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Matt Crossman's avatar

So much great wisdom in here, especially this. "On some level, they’re trying to “train” clients on how to behave."

I know I do that. I also know I shouldn't.

I have a lecture written in my head for an editor who is forever sending me "ASAP" emails on stories she's had for months and even years. I haven't sent it (or even written it) because I usually calm down after five minutes and remember that I actually really like her.

Jamie Johnson's avatar

I can relate, Matt. Back in 2016, I had a client who communicated with me in a Slack channel and would tag me in comments (that other people could read) like, “Jamie, please pick up the pace on the articles.” I swear I could hear him snapping his fingers through the computer, lol.

I kept that client for a while because I needed the money. But over time, as I started focusing more on the kinds of clients I actually wanted to work with, those situations became a lot less common and eventually disappeared altogether. It was never something I had to enforce directly, which is what makes it kind of interesting.