Pro tip: the coffee shop wifi near me died right before a $200 client call

I was sitting at Brew & Bean downtown getting ready for a Zoom with a client who was supposed to sign a $200 retainer. Right as I hit join the wifi went out. Took 10 minutes to get my hotspot working and by then the client had already emailed saying 'let's reschedule'. Still waiting on them to get back to me lol. Has anyone else had a public wifi fail cost them a gig?

3 comments

3 Comments

parker_webb2d ago

I get what you're saying about public wifi being risky, but I honestly think the bigger lesson here is having a backup plan ready before you sit down. Tethering your phone is fine, but checking the signal strength first and knowing where the nearest coffee shop with reliable internet is makes way more sense to me. Once you get burned a couple times you learn to scope out the wifi situation before even opening your laptop.

craig.olivia2d ago

Public wifi is like playing roulette with your paycheck, I learned that lesson the hard way too. Now I always tether my laptop to my phone before I even sit down, just in case the spotty signal gives out mid-sentence. Takes two seconds to set up but saves you from that panicked scramble when the client's already moving on.

hollyscott2d agoOG Member

Feel you on this. Happened to me last month with a big proposal. Still cringe thinking about it.