People love to say, “just set better boundaries” when you’re dealing with problem clients. But what if I told you those problem clients might actually be your brand’s fault?
Because no client thinks they’re a problem client. They assume they’re the perfect fit based on how you presented yourself. And if your messaging is fuzzy, they’re filling in the blanks with their own assumptions, which rarely works in your favor.
In this episode, I’m breaking down why being booked out doesn’t mean anything if every client on your roster has you fantasizing about a career change, and what you need to shift in your brand to start attracting clients who light you the hell up instead of draining you dry.
🎧 Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
Boundaries Are the Seatbelt, But Your Brand Is the Guardrail
Think about it like this: boundaries are a seatbelt. They only kick in after something goes sideways.
When a client says “just one more revision,” even though the project is wrapped and paid for. When somebody starts texting you at 10 PM and expects a response. When scope creep kicks in and suddenly you’re doing work you never agreed to.
That’s when boundaries protect you.
But boundaries are reactive. They only matter once the wrong-fit client is already in the room.
Your brand acts as the guardrail on the side of the mountain that keeps cars from swerving into your lane in the first place. It keeps you from flying off the cliff.
Your brand is stopping these issues from happening before they become issues.
And God forbid something slips through the cracks and an accident still happens? That seatbelt (that boundary) is gonna keep you locked in.
No One Thinks They’re a Problem Client
No client in the world thinks they are a problem client. They just assume they’re the perfect fit because of how you presented yourself.
This is how you end up booked out with projects you never wanted, in industries you swore you’d avoid, and with clients who make you want to throw your laptop out a freaking window.
This happens because when your brand is saying things that are super vague or applicable to anybody, then anybody is going to answer the call.
If you’re saying “I help small business owners” but in reality you’re thinking “I really want to work with mom-and-pop shops that are family-owned — like delis and little stores and restaurants that are passed down generations,” then John the plumber is technically also a small business owner. So is Sally the pet groomer and Arnold the landscaper.
And if you’re somebody who’s just taking clients as they come because money is good money, then you’re going to say yes and later regret it.
But when your brand is crystal clear about who you’re for and how you work, the wrong people will quietly bounce without you having to say a word.
Bad Clients Don’t Just Drain Your Mental Health
Bad clients don’t just drain your mental health. They’re also stealing your calendar space, and on top of that, the opportunity to serve dream clients that you actually want to serve.
While your problem clients might pay the bills, they’re costing you time with all the endless revisions, scope creep, hand-holding, and frustration they bring to the table. This leads to resentment and burnout, which you know you’ve reached when you find yourself thinking, “I don’t even want to check my email because God forbid, who knows what’s going to be in there.”
All of that time you’re spending dealing with headaches and problems could be spent serving dream clients that light you the hell up.
So many people glamorize like, “Oh, I’m booked out. I’m booked out.”
Okay. Being booked out doesn’t mean shit if every client on your roster has you fantasizing about a career in vending machine refilling.
(Sidebar: Do you remember those career placement tests you took in high school or middle school? This girl right here got vending machine refiller. I brought that test home, and my mom looked at it and was like, “Why is this even an option?” We were traumatized. Hey Ma, didn’t become a vending machine refiller. Yay, me. Whoever created that quiz needs to be slapped a little.)
Anyway, if you’re fantasizing about crazy career paths other than what you’re doing, and if you’re tired of fighting battles with boundaries every day, here’s what I want you to shift your focus to instead.
Audit Your Messaging
First and foremost, I want you to audit your messaging.
Does your online presence actually say who you’re for?
Going back to that example I said earlier: you say “small business” and anybody from a pizza shop owner to a tree trimmer could respond and say, “Yeah, I’m a small business.” Or are you saying something super specific like “I help small restaurants in the Hudson Valley with their social media marketing”?
Think about the way you’re phrasing things on your website and social media. Is it super clear who should be paying attention to you in the first place?
And then, what do you do? Do people know?
Marketing is such a good example of this because there are so many areas. A marketer could mean SEO, could mean social media, could mean blog writing, could mean radio, could mean all these different things.
Unless you are super specific in saying what you do offer and how you serve your people, you could be attracting the wrong people.
Show Your Values and Your Process
After you audit your messaging, I want you to make sure that you are showing your values and your process. Your content should be pre-qualifying clients before they ever inquire.
The wrong-fit clients will peace out. If you’re doing this correctly, people will know right off the bat that they are for you or not at first glance.
You’re not going to offend anyone for being super hyper-specific. They’re just going to know, “No, this isn’t the person I want.”
I feel like this is something that a lot of service providers get wrong in the early years of their business. They’re like, “Well, I don’t want to push away any leads” or “Any money is good money. Any client is a good client.”
No. That’s literally how you get burned out. You get booked out, but you get burned out real quick. And that’s how you end up hunting for scraps because you’re like, “Oh well, they won’t pay me that much, but they’re paying me something, so it’s fine.”
Show your values. Show your process. The right people will be aligned.
Boundaries with Best-Fit Clients Aren’t Hairy and Scary
The other thing I want to point out here, before I get to the moral of the story is that boundaries with best-fit clients are not hairy and scary.
The prime example of this: I was working with a client, love them to death. That project was amazing. Now they wanted to hire me for a separate project, so I sent them the contract.
Then I get a text of, “Can you also help me with this?” And right after that, because I was about to say, “Hey, that’s outside of scope,” I get another text that says, “Also, please bill me for this. I know it’s outside of scope.”
This is why boundaries are important, but your brand is the first layer of defense. That brand attracted the best-fit client. We had a great working relationship. I wasn’t scared to set boundaries because this is a best-fit client, and they understand me.
Best-fit client plus boundary equals a lovely working relationship on both sides.
The Bottom Line
Boundaries keep you safe, but boundaries and a strong brand? That is when you can stop settling for “any money is good money” clients. And then you start building a business that actually lights you the hell up.
Because I’ve said this in a bunch of other episodes, but why are we doing this? Why are we building this damn business when you could do the work for anyone with a lot less stress?
If you are building a business, build a business you love. Don’t build one that burns you out and drags you to the ground.
🎧 Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
