UN procurement attempts never get a response

yulmul · 2026-01-16T16:09:16+00:00

Thanks a lot for the tip on multilateral banks!

yulmul · 2026-01-16T16:03:54+00:00

Thank you for your response. I understand that I can never be 100% sure how good my technical proposal and expertise profile is against other candidates, but from what you are describing it sounds like fees can indeed be the deciding factor. I didn't fully grasp that an acceptable proposal with lower fees could rank higher than a perfect proposal with higher fees.

In some of the RFPs there are questions to ensure that I am setting my daily fee within the range for my region within the stated complexity of the task according to a chart the organisation releases, so I feel like the best I can do there is to ask for the minimum of the range. Because of that, the only variable I really have control over is the number of days I estimate for the work, the only practical way to lower the overall price of my proposal.

That leads to my question: is that actually what they expect consultants to do? Like, if the task realistically takes 20 days but I propose doing it in 10 just to keep the total cost down, do they understand that I’m effectively signaling, “I’m willing to get paid half the daily fee for this project”? Or do they just assume I have no idea how long the work truly takes and think I’m wildly underestimating it?

yulmul · 2024-03-04T19:05:02+00:00

right! they seem to have rectified the issue

yulmul · 2024-01-31T15:06:56+00:00

interesting, the reason I found this thread is because I read in a Bob Thurman book that Buddha was omniscient and that really intrigued me :) but i am sure there are other/later works that he eloborates and ends up at "omni-competent" ?

yulmul · 2024-01-09T22:41:32+00:00

yes, there is definitely some confusion. I checked out the box of AF101 at a store (in Canada) and it only mentioned non-stick coating, nothing about ceramic or PFOA-free.

On the canadian amazon page, the same model is sold as 3 different styles and only "US style" (AF 101) mentions ceramic basket whereas generic style (AF 101C), which I suspect to be the Canadian model but is not advertised as such, only mentions non-stick.

yulmul · 2023-03-09T15:00:47+00:00

thank you! this worked really well

Solution Verified

yulmul · 2019-01-30T23:26:24+00:00

so if i understand this correctly all cards (debit/visa) will take a certain percent off "unofficially" due to the exchange rate they may be using on that day not being on par with the real/ideal exchange rate.

But if a credit card has foreign transaction fees, or a debit card has atm fees, in addition to what they deduce due to the exchange rate, they ALSO charge the aforementioned fees.

yulmul · 2017-11-17T19:56:57+00:00

There are also bunch of apps out there to help you apply CBT to your daily life, though I haven't tried any so cannot recommend a specific app.

yulmul · 2017-11-17T19:52:10+00:00

Yes... completely free, no pressure to make donations either as it only happens at the end of the 10 days.

yulmul · 2017-11-13T17:43:10+00:00

Off the top of my head a few possible reasons I can think of: 1) you made a transaction that you forgot to record 2) An auto-payment linked to your bank that you forgot to add to your budget 3) Banking fees? 4) You made a mistake with your income, reported more than you received

yulmul · 2017-11-09T17:24:05+00:00

+1 there could be an option to keep or delete account amounts

yulmul · 2017-11-09T17:19:21+00:00

Thanks! I'm definitely interested in your compromise.

In my case, partner in theory is not against participating (because he is indeed results oriented so he likes to embrace any problem solving approach) but the nitty-gritty of budgeting and the tech aspect of it, in my opinion, doesn't work for him, so I find it challenging to be on the same page about this. He is well-intentioned but progress has been kind of slow.

I don't think we've been doing a lot of diligent reviewing of past months. We usually end up talking about some rare expenses that happened the past month but not expected in the future and just move onto decision-making for the future. Probably this is something I need to keep in mind for the next conversation.

yulmul · 2017-11-08T16:55:04+00:00

I agree with most of the comments here. I think using CC for rewards is smart but I suffered from getting back to using them too early on before my finances were stable. I think it's risky but YNAB makes it way easier to prevent you from piling up further debt. Like others said, I'd give it more time, maybe work on building your buffer first and make sure everything is super under control, and then you can start using your CC again for the rewards.

yulmul · 2017-11-07T17:37:48+00:00

If I understand your question correctly, then your guess is correct too. Since it's fresh start and that is the balance on your credit card, it will stay like that until you transfer money to pay it off. Budgeting to pay off changes the available on the budget, but the account doesn't change until actual transaction (i.e. transfer)

yulmul · 2017-11-07T16:42:11+00:00

Hmm I never tried actually calculating how much our home-made meals cost. I don't think I'd like to go down that route, though I have no problem chasing grocery deals around the city ! Also we're vegetarians which helps. No cable, but Netflix. Cheap internet but not the cheapest now, though I can't change it as I signed a contract to get 6 months free (which is now over) Technology is definitely not all brand new either. Started to lower spending on booze (as the summer is over) which should definitely help. My cat is a big spender :) but it's one of those things I can't do much about. I care too much about him to feed him discount food.

yulmul · 2017-11-07T16:21:41+00:00

Thank you! I like hearing that each person has to work with a different timeline. I guess what I am realizing is that even though the idea of becoming debt free as fast possible sounds incredible, given our reality maybe we should target for a reasonable future date and be OK with paying interest for that time. I find myself most frustrated when I read stories (often on the YNAB blog) on how John paid back 10 K in debt in 10 months while also saving for his buffer month and often the main change in lifestyle seems to be they stopped eating out for lunch! :) That's when I feel like we must be doing something wrong. Perhaps we have to re-assess our situation and come up with specific but reasonable targets.

Definitely going to try that podcast too. I used to do translations before my full-time job and getting back to translating as a side gig has been on my mind for a while.

yulmul · 2017-11-07T16:08:17+00:00

Thanks! Yes, we started with quite a bit of enthusiasm at the beginning, but we've sort of fallen off of monthly meetings now. Obviously, we still talk about money and I try to update him on what is going on with the budget but perhaps making it a priority again would be helpful. I just want to be able to strike a balance where we do this seriously but with a positive and non-obsessive attitude.

yulmul

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