Inspired by a post from @DanaNedelcu I’ve decided to start a thread of “The Biggest Mistake I Made With My First Sit”. I think it will both make new sitters feel better about having made similar mistakes and help future sitters - not make those mistakes!
My biggest mistake was taking the first sit that I was offered - which was a long one. As a newbie I was so nervous that no homeowner would want me since I didn’t have reviews yet, that another sitter would take the good sits before I could - on and on and on with the crazy voices in my head. So when a homeowner invited me to sit, I couldn’t have been more thrilled! It was a four week sit, too, but not in a great location. And the communication from the homeowner was - bad. But I had nothing to compare it to and accepted the sit immediately because I was so excited to be offered my first confirmed sit. The start date was several months away.
I soon came to regret it. SO many opportunities opened up for those same dates, in locations that were of far more interest to me, with animals and responsibilities that were a much better fit for my lifestyle. But I couldn’t accept those, since I had already committed to the four-week sit.
In the meantime I got plenty of shorter sits with homeowners who were wonderful communicators, and quickly realized what a dud I had gotten with the first acceptance. I wanted to cancel the sit but didn’t want to start out my THS time with - a cancellation. To this day, years later, I have never canceled a confirmed sit.
But I do check my enthusiasm at the door, and I never accept a sit if there is any time pressure whatsoever - especially time pressure created by me, in my head. Instead I map out my year, the experiences I want to have, and create a “saved search” to look for sits that match those experiences. It feels like magic when I decide, “Well I’d like to spend 6 weeks in Montana” - and darned if a six week sit in Montana doesn’t appear. And if six weeks in Austin appear instead, and seem enticing, I remind myself that what I want is six weeks in Montana. And I wait. Sometimes four weeks in Montana appear. And that is a darned sight better than six weeks in Austin if Austin is not where I want to be.
Any time in Montana would be more enjoyable than the four weeks I spent in the middle of nowhere looking after five cats with a poorly written welcome guide and lots of unspoken expectations from the homeowners. It all worked out fine, the cats were fine, the owners left me a great review. But I wouldn’t do it again!
So my advice to new sitters is twofold: Think twice about the first sit you are offered (regardless of whether you applied or were invited), and never, EVER take a sit longer than two weeks until you’ve had at least a few shorter sits under your belt to get the lay of the land.
How about the rest of you sitters out there: What is the biggest mistake you made on your first sit, and what do you do differently now as a result?
(stock image added by Forum team)