concern me? It’s YOUR post is a PUBLIC forum. If you only want words of affirmation and validation, please put that disclaimer out there so we will all know to not waste our time. PLEASE don’t be bragging about your experience in life when all your posts are about your bad experiences and how it’s always everyone else’s fault. Seriously?

When demand for your services is so high that you are fully booked, then you have freedom to be as restrictive as you want. But until then, you don’t have leverage on either pricing or terms of engagement. This is why you’re frustrated # you want to set terms of engagement with people who choose not to have rules imposed on them. And telling someone to GTFO because you don’t like what you’re saying is part of the problem. It’s good that you have this place to vent, but you really should listen if your objective is to make more money with less effort and frustration.

I’m beginning to wonder what exactly the feared “new circumstance” is when I see, nothwithstanding a couple of silly choices, the number of women, and even a married gay man, are being put up for influential roles. I’m not espousing a position since if one of us has something to fear, then we all do. But I’m wondering if some of these hyped high profile departures doth protest too much.

In my view, that speaks to "motivation." But I'm referring to the difference between an immigrant and an expat. My father came here - legally - at age 15 with the intent of never returning to Italy. That's an immigrant. It took nine years and the entire family "immigrated" If he'd come on a study visa or a professional engagement, I'd suggest he was an expat.

Isn’t the primary distinguishing factor permanence?

And there’s then the question of materiality. I just don’t see it happening. If so, it would have happened eight years ago (as promised by some nonresponsive blowhards back then). I will admit having considered it and have done some early stage research into Belize and Costa Rica. But my motivation isn’t politics. However, I doubt I will ever do it as long as my grandchildren are young.

If you missed the market's 10 best days over the past 30 years, your returns would have been cut in half. And missing the best 30 days would have reduced your returns by an astonishing 83%. This is a quote from Hartford Funds. I’ve validated it in the past, but not recently. You’re right. Timing simply doesn’t work. One can’t win a game sitting on the bench

Yes, Ellen and Portia are heading to England. Can’t wait for Whoopi, Joy, and Sunny to follow. Beyond that, nada.

This was billed as the new "Pretty Woman".... nope. It had some cute moments but took a very dark and depressing twist in the last 20 minutes (it's 2 hr and 20 mins long) The end was so abrupt and depressing that I verbally exclaimed "oh $h!t" in a silent theatre.

What is toxic to the veins becomes toxic to the lungs

No, you’re not prevented from doing anything - legal or not legal, right or wrong. i know you’re referencing a hypothetical, but while I avoid judging, if you waived cash in front of a poorer person, flaunting it and taunting or mocking them to have sex with you to make that cash theirs, I’d probably make an unfavorable judgement of both you and your behavior.

Thank you for schooling us in advance on how to process (or not) your grievance. As a side note, if it were true, it would never be bad form to share it. But, I don’t fish and victimhood was not the first thing that came to mind this time. But what did come to mind: my personal trainer has this issue the woman who cuts my hair has this issue my chiropractor has this issue and so on They also have overhead in different ways that they need to cover with their time. But yes, there are differences. They aren’t dealing with an activity that might be done on the DL They don’t travel long distances to do their chosen trade they are in established physical locations where deposits carry lower risk to the customer I completely understand your angst. I just see it as part of the business risk for your chosen business - and that seems to be a continuing theme as I process your posts about these challenges. FTR, I’m fairly new to this hobby and I’ve given a deposit once and only one and it was a unique situation that worked out fine. But, I would definitely not make a habit of it unless I was asking the provider to modify their plan to accommodate me.

Yes. He offered a vague explanation that RM can’t provide a good reason. I can attest that his photos were his own. This is someone I’ve considered travel with Trust is important to me and I’m trying to connect the dots So far, none of these explanations are connecting the dots

What could get a guy banned from RM? Someone I met once through RM is banned now and I’m curious what could conceivably lead to that on a platform I understand to be pretty loose in enforcement