How to let go of potential clients

When pursuing a contracting or consulting opportunity, you need to be persistent, but you also need to know when to let go.

A few years ago I was pursuing a contract. I had been emailing the decision maker. We wanted to do a meeting to get things started. I’d be taking care of some of the “behind the scenes” tasks to allow their development to accelerate. There seemed to be enthusiasm on both sides, but the meeting kept getting rescheduled. Eventually, emails I sent about the meeting were not returned.

Now, everyone gets busy or distracted; I understand that. But if someone has a hard time returning emails when they are excited about the new work with which you are going to help them, how are they going to be when you are asking them about an unpaid invoice, or for crucial guidance on a technical decision? 

Perhaps they’d be responsive, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

So, I sent a note along these lines:

It seems like you aren’t really in a place to meet with me and discuss this work. No worries–I imagine you have many tasks pulling you in different directions.

While I’d love to work with you, I’ve learned clients who don’t have bandwidth are not good working arrangements for me nor for the clients–while I am self directed, there are times when I’ll need some level of feedback, if only to make sure I’m spending my time and your money correctly.

Please feel free to reach out to me if/when you have time and want to re-focus on this work.

Salient points to note:

• no blame–we’re all busy and the ability to juggle work priorities is one reason why folks use contractors.
• closure of this conversation frees me up to pursue other opportunities and them to focus on what they are working on (or perhaps to find another contractor, if that’s a better fit).
• but, I leave the door open, so that if there’s an opportunity to work together in the future, it isn't awkward, just a re-engagement.

I know, it can be hard to let go of a prospective client after you’ve put significant time into learning their problems, but it’s better to let go than continue to try to engage with a client who is either not committed or is committed but doesn’t have the bandwidth to help you help them.

A modified version of this post was originally published at https://www.mooreds.com/wordpress/archives/2284