Yep, there is a lot of self-worth attached to how much you make. Maybe that is something we should fix?
But if it wasn't for a few friends sharing how much they charge for consulting I would never have known it was possible to charge $250/hr (and much more). I would have been stuck charging multiples of the hourly rates I had heard about (Maybe I would have doubled the highest hourly rate I had heard at the time, which was $20 an hour).
I agree, it's a very emotional topic for people. I don't want people to treat me differently if they knew how much I did or didn't make. Things like anonymous polls and glassdoor give you some idea of the market as a whole, but there is a perception of "bragging" if you make more than the other person.
When my friends and I got jobs after going to college, we disclosed how much we were getting as far as offers go. Of course, we were going across the country, and the rates in Atlanta is not the same as New York or San Fran or Seattle. But we also had the same job during college, and knew how much each other made because of that (fixed pay scale for interns).
As a counter to this, my co-workers and I were buying a retirement gift for another co-worker. We had in mind what we were going to get, but on sudden impulse in the store we decided to upgrade the item. It was mentioned that what we had budgeted wouldn't cover the new item, and a co-worker said "it's OK, the boss [also part of this purchase] can handle it, he drives a Mercedes." It's comments like these that make it awkward to share salary information. Outward displays of wealth have no bearing on income, that's simply what they choose to spend their money (or debt) on.
Thank you so much for this! I have clients who can't figure out how to use certain web apps and typing it out just isn't the same as being there in person. This is the next best thing.
You just knew someone was going to come in here pointing out that they knew of a landlord that drafted their lease on the back of a used Kleenex. Well. I stand corrected, then.
What? I didn't say that, at all. I'm just saying there are a ton of cases where landlords don't require leases to be signed. Credit checks and references are less common than leases. I live in Chicago and in a big city like this one, there are many, many different renting situations (not just "Kleenex" ones) and not all of them contractually come in conflict with a renter having someone pay to live in part of an apartment.
I live in Chicago and rented in Chicago for many years and I never saw a lease that hadn't been drafted by a lawyer. Most leases are boilerplate --- let alone rentals without leases. If you're renting an apartment without a lease, something shady is going on.
But look, in the meantime, can we just implicitly narrow the conversation down to the normal case of "renters with actual leases"? This is a stupid tangent. Obviously there are landlords who don't give a shit if people in their buildings convert apartments to hotels, just as there are buildings where the other tenants don't care either.
A rental without a lease? That sounds like a friend renting our a spare bedroom to another friend. I would propose that without a lease, it ceases to be a rental, because neither side has any obligation to the other.
I, like the others in this thread, can only speak to Chicago laws. Here, a verbal lease is a perfectly valid lease, subject to the laws of the city and state (we usually call it "month-to-month"). I wouldn't say it's exactly common, but it's not exactly uncommon either. My last apartment was rented month-to-month for 4+ years (and was a nice apartment with a nice landlord).
In the cases I'm most familiar with, the apartment starts with a lease, and rather than renew the lease specifically, just shifts to a verbal lease, provided the landlord and tenant trust each other. (Were I renting an apartment to someone else, there isn't a chance in hell I would do it without a lease, though.)
I really have to object to the idea that verbal leases are common in Chicago. I think if you set out to find an apartment, an attached house, a carriage house, or a freestanding house today, you'd have a very hard time finding one that didn't have a written lease attached to it.
But obviously this is a tangent. To whatever extent verbal leases are common or not, it's impossible to argue that formal written leases are uncommon. They are the norm.
As someone who uses Facebook messaging for some of these things (not the best solution since the reminders/tasks etc. get lost in other conversational clutter), I think this is a great idea and execution! I would like to see the more practical features expanded on.
For instance, if there's a new todo/reminder/etc. added is there a notification sent out? There could be a problem if one person uses the app updates it a lot and the other doesn't check it as often.
Definitely agree with #2, I spent a little too long trying to click the titles. The "Next Step" button should also be a color other than white so it stands out more.
I think this is an awesome idea, though! Will definitely use it in the future.
This is a problem that needs solving, but the presentation needs more than words. We can all of think of what we would include in a product like this, but they would just be promises until its release. There's nothing to show what the interface, integration, or published content is like.
Also, should you be targeting small circulation publications instead of journalists? I don't think journalists have the power to make decisions regarding publishing tools.
I think the more we talk about it, the more we have to gain. It only hurts bad employers.