Your Clients, Your Business and Your Conscience

January 23, 2008

Had to fire a client today.

The details aren’t really important, but the point is important.

And the point is that sometimes clients run their businesses in ways you would never run your own. And when you are asked to participate in something you disagree with, there’s a conflict that needs to be resolved.

In this case, the conflict created a question I had to answer: “Do I compromise my standards to make money?”

My particular situation with this client involved potentially making a lot of money.

My decision to fire my client was a judgement call on my part. It’s a judgement call about how I want to run my business. Another person might have made a different decision.

But it was the right one for me.

I can’t control how my clients run their businesses, but I can control whether or not I remain involved.

In the end, my decision is probably going to cost me upwards of a few hundred thousand dollars… this year alone. And it’s also going to cost me an equity position in a new business venture.

Fortunately, my clear conscience is a whole lot more valuable than all of that.

The moral of the story? Trust yourself. Trust your gut. You’ve got a level of intelligence that isn’t directly accessible to you, but one that gets your attention when needed.

Don’t ignore that.

Posted by Jason | Filed Under Blog