Re: Headhunters

["Lindsay Burrell" <lburrell -at- telus -dot- net>]

> At 05:24 PM 4/2/00 -0700, Marc A. Santacroce wrote:
> >Maybe not, but I bet the agency is charging your client your $40 plus
20%.
>
> You've missed the point.  I don't know nor do I care if they charge the
> client my $40 plus 100%.  It's none of my business what markup they have
> negotiated with the client.
>

Right. And in addition, you have to expect to pay for service.

I've been on both sides of it.  For <many> years, when I was a professional
cellist, I maintained a private studio of students.  All these kids, and I
was collecting cheques once a week.  It was <always> a hassle.  Parents
would take their kids away skiing and skip a lesson, and expect not to pay.
Parents would "forget their chequebook" on an ongoing basis.  Also, you had
to find rooms to teach the kids, preferably with a piano.  Not to mention
digging up the students themselves.  And organizing the schedule at the
beginning of the season was just a big packload of work.

When I went to teach instead at the local community arts school, this was
all handled for me.  I paid them 14% of my fee, and they found the students,
they provided the room, they did the scheduling, they collected payment from
parents and (best of all) they handled the parents who were delinquent
paying.  All that administrative burden was lifted from me, and I was freed
to do what I was a specialist at--teach cello.  It was heaven. It was worth
every penny. It was--how does the old saying go?--cheap at twice the price.

So now, although I am comfortable contracting by my lonesome, I always
appreciate the level of service and convenience my contracting company
provides.  I especially like it when they find me cool contracts that I
would never have heard of, and the best is that I never have to chase
anybody down for money, a thing which I hate.  And the cost (whatever it is)
is invisible to me.

What's not to like?