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Hot take: The 'always underpromise and overdeliver' advice backfired on me hard
Everyone says to quote more time than you think and then finish early to look good. I tried that with a $200 content writing gig last fall. I told the guy it would take 10 days, finished in 5, and he got suspicious. He thought I either used AI or did a rush job because who finishes 5 days early on purpose? I found a stat on some freelance forum that said 67% of clients actually get annoyed or confused when you deliver way ahead of schedule. They start checking for mistakes or assume you didn't take it seriously. Now I just give realistic timelines and maybe shave off one day tops. Has anyone else had a client freak out over early delivery?
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wyattramirez2mo ago
Nah that 67% number sounds about right honestly. I had a client who I finished a big pressure washing job for two days early and he spent like twenty minutes walking around looking at every single corner of the concrete like he was searching for something wrong. He straight up asked me if I cut corners because nobody wraps up that fast. It made me wish I had just taken my time and showed up on the original date instead.
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danielowens2mo ago
Wait, am I the only one who thinks that stat is actually pretty believable? I've seen the same thing happen with a buddy who does logo design. He turned a logo around in two days instead of a week, and the client started asking if he used a template from some cheap site. It's like people think fast work equals low effort or something. Kinda messed up that you have to pretend to be slower just to make them feel comfortable.
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