I’ve only had to do this a handful of times, and I admit I
let it go way too far before I pulled the trigger. But you know what? As my
dear friend Fahim says, you often have to “say no so you can grow.” Hanging on
to those who are a drain and not a boost does harm, both to you and to them. It
harms you by sucking away your time, energy, and zest, and it harms them by
leading them on, hand-feeding them, and not allowing them to leave the nest and
make it on their own.
This world is full of takers—those people who want as much
as they can get for free without putting in the investment of time or resources
that others put in for the same thing. And the world is also full of
abusers—those people who feel that they can treat others disrespectfully or as
if they were less-than in order to make themselves feel more important. Takers
and abusers should never be pandered to, because in doing so you just reinforce
their bad behaviors. Takers can sometimes be given a little more grace in hopes
that they’ll eventually see value and become a client, however abusers must not
be tolerated and need to be fired. Immediately.
Firing a client is like ripping off a bandage—painful, but
necessary. One of our clients recently had to do this to someone who had been
verbally abusive to their staff over an issue that wasn’t actually an issue,
and they put their foot down. They told that person point blank that they’re no
longer permitted to do business at their establishment, as mistreatment and
abuse of their staff will absolutely not be tolerated. I applauded this! It’s
so important to set a standard and to not let those who feel that they can get
away with that type of behavior.
Please note that, when firing a client, just like when
firing a team member, you need to be very clear with the reason why you’re
doing it. It needs to be done with cause and not because of a simple
ideological disagreement, personality clash, or other non-threatening reason. I
want to be very clear that I believe wholeheartedly in businesses who have an
inclusive, welcoming, love-all, serve-all mission. But when a client is being
mean and that meanness crosses over into abuse, then my goodness you need to protect
your staff and your business and get rid of that client. In doing so, be sure
to outline the cause, be specific, and be very clear that you’re well within
your rights to cut them off because of it.
Sometimes firing—or at least putting up a firm boundary—can
and should be more gentle, especially in the case of takers…and especially
especially in the case where those takers may not realize that they’re being
takers. At AYM High Consultants, we’ve been recently having some discussions on
how we make sure we honor our dedicated, paying clients with our best resources
and time. While we want to do our best to accept outreach from others and
potential clients and those who just book an initial 30-minute call but don’t
go further, our managing partners find themselves fielding inquiries and
one-off questions most of the day from those who seem to want free advice but not
commit to our full coaching. So, we had to come up with a kind, polite response
to let them know that we had to limit that contact unless they wanted to sign
up. Here’s what we came up with:
Thank you so much for reaching out. We must
respect our clients who have subscribed to our Monthly Accountability Package
and above by reserving our time and resources for their outreach. We'd love it
if you would join them so we can assist you further! Please check out https://www.aymhigh.com/packages to
see all of our offerings and how we can best be your partner in success.
We’re not outright firing those people, as we do hope
they’ll come on board as true clients and see the value in doing so. Instead, we’re
protecting those who have put their hard-earned resources into an investment
with our coaching, and in turn are finding themselves growing their businesses
exponentially and covering that wise investment again and again. It’s our
responsibility—as limited humans with limited time and limited patience—to be
very careful with those resources, giving them to those who appreciate and
value it the most.
Knowing your worth and your value is so important. We coach
people at AYM High all the time about this very basic concept and guide them to
pricing strategies so they don’t sell themselves short. So many people—and I’ve
been here so often, learning from much experience—consistently and gravely
undervalue their time and expertise. If you are a professional, an expert, a
specialist, or someone with knowledge, skill, and information that’s unique and
specialized, then you have tremendous value.
It's your right and responsibility to put up boundaries for
clients who are being takers, and to outright fire—with cause—those clients who
are being abusive. It’s not fun, but it’s important. Your peace of mind after
it’s done will be well worth it.
…
Marty Johnson is the Communication and Vision Coach at AYM High Consultants, a columnist, and an editor, producing the mail and business center industry's leading magazine, MBC Today. In 2023, he sold his popular and growing brand, Uncle Marty’s Shipping Office, and retired from shopkeeper life to focus on writing and coaching. Subscribe to his Ask Uncle Marty™ newsletter and read more at askunclemarty.com; follow him on socials @askunclemarty. #AskUncleMarty
…
This article was co-published on the AYM High Consultants
blog and on askunclemarty.com on April 12, 2024.
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