Barbara has made some very good points about being asked for advice, to train people for the exam, etc. Personally, I think it's very smart of Chele Marmet to charge LCs who call for help--she is a pioneer, has developed a huge amount of knowledge and expertise, and because she's well-known, could easily be on the phone with rookie (and not-so-rookie) LCs from all over the world all day, everyday. If that happens, she at least should earn something from it. I am not willing to work with people extensively to train them for the exam, for example, because my time is valuable. When I got a few inquiries about preparing for the exam, I put on a course, through the local college--30 hours over 10 weeks. I didn't bill it as exam prep but it would certainly have been helpful to anyone starting on the road to the exam. It was a great experience, I got to know many of the public health nurses from around here (because they were the ones who signed up), and we may get an breastfeeding interest group started as a result. I didn't resent the time I was spending because I was getting paid, and the people who paid knew they could expect a quality course. When I don't pay someone for their professional service, I feel like I'm imposing and tend to spend much less time with them. I'd rather pay for a proper consultation (like the fitness person I worked with today who is also a friend--I insisted on paying) and know I'm not "using" someone. On the other hand, I do a lot of freebie phone help with the local public health nurses and I don't mind that a bit. If it became a situation where I was on the phone for hours a day with them, I'd need to look at handling it differently, but it's not like that yet. I'm probably like most of the rest of you and do a LOT of volunteer work. I don't care to do it in my chosen field, unless it's for board or committee work where I'm working with colleagues to promote the profession. I'm trying to earn a living at this (next to impossible...) and I need to choose where to volunteer my time! OK, off my soapbox and off to swimming. Leslie Ayre-Jaschke, BEd, IBCLC Peace River Breastfeeding Clinic Peace River Alberta, Canada