Chore charts and bratty kids

I was recently asked by a very close friend of mine how to get the kids to do more work around the house.........................not an easy task. Unfortunately when you're a busy mom such as myself, the problem is not actually motivating the kids to do something, but to sit yourself down and make up a chore chart.
To expect kids to do chores without such a chart, in my experience, is unrealistic. Not only that, but the kids in my house actually like chore charts. I go through phases of procrastination when one chart has kind of phased out, and I know that it's time to make a new one, but find it bothersome to actually sit down and plan it out. (I had one stored on a computer somewhere, but the kids caused the computer to crash and it mysteriously disappeared). Finally when I get off of my butt and get it done, life gets simpler (table is set, cleared, and dishes put away without my help), and I wonder why I didn't do it sooner.
Incentive is important. We all work for money, and kids want a payoff as well. In my house it's $5 a week, but it can be something as simple as a trip to 7-11 at the end of the week when the kids are younger. Once you have kids aged 10 and up the rewards have to increase unfortunately.
I've heard alot of people say that they don't believe in rewarding kids for household chores.............that it's a family responsibility that shouldn't require a payoff. I agree, but haven't really found this to be a good enough motivator. I find alot of parenting to be about incentive..................................that's what the work world is all about, right?

Another issue brought to my attention this week is how to deal with a friend that has really bratty kids. I've had this occur on numerous occasions, and it's very frustrating. At one point I made the assumption that I couldn't possibly have anything in common with a mom that didn't seem to know how to discipline her kids. Well............................was I wrong! One of my best friends, when her kids were younger, seemed to be completely oblivious to the fact that her kids were continually bouncing off the wall during our visits.
In my opinion, you must first decide how important your friendship with the mom is. If it is important to you, you need to start arranging to meet without kids - coffee in the evening or on the weekend. We all have priorities when it comes to parenting. I now believe that just because you don't respect someones parenting skills, doesn't mean you can't respect them in all other aspects of their lives, and end up having a great relationship with them.