Earlier this week, a member of the Resourceful Designer Community was seeking advice. A potential client contacted her asking if she designs book covers, which she does. Before replying to this unknown person, she decided to investigate who they were. She discovered that this potential client is an author. And the subject they write about is something the design is strongly against. The Community member wanted our advice on how to proceed. Should she turn down the client, or should she wait to hear more about the project before deciding? As always, when someone asks a question in the Community, she received lots of great advice. The consensus was she should hear them out before deciding what to do. After all, their new book might not have anything to do with the subject of their previous books. But this posed a bigger question. What reasons are there to turn down a lucrative design project? In episode 133 of Resourceful Designer, I shared 12 Red Flags For Spotting Bad Design Clients. Most of those Red Flags only become visible after you’ve started working with a client. Stuff such as the client being rude to you or inconsistent communication. In the episode after that one, episode 134, I shared ways to turn away clients politely. It included sample scripts you can copy and paste for yourself. You may want to refer to that episode after you’ve finished listening to this one. Some of those scripts apply to today’s topic. It’s one thing to spot the red flags once you’ve started working with a client. But how can you avoid ever working with them in the first place? And why would you want to turn them down? After all, we’re in this business to make money. And when you’re first starting, it may seem like a foreign concept to turn down a paying gig. What I can tell you is that after 30+ years of working with design clients, knowing when a client isn’t a good fit and how to turn them down becomes a top priority whenever you meet a potential new client. You’re better off putting your time and energy into finding better clients to work with. If you’re a long-time follower of Resourceful Designer, you’ve heard me many times before say that you don’t work for your clients. You work with them. You need to consider every client relationship as a partnership. At least for the duration of the project. That may be only a couple of days or weeks. But it could also turn into something much longer. So you need to ask yourself every time you meet a potential new client. Is this someone I would like to partner with, yes or no? Reasons why you shouldn’t work with a client. There are many reasons why you shouldn't work with a client. Some of them are nefarious reasons. They want you to do the work for “exposure.” They have an unreasonable deadline they want you to meet. They undervalue you and want to pay below your regular rate. They’re unclear of exactly what they want or need. They’re asking you to do something unethical or illegal. They’re not comfortable signing a contract. There could also be legitimate reasons for not working with a client. These reasons have nothing to do with the client persé and more with you. You have current obligations to existing clients and don’t have time for this new project. The project they’re asking you to design conflicts with your values. The services you offer are not a good fit for their project. Their budget is too small. All good reasons to turn down a client. But, ultimately, the biggest contributing factor to whether or not you should work with a client is your gut. Trust your gut. It’s seldom wrong. Mike, a founding member of the Resourceful Designer Community, gave the best answer to the original question. Whenever Mike finds himself in a situation where he’s uncertain about a potential client, he asks himself three questions. 1. Am I giving up anything that I am more passionate about or that would be more profitable if I choose to take on this new project? Think about that. Any time you say yes to s