My mom's book club wants free updos every month, and I'm stuck in the middle

She tells them I'll do it as a favor, but it eats into my Saturday client slots. On one hand, I want to help her and keep peace, but on the other, this is my job and that time adds up. I feel guilty thinking about saying no, but I also know my skills have value. How do you guys deal with family expecting free work? Is it ever okay to put your foot down, or do you just suck it up for family sake?

4 comments

4 Comments

robin6282d ago

Ugh, my mom did this with my baking! It used to kill me.

hall.joel2d ago

What really got me was it felt like a power move, you know? Like the whole "let me fix this" thing was more about control than the actual cookies. Used to kill me too.

jessica_hunt13h ago

Seriously, that hits so close to home! (I still get mad thinking about it.) My aunt would always swoop in and "adjust" my pie crust, which was just her way of saying I did it wrong. It's exactly that control thing, not about helping at all. Like @rodriguez.mark said, sometimes things turn out bad anyway, but let me fail on my own terms. Having someone take over just ruins the whole point of trying.

rodriguez.mark2d ago

My cookies always turn into hockey pucks anyway.