In a recent one-on-one with a potential client, I was doing my best to convince her I was capable of A, B, and C functions. Problem was she wanted D, E, and a smattering of F. We both came to that conclusion at almost the same time. She expressed reservations and then cited the group within her organization I’d be working with. It seemed fine to me until she revealed a very specific, very technical aspect of that group and its needs. I knew I wasn’t the right person. I told her so. She was relieved. Frankly, so was I. It would’ve been awful to take that job only to find out the workload wasn’t what I’d expected or could handle.
Yahoo! hotjobs had an article up yesterday on Making Sure Your Next Job is the Best Fit. While the article’s aimed at job seekers looking for full-time employment, the tips make perfect sense for us freelancers. We go through the hiring process much more often than our full-time counterparts. Understanding when to say when is critical, but most important is knowing when the job won’t fit and when to say so.
I was lucky – it took just five minutes to hear what the client wanted and know I couldn’t deliver. Did it kill me to tell her that? No way. I’d rather leave with my reputation intact than stick a client midway through a critical project. She was left with an impression that I know my limits and I’m not afraid to say so.
Have you ever turned down a job for reasons other than payment? What were the circumstances?
I’ve had to turn down a job once, but unfortunately I wasn’t as quick to realize we weren’t the right fit until I’d taken it on. Granted, after plugging away at it for a couple days, the employer added in some aspects that I wasn’t familiar with and so I had to let him know that I wasn’t the perfect candidate. I never heard back from him after a polite and honest email, so I guess there were hard feelings, but probably not as hard as if I’d just not turned in the assignment or mysteriously disappeared.
Any jobs I’ve turned down (not due to fees) tend to fall in one of four areas: I’m not familiar enough with the industry or subject to be able to do a good job, I have ethical reservations about the product, I think the product has a poor chance of selling, and/or because I get a gut-check that the person is going to be difficult to work with.
Eileen, that last one is a big one for me, too.
Amanda, the employer doesn’t sound like much of an employer to not even respond. You were smart to drop that one.
You know, it also helps with the stress level when we turn down jobs that don’t “fit” us. Less to worry about!