Top 10 Signs It's Time to Fire a Client
10 Font-twiddling, need I say more?
9 They think everything you do is easy and only takes a minute… because the computer does all the work, don't it?
8 Their taste in design and copywriting was developed after many long years' scholarship… of late-night infomercials for salad spinners and glorified towels.
7 The work you do for them? Totally weird. Not really your thing. Doesn't fit in your description of services, but it just kinda… happened.
6 You're too embarrassed to put their projects in your portfolio.
5 You can draw a clear connection between them, and the increasing size of your therapist's yacht fund.
4 Their brother's cousin's friend's kid knows about computers.
3 You've formed a co-dependent relationship: you're trying to save them, meanwhile, they're doing their damnedest to fail.
2 You feel justified in charging them The Asshole Client Tax.
1 "If you do a good job, there's lots more work where this comes from!"
The Bottom Line
The bottom line? Crazy, angry, disrespectful clients don't help your business. Sure, they pay you (sometimes), but where does that leave you? A few bucks richer, and a couple decades more cynical.
But that's not enough, right? Crazy clients are a taint. Their drama spills over to the point that it affects your good clients and your good work. Bad mojo all around.
Fire 'em.
Ah, but it's not always that easy. Sometimes you gotta fire a nice client whose only crime is to have weird or random work that doesn't fit in your portfolio. Or your vision for the future.
Rule of thumb: Don't want to attract more of that type of work? Say goodbye to the client. You'll be making room for clients & work that'll help you grow.
