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>I'm a beginning TW/editor, and would appreciate some advice. Is there a way
>I can (tactfully) extricate myself from a work project and collect the
money
>the client owes me? (He still owes me for about 40 hours of work.) Also,
>what could I have done to keep this situation from escalating?
What Geoff said. Plus:
>One morning my husband and I were woken by him calling
>to share his philosophy of trust, which he said he had just come up with.
He
>cornered me at work and wouldn't leave for *three hours* then called me at
>home again that night to give me an overview on how his marketing plan was
>coming. I've begun letting the machine take all my calls.
Just a thought: next time he corners you at work, tell him "Delighted to
talk to you, of course, but you realise that I charge $X per hour?" Then let
him talk. At the end of the "conversation", nod, smile, and tell him "That
will be $X * number of hours. I'll invoice you." If you begin *every*
"conversation" with him by warning him what you charge per hour, end each by
telling him how much he now owes you, and present an invoice the next day,
maybe he'd cut down on monopolising your time with his problems. Okay, this
is partly frivolous, but if you get paid by the hour, and he's persistently
monopolising your time during working hours, he *ought* to pay for it.
>Would it be best to just forget about the check he owes me and chalk this
>one up to a learning experience?
What Geoff said. No. If he won't pay, tell him you're turning his account
over to a collection agency.
This does sound like harassment to me, but Geoff's suggestions are probably
the best way of dealing with it peacefully. OTOH, if it was me, after being
cornered for three hours at work and harassed at home I'd be so angry with
this "client" that I could spit.
Jane Carnall
Technical Writer, Digital Bridges, Scotland
Unless stated otherwise, these opinions are mine, and mine alone.
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