20 min listen
Saying NO. How to turn down work from 'red flag' clients
Saying NO. How to turn down work from 'red flag' clients
ratings:
Length:
21 minutes
Released:
Nov 28, 2019
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
This week Frankie Tortora and Steve Folland have a chat in response to a CORKER of a question from 'Detective Harper MacCleod' aka Anonymous. S/he says:“Can we have the 'turning-down work’ conversation?I've reached the stage where I can (to some extent) pick and choose my work. However, I’m a people pleaser and still find it difficult to say no.For argument's sake, let's just say my job involves drawing things. Mostly houses.(But I’m happy to be a ‘detective’ if you insist).Even when you’re desperate for work, let’s face it, there are projects that are more trouble than they’re worth. Even worse, some projects could end up costing you money or be professionally disastrous.I’ll give you a recent scenario. I was speaking to a potential client on the phone and all these red flags were popping up. The project was ultra boring and would eat into my capacity for more interesting projects. The client was awkward, querying the relevance of my questions etc. I was trying to suggest that another professional would be better suited to their project. Then they dropped the bombshell...‘But you’re doing work for my friend, aren’t you?” As it turns out, yes I am doing work for their friend. But their friend is lovely and their project is really interesting.So here’s the question:When you get an enquiry and you just get a bad feeling about the work or the client...how do you turn down the project without damaging your reputation?I'm loathed to do things that some industries appear to do, for example:Give a silly big quote to scare them off – ‘Don’t bother speaking to this detective, they’re far too expensive’Ghost them – ‘Don’t bother contacting this detective, they never got back to me’Tell them you’re too busy etc – ‘Don’t bother contacting this detective, they’re far too busy’What you really want is, ‘You should give this detective a call. They were lovely on the phone and made some great suggestions, but ultimately couldn’t help me. They may be able to help you.’Frankie, Steve… your thoughts and potty-mouthed ramblings would be much appreciated”What would your advice be? Let us know your thoughts using #DIFTKpodcast on Twitter and Instagram, and join in the conversation via the DIFTK Community on Facebook.•••Frankie Tortora's websiteSteve Folland's websiteSteve's podcast - Being FreelanceDoing It For The Kids websiteDIFTK Facebook CommunityDIFTK InstagramDIFTK TwitterSupport DIFTK on Ko-Fi
Released:
Nov 28, 2019
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Freelance friction. When working evenings and weekends eats into 'family time': This week Frankie Tortora and Steve Folland have a chat in response to a CORKER of a question from 'Detective Grace Ace' aka Anonymous. She says: “Looking for a pep talk please! I have just changed from a fixed hours contract (22 hours/week) to setting up on my own in a different field. My husband and I have two preschool children and I have always been responsible for childcare. They are in playschool four days a week so I have 20 hours a week of regular work hours. With two kiddos, inevitable illness, appointments and holidays, it always falls to me to reduce my hours to pick up the slack. When I was working fixed hours and needed to make up time in the evenings or at weekends it was fine. But now I can set my own hours, my husband asks me not to work evenings or weekends as it eats into family time. All the while wondering when I will start earning money... I have tried explaining what the childcare by Doing It For The Kids