Now, before you jump to conclusions about the client, let me just say that I LOVE this client. Not only have we been friends for a while, but when she became a client, I've been honored to help her start and grow her new business.
The reason why I issued a refund lies completely with me.
A couple of months ago, we were talking about a service she needed that not only could I do for her, but at the time, didn't mind doing. It wasn't part of my core business (coaching, speaking, consulting), and it wasn't what got my juices flowing, or a service that I would want to expand to other clients. It was just something I thought would be fun to work on, add value to my client, and help her move forward in this particular area of her business.
But after a couple of months of working on this special project, I began to feel stressed about it. Because it wasn't a part of my core expertise, everything took longer than anticipated. Because it wasn't what got my juices flowing - the sweet spot of my business - I would hesitate to work on it or put it off until all of my other projects were done.
The results?
I became frustrated, stressed, and angry - with myself. What seemed like a good idea at the time had turned into a nightmare. And last night, I decided to face the truth. I didn't have the time, energy, or the real expertise to continue with the project.
Has that ever happened to you? You started something with good intentions, but somehow, it got way off track? You soon realized:
- I really don't have time for this.
- This isn't fitting in with my overall goals.
- This isn't serving me or my client.
- This isn't turning out like I thought it would.
- I don't have the skills, tools, or expertise to really do it justice.
- I just need to let go and move on.
Is this happening to you right now? Do you have a client, an organization, a project, a committee...anything...that you've now realized is not where you need to be spending your time, giving your effort, or exerting your energy? If yes, you should consider taking a deep breath and letting them know. Once you do, you will feel an incredible sense of relief and freedom.
I made that call last night.
She completely understood - and while we won't be working on THAT project together, she's still a coaching client and moving forward, doing incredible things in her business.
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RADICAL Success Coach Doreen Rainey helps her clients take charge of their professional and personal life. She is the founder of the Get RADICAL Women's Conference with Jillian Michaels and Niecy Nash taking place on March 26th in Washington, DC. For more information about the 2011 conference, visit the website. Registration is now open!
Doreen,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your experience. It goes to show that we really need to find what gets our juices flowing, whether it's with business or in our personal lives. I've been learning to let a lot of things go as you did with this project and it opens so many other doors. Especially when you come to the realization that you were stressed about it -- it's not worth it.
Sandy
WOW! How ironic that I just had an hour long conversation with a client who was stressing about trying to stick with a project that had taken over her life. She had completely underestimated the amount of time and focus that would be required to make this commitment work. In the end, she decided to let it go. Now she can focus on the most important aspects of her life. She can always return to that project later on when there's time to see it thru to completion. We all should realize that there is nothing wrong with facing the truth and changing courses when we clearly see that what we're doing isn't working.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing D,
Wandaful
Sandy - you are so right! It just wasn't worth it any longer!
ReplyDeleteWandaful - changing course should always be considered, especially based on what your client was going through!