Clients from Hell? If you’re judging, you’re not helping

Hania Sudymont Whitfieldsmall business, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 8 Comments on Clients from Hell? If you’re judging, you’re not helping

[vimeo 44203213 w=500 h=281]

Clients From Hell from ClientsFromHell on Vimeo.

My husband and I were cruising the iPad app “Show You” and ran across this video. We are both self-employed and I must admit, we really thought this was funny. We could so relate.

But then we started discussing that no matter how much it can seem like trying to please a client can sometimes be a no win situation, we have to step back and see the other side. Wear their shoes, as it may be.

People hire you because what you do is not fun for them, nor do the have the time or inclination to learn about it. Not one of my clients ever spends as much time working on social media as I do, so it’s absurd for me to expect them to have the same grasp of it that I have. Same for my husband in his real estate brokerage. We live, eat, drink, sleep and breathe our businesses, right? It’s actually a source of pleasure for us. But not for our clients.

BUT, they know what they want.

They may have no clue how to convey it to you.

They may be embarrassed to expose what they don’t know.

They may have no concept of the amount of work it takes for you to create what they ask for.

But they know what they want. And it is our job to figure that out.

Empathy: understanding of another’s feelings: the ability to identify with and understand somebody else’s feelings or difficulties.

If you get caught up in the means by which a client is conveying their needs, then you have lost focus on the actual need. Stop judging what and how they are talking to you and LISTEN to the needs…
Don’t you expect that from those you hire to help you with what you don’t know?
That said, feel free to share some of your crazy client experiences here in the comments. 😉

8 thoughts on “Clients from Hell? If you’re judging, you’re not helping”

  3. Great information, Hania. I agree that it is so important to realize that the client wants the same thing we do… a successful result from a product or service purchased. I have been on both ends of this scenerio and try my hardest to put myself in my client’s shoes.

  4. Great information, Hania. I agree that it is so important to realize that the client wants the same thing we do… a successful result from a product or service purchased. I have been on both ends of this scenerio and try my hardest to put myself in my client’s shoes.

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