Stress is a choice. I know that’s hard to believe, but it is. Nothing can stress you out, but your thoughts about it certainly can.
When you own your own business, everything is a choice — including the clients you choose to work with. Sometimes we feel pressured to keep working for a client who is difficult. Perhaps we have financial pressures or we’re afraid that if we stop working for them, it will impact other important business relationships.
Always know you have a choice. And, if you choose to stay in relationship with them, you can change your behavior and how you respond to them which, in turn, will change their behavior.
Here are three tips to create a better outcome:
#1 Respond and don’t react. Be thoughtful before responding to your client. You may want to wait a day or two if you’re dealing with a particularly emotional topic. Carefully think through what you want to accomplish and the best way of communicating. Also, keep in mind that everyone is doing the best they can. Even clients have bad days! 🙂
#2 Find ways to manage your stress. Sometimes it’s not the client that’s stressing you out. They only serve as a trigger. Review your life and handle areas which are stressing you out. Sometimes a lot of little things can add up to one big ball of stress. Address those issues and you’ll find a lot of other seemingly difficult things will naturally melt away.
#3 Put things into perspective. There are a lot of worse things you could be dealing with than a momentary stressful situation. In the overall scheme of life, is it worth allowing this to disrupt your life? Likely not. Be thankful for everything, even the difficult times. For in the challenges, you’ll grow and learn new strategies for creating better relationships with others.
I’d love to continue the conversation. If you’re interested in working with me to explore your productivity habits, time allocation, and your business goals, let’s chat. Connect with me at https://www.tarahelpdesk.com
