NWH

  • Posts: 16952
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #60 on: April 11, 2020, 12:52:20 pm »
There’s also a lot of carers out there that are rubbish,my sister in law owns a care business 2000 + staff not including office staff over a dozen branches.
You could say she is busy at the moment,you can get bespoke care Nathan if you go private you will also be able to get help or funding for it if you still want to work part time.

Dave Willis

Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #61 on: April 11, 2020, 02:06:28 pm »
No, Nathan wants to be THE carer. Claim the money. Possibly get the wife on benefits whilst he also goes to work part time. Win win if it can be done.
Although I don’t think a carers allowance mounts to much it all gets quite complicated with other benefits.

Shrek

  • Posts: 3931
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #62 on: April 11, 2020, 02:14:19 pm »
No, Nathan wants to be THE carer. Claim the money. Possibly get the wife on benefits whilst he also goes to work part time. Win win if it can be done.
Although I don’t think a carers allowance mounts to much it all gets quite complicated with other benefits.

Sounds like a plan , tell the benefits office you do 35hrs care a week to get full benefits, wife gets benefits + carry on doing your cash in hand jobs so they can’t prove you earn more than the careers weekly earnings limit of £128. Get your rent paid , council tax paid for you too , why not. Happy days

G Griffin

  • Posts: 40745
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #63 on: April 11, 2020, 02:32:25 pm »
Apologies if that's the impression being given as it was not intended.
Im just a little confused as to why it wasnt clear as many have posted on various threads how they are sick of me going on about my wife's illness.  So I didnt particularly want to take over a thread on the subject.
So me and the wife are looking into the option of me becoming her full time carer and wondered if anyone else has done so and if so, is it worth selling all my work or skimming the best for myself and still doing some work to top the finances up and have some escape time (as suggested).
Ok, then.
If you're looking after your wife- and kids- then you may as well get paid for it. But I'd keep a bit of work on to top up your carer's allowance.  Are you kids still be taught at home, Nathan? I mean permanently not because of the lockdown. That might also have a bearing on what you do, too.
I do sympathise with you. Me and my Missus both work part time because of our little lad and my job fits in around them.
We don't have much childminding help and my Missus is also tied up with looking after her Mum, as much as she can.
She was offered another job a couple of years ago, a job that she wanted but it was an extra day a week and she couldn't take it because of her commitments to her parents (her Dad had Alzheimer's before passing away). We'd have been better off financially but her Mum was worried about losing any support.
If you do end working around everyone else, you'll find the hardest part is actually getting to work and getting enough done.
I plan my work around her shifts, school hours and term times, seeing my Dad and then you've got the weather!
Good luck .
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

dudek

  • Posts: 272
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #64 on: April 11, 2020, 08:09:03 pm »
Window cleaning is all I really know.

I start out when I was 12/13 with my uncle wiping the sills for a fiver a day!(best money I ever earned).

When I was sixteen, I worked for my uncle again and ditched a painting and decorating apprenticeship to do it.  My uncle was a precision engineer before he began his rounds in the 90’s recession. He taught me to blading perfection and then he played me and his son off against each other for who could blade the best and fastest. We were both bloody fast and he was getting rich off of us!!

I eventually got fed up of the lack of growth and decided I’d borrow some ladders off of of my old man and start my rounds for p up money aged 18 or so.

Once I realised what the game was all about I committed fully to it, me and my uncle fell out and I went all out on my own. I treated it as a learning to run a business thing and that I’d go onto bigger and better things and be a multimillionaire soon enough.

I’ve been very blessed to meet some incredible people on my journey who I have learned from and grown from and become great lifelong friends with Julie and Carl at Concept  2O who helped me get to grips with wfp. They really poured their hearts into their customers from across the U.K.

Where am I now? Still window cleaning! I do get very low and miss having banter etc during work but this work affords me so much flexibility. I’m looking around for a hobby now as I’m desperate to use my brain. I’ve been using the Khan Academy app to sort my mathematical weaknesses out(highly recommended for those who have regrets in that area)(I messed around a lot at school).

Ive tried goals, whips and every other carrot in the book to try to flog this dead horse. I go through spells where I have a really good three months then I slip into disarray and just muddle through. I don’t have the answer for the best way to do this work. Many of my friends are window cleaners, we are a funny breed when we’ve done it considerable time. It really changes you. I’m a social creature but the same conversation with the same people month in month out, year after year becomes a bit wearing.

I’m 38 now, have three young kids, so have very few options until they are a bit older but I’ll always look for a positive.

Dudek


NWH

  • Posts: 16952
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #65 on: April 11, 2020, 09:53:02 pm »
Window cleaning is all I really know.

I start out when I was 12/13 with my uncle wiping the sills for a fiver a day!(best money I ever earned).

When I was sixteen, I worked for my uncle again and ditched a painting and decorating apprenticeship to do it.  My uncle was a precision engineer before he began his rounds in the 90’s recession. He taught me to blading perfection and then he played me and his son off against each other for who could blade the best and fastest. We were both bloody fast and he was getting rich off of us!!

I eventually got fed up of the lack of growth and decided I’d borrow some ladders off of of my old man and start my rounds for p up money aged 18 or so.

Once I realised what the game was all about I committed fully to it, me and my uncle fell out and I went all out on my own. I treated it as a learning to run a business thing and that I’d go onto bigger and better things and be a multimillionaire soon enough.

I’ve been very blessed to meet some incredible people on my journey who I have learned from and grown from and become great lifelong friends with Julie and Carl at Concept  2O who helped me get to grips with wfp. They really poured their hearts into their customers from across the U.K.

Where am I now? Still window cleaning! I do get very low and miss having banter etc during work but this work affords me so much flexibility. I’m looking around for a hobby now as I’m desperate to use my brain. I’ve been using the Khan Academy app to sort my mathematical weaknesses out(highly recommended for those who have regrets in that area)(I messed around a lot at school).

Ive tried goals, whips and every other carrot in the book to try to flog this dead horse. I go through spells where I have a really good three months then I slip into disarray and just muddle through. I don’t have the answer for the best way to do this work. Many of my friends are window cleaners, we are a funny breed when we’ve done it considerable time. It really changes you. I’m a social creature but the same conversation with the same people month in month out, year after year becomes a bit wearing.

I’m 38 now, have three young kids, so have very few options until they are a bit older but I’ll always look for a positive.

Dudek
Great post you said it all there for some people it would have taken a book to point most of that out,just by reading that I feel I know your story m8.
Window cleaning is a funny game to be in,we want to work on our own some of us yet at the same time when we have our thoughts to ourselves know it could be a lot better and bigger.
Loads of times I’ve thought I could have multiple vans on the road by now but have always liked my freedom to do what I like,saying that I always work a longish day and put the effort in lol.
I know that the reality is people in other jobs feel the same and the vast majority are not happy in their jobs,the grass is always greener they say and from experience of listening to other people that saying is very true 👍.

dudek

  • Posts: 272
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #66 on: April 12, 2020, 09:27:27 pm »
Cheers buddy.

This is always gonna be a thankless job, so we have to be strict where we can and make the best of it!

I wised up many years ago. From the moment you take on a new customer they have to work with your rules!  People will accept anything you suggest it just has to be done in a professional, firm but friendly manner.

   :)

zesty

  • Posts: 2333
Re: Have you ever nearly jacked in window cleaning?
« Reply #67 on: April 13, 2020, 08:42:30 am »
Cheers buddy.

This is always gonna be a thankless job, so we have to be strict where we can and make the best of it!

I wised up many years ago. From the moment you take on a new customer they have to work with your rules!  People will accept anything you suggest it just has to be done in a professional, firm but friendly manner.

   :)

It’s also quite rewarding at times, especially when a house is filthy, and you’re also cleaning the gutters, or softwashing etc.

But on the whole, the reasons I love this job are mainly:

1. The freedom

2. Stress free

3. Easy

4. No boss, or annoying colleagues

5. Short Hours

6. And Perhaps the best, the money is good!