Yes! It's Okay to Say No to Clients

by Laurie Mazzarella

Know Your Values and Set Effective Business Boundaries

As every business owner knows, good business management is the foundation of running a business smoothly. What most of you also know is that personal energy management is a prerequisite for running a business (and life) more effectively. Those of us who are responsible for businesses, clients and employees can easily find ourselves in situations where we feel burned out, stressed and not in control of our lives. We may know the basics of living well like eating healthy foods, exercising and getting enough rest. However, I would like to add another factor to the list of basics, and that is boundaries.

Knowing your business boundaries is just as important and healthy as knowing your personal ones. Since many of us are on a 24/7 schedule, managing stress and walking a path of wellness can be a bit of a challenge. We are multitasking masters and dealing with many different types of personalities throughout the day. If we don't know where our boundaries are, it can spell B-U-R-N-O-U-T. There are many ways to say "no” and set a boundary, but first there is a need to determine when and why "no" would be the best practice.

How do you clarify your boundaries? First, take some time to discover those things that you truly value. This will help you know where you need to establish strategies in the structure of your business to avoid conflict. You will have definite parameters that you can work with. After investing some “clarifying your boundaries and values” time, start proactively setting those boundaries professionally. For example, if one of your values has to do with spending evenings with your family, consider taking an action like recording an outgoing phone message explaining to callers that if it is after 8 PM (or whatever time you would like), that you will be returning calls in the morning. And, be sure you follow through.

If you hear clients and employees complain that they are unable to reach you, try what a colleague of mine does. She records a different outgoing phone message each morning telling callers what her schedule of availability is for the day. She told me that her clients and employees were much more forgiving of reaching her voicemail and that callers were more assured that she would definitely be returning their call that day or the next. She dealt with less client and employee stress and found it worth the time it took each day to help her clients and employees feel more secure.

We know that we need to earn income, and that is what makes it hard to say no at times. However, we need to know what our priorities are and how we can honor them to preserve our own wellness and sanity. Taking some time to “know thyself” and institute some guidelines is crucial in any client-demand business. As a former Realtor and Realtor Coach, I know how hard it is to say no to certain clients. I wanted to please, and I needed the money. After running myself ragged, I found I had to find out what my business boundaries were and then fearlessly enforce them. I was a lot less stressed once I was able to do this. I found out that it was perfectly okay to say no to clients!

Comments

[Lorna Omessi]

Yet another inspiring essay!! Love ALL of this month's blog! You are amazing Laurie.....appreciate all of the research you do for your passions.

[Laurie Mazzarella]

I am sooo glad you found the recent blogs inspiring. Of course, THAT inspires me!!