Best indicator: it’s Monday morning around 10 a.m. M. How do you feel? Are you excited for the next week or do you find yourself looking at your clock?
What does your case load look like? Are you looking forward to working with each of the clients on their case load? Are you waking up excited about your day or are you seriously considering “calling in sick”?
These are some of the signs that you are working with the wrong clients. It is not that they are wrong or that you are wrong, the fit is wrong. There is a great helping professional somewhere for them and you know what? There are absolutely great clients who are a perfect fit for your business waiting for you to open the door.
Other signs that you’re on the wrong track: You’re not getting the best price for what you do, disconnecting regularly during the work day, or seriously considering throwing in the towel.
And the saddest: your dream job has turned into a nightmare.
Believe it or not, there are people who love their work. Your clients are making amazing progress. They put smiley faces on their checks and send thank you cards with payment.
If you want to stop feeling like all your blood has been replaced by skim milk around Wednesday at 4, it’s time to change your habits.
When you limit your practice to working with clients you love, the first thing you notice is what no longer exists. Suddenly, people are not late (or call) for their appointments. They will not appear. They are not “yes, but …” they are deceiving you. You know what I’m talking about!
You notice that you are not stressed. You are not exhausted. You’re not wondering how you ended up in this conundrum of not having enough clients or the wrong clients or feeling like “this is not what I signed up for!”
Then you notice the good things. Clients who don’t mind paying you what your services are worth … on time! Notice that when you ask them to write something nice for your website, they quickly receive it and are happy to recommend it to others.
And your clients are impressing you with their accomplishments. You find that you are constantly impressed by them.
When you work only with the clients you love, you have a completely different energy. Have you ever noticed that when you do what you love to do, work goes faster? It’s more fun and you’re more innovative and really brilliant. That’s what happens when you work with clients you love. Until you experience it, you can’t know how cool it is!
It may take some time to get out of the fear mindset around selecting clients who are not right for you, but once you do, you will see that your business and life will drastically change for the better.