I also, and this is the part I have turned over many times, did not feel the satisfaction I’d expected to feel in this conversation. I’d expected something clarifying. What I got was exhaustion. Not the tired of hard work. The tired of a situation that required me to be precise and firm with my own father about the basic terms of my labor.
Tired, and also clear. The clarity was worth the tiredness.
I sent a scope and rate by Friday. The rate was industry standard for logistics consulting in our region. The scope was limited: eight sessions over six weeks, focused on the Alder account transition plan and preparation for the service review.
Victor came back and said the rate was higher than expected.
I said the rate was what it was.
He said he’d need to think about it.
He came back two days later and said they’d like to proceed. He asked if I could start the following week.
I told him that my availability was limited and gave him the dates I had open. I told him that my system access had been revoked and would need to be restored on a scope-limited basis if I was working with account files. I told him that anything I produced for them in this consulting capacity would be their property but that my professional knowledge and experience were mine.
He agreed to everything, which told me the Alder situation was more serious than he’d initially let on.