It’s a habit of fledging businesses to declare their target market as anyone who requires their services and has the means to pay for them.
They want momentum. They want stability. They want success. And founders think the best means to achieve these things is to accept any and all offers sent their way.
Then comes the day they realise that doesn’t work.
It’s the day they realise that they’ve left their vision at the starting line, and are now doing the kind of work they started their own business to avoid. In the process, they’ve also lost their passion, their pride, and their dedication. They hate the job they’re doing, and they start thinking about giving it all up and moving on.
Don’t fall into this trap. Some may tell you that building a successful company always starts out this way, but they’re wrong. Some businesses may escape the pitfall, but many others will not. Do you know which ones are certain to avoid a reputation as generic though? The ones that know who they want to attract, who know what they are capable of, and attract those clients as a result.
There will always be needs you can’t meet, services you can’t offer. If a client requests them, send them to someone who can. It’s not your concern. What is your concern is spending all that precious time you would have been stressing and raging about taking on another project you don’t really want on the clients who need what you can give. These are the people you must love, respect, and dedicate your ability to.
Of course, that doesn’t mean just saying no. The key to rejecting a client is being clear, honest, and offering a realistic alternative. They probably won’t be happy about it, but we don’t build our tribes by trying to be friends with everyone.
Now go, and build your own damn business instead of letting others decide how it should be built for you.