Dealing with Difficult Clients: Protect Your Money and Sanity

Type 1: The Eternal Reviser

"Let's tweak just a bit more" — for 15 iterations. Solution: 2–3 revision rounds in the contract, each additional round is extra.

Type 2: The Ghost

Disappears for a week, then reappears with "need it yesterday." Solution: response deadlines in the contract.

Type 3: The Know-It-All

"Make the logo green in Comic Sans." Solution: argue with data and case studies, not opinions.

Type 4: The Non-Payer

"Will pay next week" → silence. Solution: 50% upfront ALWAYS. Deliver only after full payment.

Type 5: Scope Creeper

"Can you add this? It's tiny." Every "tiny thing" = an hour. Solution: clear scope document, extras billed separately.

When to Walk Away

If a client is abusive, consistently late on payments, or costs more stress than income — end the relationship.