Sometimes you are simply glad and relieved that a client relationship is over.

The reasons are many but a few of the more prevalent are:

• They nickel and dimed you to death
• They beat you up over every single decision
• They changed direction on a daily basis
• They paid late
• They were unpleasant to work with
• Their insecurity was catching
• ..And on and on

We’ve all been there and even when it is difficult to bring in new work and the economy seems stagnant there are still some clients where you will readily say, ”whew, I’m glad that’s over.”

The strange thing is that this past week many people were asking me the same question (am I glad it’s over) only they weren’t referring to a client engagement but rather, they were asking about my son’s recent wedding.

Was I glad that it was over meaning, I assume, the stress of planning, negotiating, staying on the good side of everyone involved, etc. etc.

And when I answered that I never felt a moment’s negativity or stress about the wedding, many looked at me with a stunned (and often disbelieving) expression.

And the truth is that in 26 years of business I have rarely been glad that a client relationship was over.  Some of my must-do’s for client management AND wedding management (!) are:

• Be open and transparent about what you can and cannot do
• Set realistic expectations and ground-rules for all involved
• Don’t whine or complain; if there is a problem address it before it festers
• Be on time and on budget
• Be organized and don’t screw-up

Staying sane during a client project, especially when that project is multi-faceted and complex, requires everyone to be on their best behavior and while you can’t guarantee that your client will always be in sync with you, attention to these points will most certainly help the process along.