Learning to say no has been one of the hardest challenges I’ve had to face. Case in point – this tweet here 👇🏾
Saying no. Wrote a post about this very thing and why my people pleasing self cost me a great client relationship because instead of just saying no, I thought I could do it all and overcommitted myself. It did not end well and one of my biggest regrets in this freelancer journey.
— Yvette J Haughton | Copywriter 👩🏾💻 (@yvettejwriting) January 13, 2023
I’m a people pleaser through and through. And learning to say no was (ok still to some extent) a challenge and constantly being worked on.
That inability to let down people ensured that I let down a major client of mine in a way that I’m still mad at myself about.
It’s a client I had worked with before on two major projects and I was the lead copywriter. Their clients loved the final product with only a few tweaks here and there. My client even offered me to come in-house (but frankly, their team was working 24/7 and I wasn’t up for that yet).
So, when they came back to me about another major rebranding project that needed copy, I was excited.
They said their usual copywriter was out sick so can I help. OK, no problem (not your first choice …ego check 🤪).
They’re on a tight deadline – I check my calendar, thought I could make the deadline with a bit a tweak here and there, no worries. (That’s the overcommitting part right there).
Your rates are a bit high can we negotiate…😑 On a project that’s behind schedule. That’s gonna put me out. But I wanted to do the project, so I said yes.
And of course, it was too much. I got overwhelmed. And it ended on a sour note.
Lesson learned – just say no.
It’s a work in progress but getting better at it every time I say that word. I’m still learning to say no to projects that aren’t a fit – some are quite easy as I have no experience in the area and I say that up front. Learning to say no to negotiating down my rates especially when it’s a project that I’d love to do.
But best believe I’ve learned my lesson about overcommitting. I say I can’t start until x date, if that’s good, great. If not, then maybe another project, another time. If you’re on a time crunch, even worse I’m not saying yes unless I know I absolutely can.
As Brian Moran and Michael Lennington said in The 12 Week Year – “People would rather you say no than break a promise…It feels so much better to say yes, than no, but while saying no may disappoint in the moment, it is so much better in the long run than being overcommitted and not delivering on your promises. It’s okay to say no; it really is.”
I’ve made a few mistakes over the years. I’m learning to deal with the consequences of them. And I believe I’ve become a little stronger and a better businessperson and individual because of them.
What’s a business mistake you regret to this day?
