I know a few people who've struck out on their own in recent times, one of whom has gotten through the honeymoon phase and has now lost those pretty rose-tinted glasses about being self-employed.
It got me thinking about all the things I detest about doing freelance work (aside from chasing payment, obviously)! Bad clients are rife, especially when you first start out. And as a rookie you often don't know the traps to avoid.
If you've ever freelanced, odds are you've come across your fair share of bad clients. Here's three pet peeves I have that I imagine are pretty much universal:
The client who doesn't actually have a clue what s/he wants
You know the type. Wishy-washy, lots of back and forth over email. Potential clients who won't tell you what they have in mind, are super vague on the details of a project, and ask you for a quote without giving enough information to go on, probably don't know what they want. And clients who don't know what they need are prone to scope creep, blowing out projects way past budget and timeframe.
The cheapskate
There's always a client who wants you to cut them a discount because they're a small startup, or threatens to go elsewhere because they can get the work done for half the price. Whatever the reason for their stinginess, it doesn't bode well for your working relationship.
The needy one
Like a clinging partner, an overly demanding client expects you to be at beck and call, all the time. Last-minute changes and deadline shifts are all to be expected.
The single worst client I ever had ticked all of these boxes. I found myself groaning every time her name popped up in my inbox, and putting off responding to her emails as long as possible. Reluctance to even open emails from someone is a pretty good sign that all is not well. Unfortunately, since this client was a referral from another client - a GOOD one - I was reluctant to cut her loose.
But here's the thing. If you don't value your own time, how can you expect your clients to?