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The client who kept adding 'small things' after we agreed on a price
I had this one client last year who would text me every evening with 'just one more quick request' for their painting job. By the time I finished the room, I had put in about 8 extra hours I never charged for (you know, because I felt bad saying no). It finally clicked when my buddy said 'that's not a client, that's a leaky pipe draining your wallet.' Has anyone else dealt with the creeping scope situation where they don't mean to be shady but it still burns you out?
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robin89616d ago
Heard a consultant call that 'scope creep' and it's a real wallet killer.
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Oh man, does this hit home. Ngl, I had a client ask me to 'just touch up the corners' and it turned into repainting half the trim in their house because the paint didn't match. I spent a whole weekend on something I said I'd do for free, and by Monday I was so fried I couldn't even look at a paintbrush. Honestly, the worst part is when they act like you're the unreasonable one for finally putting your foot down.
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samreed16d ago
Oh totally get what you mean about them not meaning to be shady but it still messing with you. @craig.olivia your trim story is giving me flashbacks to my buddy Dave who does landscaping. He had a client who asked if he could "just toss a few extra stones" around the flower bed while he was already there (it was a tiny little rock border, right?). That few extra stones turned into him hauling and placing like 200 pounds of river rock over two days because the client kept saying "oh and maybe a little more over here" every time he finished a section. Dave didnt charge extra either because he thought it would look bad to nickel and dime someone for rocks. He ate dinner off a paper plate for a week to make up for the lost income, which is just sad.
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