Do you remember back sometime — typically grade school — when you figured out that members of the opposite sex (or maybe same sex) were desirable? One day you woke up and those ‘cooties’ seemed like something you might want to have if it meant you got to spend time with that girl/boy.

For me, from grade 7 – 11 it was all about how far up the social ladder to the ‘cool’ kids I could reach with my advances. Could I get the hottest girl in drama? What about the hottest athlete?

I certainly wasn’t looking for someone that was a great fit, though I likely wasn’t equipped with the tools to properly evaluate that fit either.

Lucky for my wife, I got over that. Lucky for many of us, we get over that search for someone ‘cool’ that can bring our status up. At least I hope you’ve gotten over that.

I ended up finding someone I love to hang out with everyday, even when we’re not agreeing on something, or we get angry. I can’t envision being anywhere but with her.

Cool as…

Have you really gotten over that juvenile mentality, though? Maybe you have in your relationships, but what about as you look for clients?

Are you just looking for how cool a project can make you look without really digging into whether it’s really a good fit between the client and your business?

Is your project list really just a billboard for how popular you are?

Way more important for the long-term health of your business, and your own sanity, is getting that proper fit between your clients and your business.

You want people that work in similar methods to you. If they want a daily call and that drives you bonkers, it’s not a good fit. Doesn’t matter how cool you’d look by having them on your client roster. You won’t be doing your best work since you’ll be annoyed by the calls you don’t want.

If you’re not sure how to vet a client, check out my Effective Client Email book and see how I do it.

photo credit: instantvantage cc