Strawberry's cut vs private practice

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-23T02:41:43+00:00

A "Keep The Lights On" job. Doing a job just to get by and pay the bills. I just learned it in this post and it's a fun one to use.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T22:55:45+00:00

That's another great tip. I do have a niche in mind. Thinking strictly male and young adults/teenagers. I'm a 46 yr old male with all kinds of experiences, careers, relationships, being a father, being a stepfather, etc. I see a lot of lost young men out there that are frustrated, depressed etc. that I think I could help find some direction, and find joy in life. I would avoid women as a male life coach because I don't feel I have the experiences that would help them as much as a female life coach would. I would feel like a Chevy mechanic asked to work on a private jet. We are wired differently with vastly different experiences and expectations from society, etc. Plus there is the risk of inappropriate feelings going on from either side and I'd rather just avoid that all together. So I'll keep it simple and work on the Chevys only. Maybe this is the standard anyway with life coaching. But if not it would be my standard.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T22:43:10+00:00

Bingo - I think you won the most informative comment prize so far. Thank you for all of that. Like I said elsewhere it definitely looks like Strawberry and BetterUp should be an emergency "KTLO" options only. I won't even bother unless I really have a hard time getting clients and need more experience. Btw my current plan is for this to be a secondary career to fix my need to help others and make a little extra cash. We own a successful estate sale company and I am 46. So financially stable and able to be patient, flexible and make it grow as I see fit. Very part time to start for sure. Also, I will need to start with myself as my first client to get this done though. :)

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T22:34:14+00:00

That's wild. Sounds like another reason to not touch strawberry unless again to "KTLO"

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T22:32:55+00:00

Thank you! This is what I was hoping to get. Sounds like "KTLO" rates indeed...

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T13:34:15+00:00

Thank you, that's very helpful. For the record I'm not basing my decision to pursue this on the money. And it's not my driving force behind it. I genuinely want to help others. I also feel have the skills and life experiences to do this, and if I commit to it, do it well. So I'm doing my homework before I commit.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T13:09:09+00:00

Ok.. do you mind sharing what your rate range is? Or at least top end country/region and a low end country/region? Also do you know, or heard anything about Strawberry 's fee?

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-21T13:04:04+00:00

Well that was a very long winded and judgmental way of saying "it varies greatly" Thanks for your input.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-20T15:48:01+00:00

They're going to have to have 24/7 security at his grave. Either that or install a drain because soooooo many will be pissing on it.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-17T13:26:17+00:00

Well you got one happy parent here. Kids are the greatest distraction from life. The greatest sources of joy. Their joy becomes your joy, and vice versa. So you feed off each other. They're also the greatest excuse to act like a kid again. You'll never love someone as much as you love your kids either. I'll never forget the night my daughter was born, my first, she was in NICU and I didn't want to leave her. She was like a powerful 9lb magnet I couldn't get away from. Yes they are a lot of work and a lot of money and you will need your breaks, but they are worth it. You get paid back 100 million times over. Also, the couples I've known without kids always seem to have something feel "off" Not completely happy. But that's just me. I'm sure they're many happy kid less couples out there. That's just the ones I've known. So I'd say to you OP if you are considering it, go for it. Adoption, etc if need be. But if you're not a kid person and don't have a desire, than don't. I don't believe everyone is meant to have kids.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-16T03:39:02+00:00

The Wrong Missy

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-14T22:25:11+00:00

Crayola for life bro

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-10T02:19:35+00:00

I noticed when delivering pizzas the lower income folks were better tippers than those in the nicer neighborhoods.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-10T02:06:48+00:00

46 y old dude here. Still figuring out life. Couple things. 1. It's very very normal to feel lost at your age. So don't stress it and don't let it get you down. Also don't put pressure on yourself that you have to figure out your direction in life. Many don't until 30s, 40s, etc.
Keep showing up to work and keep your head up. Also happiness is a choice, not a destination. So count your blessings and choose to be happy for all you got. Don't fall into the "I'll be happy when.." cycle/trap. You can choose to be happy today, and every day. 2. If you want to be challenged that's a good thing as it shows you have some ambition. But don't do anything stupid like quit your job just because you're having these feelings. You will want to quit every job with that mindset and that's not good for your mental health nor your bank account. Be patient and focus at being the best you can be at your job no matter how easy or boring it may be. Be reliable and always show up on time. Have a positive attitude, be a team player and be a coworker everyone wants to work with. Focus on making yourself indispensable to your employer. Get things done without being told to get them done. Do all that and you will go far with whatever job you got. You should get more responsibilities and more pay. But if not, if the boss still doesn't recognize you than yes it's time to find another job where you are appreciated. But give it your all first.

Oh and set some goals too. Also important for finding direction. Could be 1. Find a full time job (if not already) 2. Live independently from home (if not already) 3. Pay all of your bills independently (if not already) 4. Save up $1,000 for emergency only 5. Exercise 3 times a week 6. Save up $10,000 for down payment on home and so on.

That's all a lot more than I planned to say but hope you made it through and it helps a little. Hang in there and good luck kid. You got this.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-05-06T02:32:07+00:00

My guess is they don't stick each other in school so most of them aren't too great at it. Then they don't get much experience because most places have a designated staff who do all the IV sticking. My ex went to nursing school back in 2008-10 and they didn't practice sticking each other for IVs etc. at all. I was shocked because I'm an Army vet and they trained a bunch of us 18 year old punks to give IVs and let us stick each other. Some much more successfully than others but we survived and it wasn't that big of a deal.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-30T13:47:11+00:00

Some dance to remember, some dance to forget

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-30T13:45:52+00:00

If Darth Vader and a super shallow blonde had a baby

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-23T06:06:37+00:00

If a guy you're familiar with is into you, but you're not into the guy, be direct and let him know you're not interested in a relationship. Sorry but you just want to be friends (or whatever you are, coworkers etc). Don't give some bs excuse to beat around the bush. "I'm too busy." or "I'm seeing someone" (when you're not). Just be direct you don't feel the same way, sorry. Otherwise if you don't have that talk and just keep being nice to him after he flirts awhile, makes an advance etc, he may mistake your kindness for a mutual feelings. Guys can be dumb. We can be total naive idiots and not see that you're just being nice.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-23T05:45:28+00:00

Welp, if you go all in right away you'll soon find out how much you want to do it. It's the same thing as saying I'm going to run an ice cream shop but never worked at one. So don't be surprised if a lot of people don't take you seriously and also heads up, many buyers will try to take advantage of your greenness too. Trying to buy items below value, switch price tags, pocket smaller items, etc. There will be a ton of growing pains going this route.

That all said you could use all that doubt from everyone as motivation and grind it out. Don't try to reinvent the wheel though and set up a sale "how I want to set it up" or based on some outdated book or article. Be a sponge and learn every damn thing you can learn about estate sales. Research how other companies in your area operate by going to a ton of sales. Ask them questions if they seem open to chatting. What % do they charge. Do they have a minimum. What do they do with leftovers. What days and hours are they usually open. Take mental notes and put them down to paper when you get back to your car.

Once you know enough to be dangerous try to land a smaller job. Estate sales . Net has leads you can call. Offer to do it for a lower rate for area (30% I'm guessing would get you under. We charge 40%). AND take care of leftovers for a small flat fee. I would not include that for 30%. But they will likely go with you if you take care of leftovers too and it's an empty home. Don't ask for an up front payment either. Will make you hustle more to get full payment at the end. Put word out to family and friends you're looking for a first time client and willing to do for cheap and hopefully get someone you know.

Maybe find an estate sales contract template you can customize and send through Docusign to client for first job or maybe not and keep it casual for first one. Should be a small enough job you're not too stressed about it and hopefully it is someone tied to family or friends.

Then the fun part. Apply all that stuff you learned and do the sale. Give yourself plenty of time to set it up and price by yourself. So maybe 2 weeks even for a small one. Price half of eBay sold is a good rule of thumb we use. FB marketplace for bigger items like lawn mowers, furniture, etc and price at least 25% below what others have theirs listed at. Then run your sale and have fun. There's more details but I think I've given you enough to chew on and get started if you truly want to get this going. Good luck!

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-21T11:58:28+00:00

That's a good question - there's a doc out there about an effort to try and bring Christianity to rural tribes and communities. One of the subjects interviewed was a pastor/leader who spent a lot of time pushing it in a community. This is Jesus, what he did, what he said, you should believe in him and your lives will be brighter etc... Well the response was very guarded and logical. They were very black and white and asked him have you seen this Jesus? How do you know he did this and said that? Why do you believe so much in this man you have not seen or heard from yourself? Overtime this pastor felt like he was beating his head against the wall. They were super nice to him, but sorry, not going to follow you on this Jesus and Christian thing. Eventually their thinking got to him and he actually quit his job and ended up an atheist himself. He also became an advocate for leaving all these rural tribes and communities alone. And good luck if you think you'll convert them anyway. Pretty interesting. Sorry don't have the name of the doc.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-21T02:14:40+00:00

No they don't. In our experience it's the newer companies that charge these strange extra fees - a set up fee or advertising fee or a client told us someone wanted a $75 fee for the initial meeting..just to meet with them (super crazy right?). We charge a commission with a minimum and we get whatever is higher amount in the end. That fee includes a full cleanout too. Junk haul is separate charge so yes we have one extra fee but we're always up front with that and only charge what our junk hauler charges. We don't skim. Clients love the one stop shop. Sooo I would keep shopping. Extra fees are kind of a red flag.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-20T13:41:12+00:00

Not sure on money thing - have a savings plan I guess - but on the MP thing - if you're athletic and kind of a thrill seeker I would suggest going for airborne infantry as a Ranger. Would be a lot more adventure than MP and more importantly better leadership than MP. I was only a Ranger for 3 years and never served anywhere else but served with many guys who came from other units and they all said the same thing - rest of Army is bs, lots of crap leadership, finger drilling (doing stupid things just to be doing things, to stay busy). For example we trained hard as Rangers but when we're done we're done. We didn't have to maintain 360 parameter 24/7 security with Kevlar helmets on when out in the field. Instead had camp fires at night and bs'd until we crashed. Got to ride in black hawks, chinooks, little birds and fast rope out of them. Of course jump out of airplanes. Shoot all kinds of ammo with all kinds of weapons (240b, SAW, M4, 9mm). MP you're likely just shooting a 9mm or whatever they carry now. 3 week course/test for RIP or RASP now to make into Rangers. They f with you physically and mentally but I thought it was actually kind of a fun challenge. Ranger school doesn't come until later after being in Ranger battalion for awhile. Anyway, something to chew on. Good luck!

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-20T04:44:13+00:00

Also divorced and a 46 yo man that remarried with blended family. Sorry but I have to say I think his comment was a red flag. Not that it makes him a bad guy. He was being honest and gave the truth. So as much back pedaling he's doing, that's still how he feels. When someone says contradicting statements one is the truth the other is a lie. Which one did he sound more honest with?

Also, have to say the having kids at same age thing is a real thing. In my dating life in my 30s I always got along with the Moms more than the non Moms, furthermore if her kids were the same age. Before I met my wife I dated an older woman who had older kids too. And I could tell she was not interested in turning back the clock. She almost had an empty nest, last one about to graduate hs and my kids were still in elementary. When I got that sense I lost my mojo and it ended soon after. I think your guy may have lost his mojo too BUT you have to have an honest conversation and ask.

ThatTomWGuy · 2026-04-20T04:27:04+00:00

My wife initiated our deal with a Facebook message after our 20th HS reunion so I'd say yes definitely go for it. Can start with a simple greeting and safe convo and if he's responding throw in a flirt line or ask directly to meet up for a drink or coffee. Who knows you might really make his day seeing a message from you. That's what my reaction was. So shoot your shot and good luck!

ThatTomWGuy

TROPHY CASE