I’m a pretty easy going guy. I don’t get too riled up by anything and I’m generally considered to be a “go with the flow” type of person. But I’m admittedly not the easiest vendor you’re ever going to work with, and I take a tremendous amount of pride in that.
Like many of you, I don’t take on every project that comes through my door. I am in a position where I can pick and choose the projects I want to work on, because not every project is right for my company. The ones I do choose I am usually very interested in and passionate about… and I take the role of “creative collaborator” very seriously. There are times (recently one that sticks out) where I have pushed back so much that I find myself apologizing to the client. “I’m sorry, I know you’re getting tired of hearing this…” But I’ll never apologize for fighting for what’s best for my client and the project.
Likewise, sometimes I’m either too close to the project or not close enough and I try my best to encourage clients to push back on the things I’m saying. I tell them early on that I bring no ego to the project and that I want (expect?) them to challenge me when they feel like I’m taking a different direction than what is best for them.
I believe this helps me get the best out of my clients & my team.
How about you, do you push back? In what ways? How do you receive push back?