DEAR HARRIETTE: I am a housecleaner with a great list of clients. I get treated kindly and paid a fair amount. Recently, I took on a home that offered to pay me nearly double my normal rate. I was suspicious of why they pay so much and needed to find help over 20 minutes away, and I found out on my second week, when I was forced to clean up a used feminine hygiene product that was left on the floor.

I am not a squeamish person, but I feel like I am being treated like a lesser being when I go over there. I scrub dog urine and have to deal with snooty looks while I am on my hands and knees.

The money is great, but I feel my confidence waver after every visit. Should I stay at this job? I can’t imagine my employers ever changing. – Scrub-a-Dub-Dub

DEAR SCRUB-A-DUB-DUB: Money is not everything. You must decide what is important to you. If you need extra money in the short term, you may consider working for these people for a limited period of time, after which you leave. Given how you feel when working there, you should not stay long-term. Nothing is worth diminishing your self-esteem.

Since you already have a great client list, ask your current clients if they can make recommendations for additional homes. Chances are, they will refer you to other good people.

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DEAR HARRIETTE: I got chastised for having my phone out on the job a few days ago. After promising I would keep it put away, I got caught again today taking pictures of the sunset. I got bored on the job, but now I am in hot water. There has also been an instance of me asking a customer for her number. I want to change, and this time definitely gave me a wake-up call. Do you think there’s anything I could do to save my job at this point? I really need the money. – Talkin’ to the Boss, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

DEAR TALKIN’ TO THE BOSS: You need to right your ship, so to speak, which requires doing a serious self-assessment. Why are you choosing to make bad decisions that you know are irresponsible? Do some digging to learn what is motivating you. You say that you have been bored, but is that a good enough reason to throw away your work responsibilities?

You have to convince yourself that you can do a better job before anyone else will believe you. Being nonchalant and flippant is not the way to build a career or keep a job. Whether or not you love your job, you say that you need it. What behavior do you think is necessary to keep your job? Make a list of what those behaviors are, and decide if you believe you can do them.

When you go to your boss, apologize for your past behavior. Describe what you believe it will take to keep your job, and offer to commit to doing those things now.

— Lifestylist and author Harriette Cole is president and creative director of Harriette Cole Media. You can send questions to [email protected] or c/o Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.