It is not easy to deal with homo sapiens. Each and everyone of them has a different character, weaknesses and strengths. As an online store owner, I have to deal with customers and suppliers everyday. Some of these customers and suppliers are sent from heaven and some are sent from below to haunt me, but oh why?? On some days, some customers will make my day with their compliments. On some bad days, some of them can really squish my already not-so-pleasant day to the point that I feel like crying and giving up. Some customers make full use of their ‘customer is KING’ right to squeeze out every ounce of patience and sanity from me, albeit they are only ordering a piece of apparel that costs less than RM40 from me. Some are plain arrogant.
Just a few days ago, I had to bite the bullet and ‘compensate’ a customer who claimed that 2 items were missing in the parcel which I had passed to her more than 2 months ago!! Yup, you read me right – 2 freaking long months ago. I can reject her claim at point blank as it is more than 60 days ago that she collected the parcel from me. Hello, is there any online store or departmental store in this world that would entertain such a crap?? You tell me! You can read more about this customer from my other blog. For the sake of my online store’s name, I compensated her, albeit I am 99.9% sure her order was in order and nothing was missing in the parcel. It was her words against mine. My only mistake was that for this customer, I did not ask her to open up the parcel to check the items when I passed to her. I would normally ask my customers who wish to collect their stuff from me to check their parcel in front of me but on that day, I was too busy and I did not ask her to check. You see, because of 5 minutes saved, I lost even more time, money and sanity!
Today, I have to bear the wrath of yet another fussy and arrogant customer. Dealing with fussy customers need time and tact and I have no time ever since the part-time maid whom I have relied on so much quit work a month ago due to health reason. All these things happening lately have gotten me into some serious thinking for the past few days. I am thinking if it is a call from Him above for me to take a short break now to see what is more important in my life. I always believe that things happen for a reason. The circumstances of the situation that I am facing now is such that I am rendered with not much choice but to choose either one — 1) to hire a full-time maid so that I can continue working from home like I used to OR 2) take a break and be a full-time mum and do nothing but to spend more quality time with my kids and not to mention spend more time on doing house work.
Hiring a full-time Indon or Pinoy maid would require an upfront big lump sum of about RM17k (you read it right, it is seventeen thousand bucks), which is the current market rate and the rate is expected to escalate in time to come. And there is no guarantee that the maid will make my life easier. She could be my new added stress!
I am at a cross-road now. TOUGH decision to make but I have to make it real quick as the stress of handling both my business and house work is taking a serious toll on me, mentally and physically.
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If you do not need to rely on your online earning to support your daily expenses then you could take it slow and concentrate on being a full time housewife. For me, hiring a full time maid is not my choice since now the cost is so high..I used to be at the rat race in my online business but soon the health problem is taking on me, now I have slowed down since I have got a physical shop here..I can tell you hiring a shop assistant is also another headache. I believe spending more precious time with your kids is still the wise choice.
Hi Shireen, just my 2cents worth. Weigh the cost and benefits – some monetary freedom and an avenue to keep sane from the mundane chores and kids (albeit looks like it can drive you more crazy too) vs quality time with kids, more time for other hobbies, etc.
What about your other Melaleuca biz? Maybe you can concentrate on that so there’s still income and less headache. This is definitely a tough decision and definitely needs input from the hubs and your kids. Giving up your online biz can be sentimental, but don’t do it because of emotions. Maybe put in a clause that will stop such loopholes and potential cheats.
Btw, I paid for my Pinoy around RM11k incl advance just end of last year. Has the rates gone up so much? My sis and I used the same agent and we are happy with our maids, thank God.
Try take a short break and think again. You are in blue and frustrated now, you may make a wrong decision?? Hire a maid isn’t easy too, as 2 of my bosses is maidless now, no choice, can’t get. Although mutual agreed already but the maid never turn out.
I empathize with your situation. IMHO, I always take a step back to see what works best and what is do-able. When I went part-time, the kids knew we could not be eating out or be having treats etc. We managed and actually when they got to high school and wondered if I should go back to full-time, they did not wish that! Guess they got used to having Mum at home, and more importantly be able to drive them places! So, you have to look at that your own situation and decide with your family what will be acceptable. There will be sacrifices, there always is and it is absolutely important kids are aware and not have the idea that their parents or the world owes them. Speaking of hired help, google “Meshael Alayban”. I often wonder how one human being can be so cruel to another.
Hi Shireen, i would recommend for you to hire a Pinoy. It is certainly more expensive but chances of them turning beneficial for you are higher than others. All our lives are short on this earth. We want to treasure our family and live well. Do not sacrifice time with your kids.
Hi Shireen – I am really sorry you had to deal with such a customer. Sometimes, I wonder why if God put people like that in the world to test our patience LOL
Apart from that incident, I believe you enjoy running your online store. Not only do you get a decent income, you get get to work from home.
How about letting the housework slide a little? If I compare the state of cleanliness between our apartments, I’d give yours 5 stars and mine 1.5 stars – seriously! If you focus only on necessary stuff like laundry and washing the plates, you may find things more manageable?
Another alternative is to ask around your neighbourhood for freelance cleaners??? I would rather do that than fork out thousands of ringgit on someone who may become a headache than a help 😉
All the best with your decision!!!
I can totally feel your stress and frustration. Why dont you just take a couple of months of break from your online store and evaluate your situation, find a solution that fit your whole family. I am sure your 3 angels would be thrilled of having thier mummy all by themselves during your break time.
All the best!
oh boy. some of your customers are really crazy, especially the one about missing items 🙁 I think if you don’t need to depend on your biz, then perhaps take a break for a while and see how it goes? or slow down and concentrate on only children’s clothes?