The art of saying no to freelance work

Posted on Jun 07th 2021



When to say no to freelance work?

Deciding when to say no is a significant obligation but, on the other hand, is an expertise that you need to learn if you want to develop and survive as a freelancer. 

Some reasons and situations might make you take the decision. Here are the most well-known situations where you should say no.

1. Say no to customers who continually change the scope of work 

This can be one of the most awful and too often experienced customer behaviors. Negotiate first precisely how long you are hoping to put in for a customer and clarify that additional time costs extra.

2. Say no to customers who are looking over your shoulder 

Some customers think they can manage your work better than you. They examine and argue over every detail, making you wonder why they employed somebody in any case. With all the time that goes into correspondence, clarifying, and discussions, you will probably wind up doing twice the amount of work. So, say no ASAP.

3. Say no to customers who demand quantity over quality 

These customers will not regard your work or your ideas – they need many terrible quality services delivered rapidly. There is no joy and little worth in the work of this kind.

4. Say no to projects which pay far below your standard hourly rate 

Regardless of whether the client guarantees long-term relations, it is still a reason for significant concern. Most importantly, you need to grow and not reduce your standard hourly rate and benefits. Besides, the guarantees of building an enduring relationship with a customer by doing projects for low rates end up being empty.

5. Say no to work, which is embarrassing to put in your portfolio 

If a project is something that you are not willing to share with your customers, what is the point of doing it? It presumably doesn't compensate pretty; it isn't something you will appreciate and won't assist you with grow or add to your range of abilities. There is plenty of fish in the ocean – be confident enough in your range of abilities to get rid of the bad ones.