You Must Release in Order to Receive

The Process of Connecting to Your Personal Alignment

The dreaded email sits in your inbox. You stare at it and decide to deal with it later. You’ll go through all the other emails first. Half of them are promotional and easy to delete, 2 or 3 are actually work-related issues you can handle, and then you’re back staring at the one.

You know by the subject line “Let’s Connect” that things aren’t good. If you’re being perfectly honest, they haven’t been good for a while and you know it. You’ve known this was coming. Otherwise, why would you stare with dread at opening the email? The subject seems harmless enough.

The message is from a client. A client you love writing for, but that hasn’t been going well. You haven’t been on the same page and it’s clear. Every month at the check-in you are constantly chasing around the information you need to do the work. A month goes by with nothing and the client wonders why this or that is missing. You explain the best you can that you need certain information from them in order to provide them with the services they desire.

This client hired you to make their life easier by taking work off their plate, and yet here you are month after month feeling guilty because you constantly are asking for what you need. You began to forget you are not an employee and start treating your client like your boss. A boss you have to chase around because 90% of all the information is written nowhere but in her head.

You’re a small business owner; you understand how chaotic things get. You have compassion and understanding for your client. After all, I need to be reminded to do certain tasks from time to time.

You are not in alignment with this client and the connection has been lost.

The truth is you’ve seen this email coming. You knew this wasn’t a good fit months ago when the client started piling on unrelated tasks that didn’t seem like a big deal but added up pretty fast. You started feeling undervalued and had to resell your worth at every month’s interface.

This is your most challenging client, but you’ve stuck with it because the mission is something you believe in and you want to see it succeed. You let all the red flags pass you by because you enjoyed being a part of it.

Alright, let’s rip this Band-Aid off.

Sure enough, it’s what you’ve been expecting. The freelancer’s break-up email.

We’ve all got at least one. Including…

• The niceties of it not being a good fit (duh, okay.)
• Not getting the viewers they had hoped for (Agreed, but you weren’t provided the information to make that happen)
• Not feeling like you stuck to the outline. (You didn’t. You couldn’t with the lack of communication so you winged it figuring something was better than nothing.)
• And the BIGGEST lie, “I am just going to do it myself”. (They won’t, but you’ve been in this game long enough to know that it is not your job to change their mind.)

At first, it’s all self-doubt and worry. Your mind spins onto the idea of seeking out more work, but then you breathe. You calm yourself down and move away from the computer. A quick walk with your thoughts should clear your mind.

And it does. By the time the brisk air hits your cheeks and the cherry blossoms fill your senses you remember that this has not been an ideal client. As your pace becomes steady and you hear kids on the passing playground you remember your worth.

You must release what no longer serves you if you want to receive what the universe is trying to show you.

You have spent a lot of time working on your mindset and look at you now. Enjoying a 2pm stroll through the park as a successful freelance writer. A Wednesday afternoon embracing the luxury of working for yourself. You are the boss, and you build relationships with your clients. You hold your clients accountable to their dreams and succeed when they reach their goals.

• You are not responsible for a client not fulfilling their end of the bargain.
• You are not responsible for chasing down information they should have provided in order to help them succeed.
• You are not responsible for the roadblocks they create for themselves.
• You are not responsible for work outside your contract.

All your other clients have been smooth, and in line with your dreams and goals. This client was unique from the beginning. You took a chance and you grew a lot. Freelance work is about allowing your service to flow from project to project, not holding tight to something that is clearly not working.

You are a hard worker and want all your clients to be a success story. But like all relationships it takes both parties being on the same page.

You were so worried about fitting into your client’s mold that you lost sight of your own. You were so worried about pleasing that you forgot to check in with how you felt about the relationship.

You fell out of alignment and it is time to let it go.

As you walk back inside, refreshed, you are ready to reply to the email with confidence knowing the feeling is mutual and that it is time to move on.

Short, sweet, and to the point. Expressing gratitude for the experience, you hit send and exhale.

Feeling relieved you open your inbox.

There’s something new for one of your long-term clients.

Hmm…

She’s hoping to refer you to a friend in need of a copywriter in exactly the market you prefer.

The universe is listening.

It opens us up to grow when it sees that it’s time. You only had to walk through what no longer served you to find what was on the other side.

Feeling supported, heard, and loved, you begin walking down the path towards new opportunities and growth. Connected and reassured in your progress.