Grass and Growth

In middle school, I cut grass for some people who paid me. I didn’t know the going rates for grass cutting, so I just accepted what they offered. An older neighbor lady paid me $5 for cutting her grass, which took me about an hour. The minimum wage was under $5/hr, so I thought I was doing well. My grandma would pay me $10 for cutting grass for about 30 minutes, but I’m sure she wanted to be generous to her grandson.

A neighbor with a big yard asked if I would cut his grass, and it took me more than two and a half hours to finish with no established price. After cutting the grass, he asked me what he owed me, and I said, “I don’t know.” In the short exchange, he said, “You just tell me what I owe you. If you say $100, I’ll pay you $100. You just need to let me know.” $100 was a tremendous amount of money to me, and I wondered if he was serious, if he would really pay me that much money if I asked him to. I ended up sharing a little of what other people have paid me, and he offered me $20 but added that if I changed my mind, he would pay me more. I thanked him and rode my bike for the 20 minutes it took to return home, thinking about the exchange.

When I got home, I told my dad what my neighbor had offered and asked if he would have given me $100 if I had asked him to. My dad smiled and responded, “Yes, I’m sure he would. But I doubt he would ever ask you to cut his grass again.”

For me, this was not a lesson on economics but rather on how to treat people. If it was an economics lesson, I failed because it would take me five trips to make that $100 he offered. But then again, maybe my reputation afforded me additional opportunities in the future for trying to be even rather than eager. While I have been disappointed at times for not having better financial skills, I have not regretted treating people well.

This is a story that has shaped me. What stories have shaped you?