10 Deadly Words that Should Send Any Self-Respecting Marketing Wonk Running for the Hills

“Well, I just don’t have time to do it myself”

Over the last three years I’ve been freelancing I’ve learned some hard lessons about how to work with clients, just what the heck “Professional” means and how to make a decent live as an Indie Pro without sacrificing my ethics, my passions or my almost pathological need to take languid naps on Tuesday afternoons.

But the biggest lesson I learned is this one:
If you ever sit down with a client to kick off a project–and I don’t care if you’re a house cleaner or a high-priced consultant–and during the course of your conversation they say “Well, I just don’t have time to do it myself” pack up your bag, tip your hat, wish them luck and dash like the road runner out of their as quick as you can.

Why?

Because those ten little words say volumes.

They say “I see the work you do as a simple commodity that I could certainly do if I ‘Just had the time,’ not as a hard-earned and valuable skill that should be left to a qualified pro;”

They say “I’m going to nitpick, second guess and micromanage every single thing you do;”

They say “I’m going to wince, howl and raise my eyebrows at your prices, no matter how reasonable they might be;”

And, most importantly, they say “I’m not a client you’re going to enjoy working with, and isn’t enjoying what you do the whole point of running your own business?”

Now, of course I learned this one the hard way–and regretted every moment I spent working on that project.

So be smart, my friends. Be smarter than me. And know when to run.

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