Guest author Noah Coffey shares some of his insights below on occasionally walking away from paying work. Like me, Noah is a developer in the Indianapolis area. Unlike most of the people I end up rubbing elbows with in the blogosphere, I’ve actually been in the same room with and shook hands with this guy.

Those of you new to freelancing may find the topic of this post foreign territory. Similarly, in my recent past, the idea of telling a client “no” was not something I was keen on doing. After all, I’m doing all this freelance work to make money, right? Why on Earth would I want to turn down more money and business? As I have learned in the past year, there can sometimes be several compelling reasons to just say no.

“How hard would it be to…”
These words still send shivers down my spine. The question itself, when asked by a current or potential client, is already stacked against you. Typically, the client either has a preconceived notion that what he is asking is not very difficult and/or they want to try and squeeze the addition in at little or no extra cost. If your entire project starts with these words, it is an automatic red flag.

Know Your Limits
I will be the first to tell you that sometimes in order to catch a break and land a large, lucrative job, you need to stretch your abilities a little. Most successful entrepreneurs are where they are today because they charged head-first into a big, risky project only having about half the ability they needed. There is nothing wrong with this, so long as you are prepared to fail. Failing is not bad. Failing builds character and teaches you things you would never learn otherwise. I am a far better designer/developer/entrepreneur/person with each failure.

There are two important things you need to do before charging in to that next big project. First, do the math–especially if you are a part-time freelancer. How much extra time/money/resources/stress is it going to take to finish the job? Do you have enough of each of those to make it to the end? If not, perhaps you should rethink your options.

The second, should you decide to go forward, is to hedge your bets. Reduce your risk. Get in touch with your contacts/peers that are strong in the areas you are weak. Tell them what you are doing. Ask them if you can lean on them in a crunch. And, most importantly, pay them well for their help. Not only will you improve your chances of getting your big job completed, but you’ll strengthen your contacts and probably drum up future business through those relationships.

Wrong Client
Often times, projects can turn into nightmares because the client is just wrong for you. Often times, extended family can make for some of the worst clients to deal with. Anytime you involve money and family, disaster is usually right around the corner. You will end up spending more time, making less money, and dealing with more stress than any other client you have. Unfortunately, this is one lesson most will just have to learn the hard way as it is sometimes impossible to avoid.

Sometimes you and your business are much better off turning a client or project down. What may seem like a wasted opportunity in the short run often times will work to your advantage in reduced stress, better projects, and a sense of control in your freelancing life. If you find yourself in a situation where you simply can’t afford to turn down a project, keeping these points in mind may help you better prepare for potential problems.

Noah Coffey is a part-time freelancer specializing in web design and development for small to medium size projects and organizations. He is also actively organizing Indiana’s first blogging conference in August called blogINDIANA 2008. You can read more about Noah and his life as a part-time freelancer at NoahCoffey.com.

filed under: Imported Wisdom