Trade Secrets & How To’s

I suppose this is a ‘business rant’…
Do you ask businesses for their trade secrets or their “how to’s”?

For years I’ve had people email me asking me for directions, information, tips on how I do certain things.
Asking me how I design a cake or how to make cupcake cakes, etc.
Now granted, I did just now release an ebook for free on How to Make Cupcake Cakes, but previously that wasn’t info I just gave away for free. I certainly don’t tell anyone how I designed any of my other cakes. I figure they can play around and experiment and figure it out…that’s what I had to do, nobody told me how to do it…I experimented, learned by trial and error and simply did what had to be done to get the results I wanted.

I used to own a dog bakery which I later sold. I wrote an ebook which then got converted into an article, which I sold. It can now be read here for free and lays out some information on how to start a pet bakery. When I had the dog bakery though, people would call and ask for my recipes. Needless to say, I’d tell them to buy the product and not give them my trade secrets!

I’ve also received questions from people requesting the “recipes/mixture combinations” for the shades of makeup I have at Affordable Mineral Makeup. Well, I’m sorry…why would I give that information out for free, when I sell the finished product?

I have a family to support, money to earn thus I own my own businesses and those businesses support us and provide my income.

I have a friend, Jill, who owns Jills Artwork and people contact her regularly asking her to share how she does her painting. Call me silly, but that’s her business, that’s her talent, that’s how she makes money. If you like what she does…pay her to do it! I know I do…because well anyone who knows me, knows I cannot paint! So, guess what… I’m not going to ask Jill to explain to me how to do it…I’m simply going to pay her to do it for me!

Do people not realize that a business is a business…the means of providing for a household, providing finances for that person.
Would they call https://citrusnorth.com/payday-loan-consolidation/ huge corporation and ask them for their ‘secret ingredient’ and actually expect to receive that information?
I doubt it, so why do people do this to small business owners?
And, the worst part is when the person doing the inquiring gets totally irate and goes off the handle calling you mean, selfish, along with other choice names all because you won’t let them know your recipe, your how to’s, your information.
Are people just lazy and/or cheap? or???
Do they not want to invest in ‘learning’ how to do whatever it is they’re requesting information on (be it cake decorating, painting or otherwise)?
Do they not want to invest the time and energy…the learn by trial and error process…that’s how the rest of us learn…by doing and doing it again until it’s right and we have the experience and skills to get the end result we desire.
Do they not want to spend the money to just buy the end item from someone who is skilled in that area?

I just do not get it…
I can’t imagine asking a business owner or business person for them to divulge how they do something or make something.
That thought would never enter my mind.
If I liked what they did, I’d just pay them to do it if I wanted it.

Now, there are times you can give some info for free but you shouldn’t give it all away. Like friends asking how they can convert to organic, vegetarian, vegan, or raw lifestyles as well as stress management…I’ll help with some info to get them started. But that’s a service I also get paid for, a service which I’ve invested time, energy, money into training, certifications, etc. So there is a limit of what can be given away and what you simply should paid for!

So, hey if you want to ask a business how they do something or how they produce their product…that’s up to you but don’t get mad when they either hit delete and don’t respond or tell you that they’re not going to divulge that information.