A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement.
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano classic slop & swap tactic
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano A very telling case. A lot of companies today confuse automation with completely replacing expertise. AI is great for speeding up processes, but responsibility and understanding the business context still remain with people
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano I work with a band under the Frequency Fault umbrella (audio engineer). We all hate AI and refuse to even touch it willfully. I am Pro Tools (it's a digital audio workstation) certified and they add all these partnerships with AI "solutions" as bloat and I'm like "bitches, I can edit using key strokes faster than AI can figure out what's even going on, fuck off".
I refuse to work with any artist who uses AI in their creative process in any way. Period. I'd rather go broke. Lol
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@stefano I work with a band under the Frequency Fault umbrella (audio engineer). We all hate AI and refuse to even touch it willfully. I am Pro Tools (it's a digital audio workstation) certified and they add all these partnerships with AI "solutions" as bloat and I'm like "bitches, I can edit using key strokes faster than AI can figure out what's even going on, fuck off".
I refuse to work with any artist who uses AI in their creative process in any way. Period. I'd rather go broke. Lol
The reality is that at a certain point you need knobs and sliders, or numerical control, the prompt interface might be good to draft an idea, but it can't give you control. Eventually they will accept to make GenAI tools that produce parametric output, otherwise any professional will gradually stop to use them after the initial curiosity.
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@thehole I'm waiting for it...
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano Oh I forgot, and I offer bespoke wordpress hosting (have done for years) and the amount of AI wrong answers for WP are truly astounding....
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@stefano it's a sad trend that companies believe a LLM is a consultant in a box
It is actually awful.
Same goes when you are in a group chat and you are asking for advice (on where to find certain things) or recommendations... and there is (always) one that thinks it is the best idea to ask AI...
When you tell them that you prefer to use human intelligence and know-how, they tell you "sorry for trying to help". It is so cringe!
Btw, AI's answers is wrong anyway.
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@stefano back when I was consulting I had two rates, one for going with me first, a higher one for going with someone cheaper and then coming back to me to fix it.
I was very clear and transparent and up front with potential customers on any first sales call. Some came back and paid the rate and turned into great customers, some didn't and I'm happy for both outcomes.
My go-to quote was "If you think hiring a professional is expensive, wait until you hire an amateur." (Red Adair)
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200 is not much to be honest.
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200 is not much to be honest.
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I just think that if the extent of the damage is great, and with the work that needs to be done to repair, well he should ask for more.
And the lack of trust that is now appearing too.
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano This incentivizes similar behavior for the future. Don't revert to the original agreement, charge a penalty.
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano So the schmucks basically stole your pay to fund their AI tomfoolery.
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano similar to my experience over the past few years. I've had clients stop paying me entirely because they switched to using LLM-generated code 100% for their products. I've also helped train client employees on some of my skills and shortly afterwards been fired.
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@stefano similar to my experience over the past few years. I've had clients stop paying me entirely because they switched to using LLM-generated code 100% for their products. I've also helped train client employees on some of my skills and shortly afterwards been fired.
@fast_code_r_us @stefano i'm incredibly sorry to hear that
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano re the edit: Holy crap they're deep in the tunnel XD
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano OMG. The edit is blowing me away. You have my respect for ditching them.
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A few months ago, a client asked me to shave about €200 a month off our agreement. "We’re trying to cut back on expenses", he said, "to boost our cash flow." I was hesitant, but hey, I agreed.
Fast forward to this morning: one of his team members calls me asking for help because - and I quote - "both Claude and ChatGPT are giving me answers that just don't feel right."
I asked for a little context, only to find out they had upgraded to the top-tier plans for both AIs so they could "solve problems on their own without bothering me."
So, I dropped my client a line: we either revert to our original agreement, or we wrap up this collaboration effective immediately.
Asking me for a discount just to throw far more money at AI subscriptions - only to call me anyway when the bots fail - is, to say the least, a slap (or slop?) in the face.
@stefano
Chatbots are only as good as the people who creates them, a great chef makes - creates great food, a mediocre chef makes - creates mediocre food
It is in the code, in the program, I might be wrong, but make Chatbots can't so far go outside their code and the few that might do so if any of them do, probably go crazy, the code that is where it is at, the code, if you don't code right, you got trash and even if you do code right, the Chatbot might no go outside the code
this!
