We’ve all heard the saying that the “Customer is always right”. However, sometimes they are very wrong. Especially when it comes to what we call “scope creep”. This is when the customer is wanting you do to something extra that is not within the contract and skip all the necessary steps like an addendum, or a new agreement and an increase in pricing for the additional work. In the past I thought, “It’s ok. It’s just a small change. It won’t take me too long.”, but it always turned out to be the opposite. I didn’t want to upset my customers but I didn’t realize I was positioning myself to be taken advantage of. One “small” request always led to another and it began to come with a sense of entitlement. This is not a fun position to put yourself in and it becomes quite stressful. I had to start using the powerful little, two letter word “NO”. Of course I say it in a nice way, but I also stand firm on it.
Saying “no” and refusing to give in to scope creep helps to keep things professional and prevents me from feeling burned out. The first time I did this, I did get a little push back. I even cringed a bit when I said it, but that’s because both myself and my client had gotten used to me always saying yes. I had to be confident that saying “no” would not cause me to loose a client, and if for some reason it did, I had to be confident that it was not because I had done the wrong thing. I had fulfilled my contractual obligation to the best of my ability and delivered quality work, and had no reason to fill like I had done anything wrong. The client was not initial happy with my “no”, but the client then had a good understanding of where I stood with my policies and knew that there would be no other option but to respect them.
I had to be confident that saying “no” would not cause me to loose a client, and if for some reason it did, I had to be confident that it was not because I had done the wrong thing.
As Kingdom entrepreneurs and business owners, sometimes we feel like we have to give things away or provide services at a discount, and feel guilty when we don’t. This is not the way God wants us to operate our businesses. We can be humble, compassionate, caring and loving without allowing ourselves to be taken advantage of. If you find it hard to say no, make sure you put policies in place that say no for you before the question is asked. This will not always prevent people from asking, but you will have a point of reference when the questions begin to rise.
Additionally, you have to know your worth. God has given you the ability to create wealth through your business, and you can’t accomplish this if you constantly give into scope creep. If you feel compelled to give additional services at no cost then do so, but just know that you can be a blessing whether you choose to do so or not. Your services were created to fulfill a need with excellency and that alone is a true blessing to your clients.
Stephanie
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stephanie@smaysdesigns.com
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