Overcoming People-Pleasing and Scope Creep: A Guide for Service-Based Entrepreneurs

As service-based entrepreneurs, we face unique challenges in our business journey. Two of the most common pitfalls we encounter are people-pleasing and scope creep. These issues can harm our success, affecting our boundaries, profitability, and overall well-being. In this blog post, we will delve into the dangers of people pleasing and scope creep and explore practical strategies to navigate these challenges effectively.

Understanding People Pleasing:

People pleasing is a common trait among service-based entrepreneurs. We want to go above and beyond for our clients, often at the expense of our well-being. But this can lead to compromised boundaries, overwork, and dissatisfaction. It's essential to recognize the impact of people pleasing on our businesses and take steps to address it.

Imagine constantly saying "yes" to client requests, even when it stretches your resources thin or goes beyond the scope of your initial agreement. While it may seem like the path to customer satisfaction, it can lead to burnout, diminished profitability, and strained relationships. Setting clear boundaries, practicing assertiveness, and prioritizing self-care are essential strategies to combat people-pleasing tendencies.

Recognizing the Dangers of Scope Creep:

Scope creep is another challenge that service-based entrepreneurs face. It refers to the gradual expansion of project requirements beyond the agreed-upon scope. It can be tempting to accommodate additional client requests, but it can have severe implications for our businesses.

Picture a project that starts with clear objectives and a defined timeline. However, as the project progresses, clients may request additional features, changes, or additional work without adjusting the budget or timeline accordingly. If not appropriately managed, scope creep can result in project delays, resource depletion, and financial losses.

Managing scope creep requires setting clear project boundaries, communicating expectations upfront, and implementing change request protocols. Establishing effective communication channels and managing client expectations, we can navigate scope creep and protect our businesses from unnecessary risks.

Strategies to Combat People Pleasing and Scope Creep:

Now that we understand the dangers of people pleasing and scope creep let's explore actionable strategies to overcome these challenges:

1. Set clear boundaries: Establish clear boundaries with clients and communicate your limitations and available resources from the beginning. Clearly define the scope of work, deliverables, and timelines to manage expectations effectively.

2. Practice assertiveness: Develop assertiveness skills to confidently communicate your needs, limitations, and any necessary adjustments to the project scope. Remember that saying "no" when appropriate is crucial for maintaining a healthy balance between client satisfaction and your well-being.

3. Regularly assess and manage scope: Review the project scope and milestones to ensure alignment with the agreed-upon terms. Implement a change request process to handle any modifications or additional work effectively.

By implementing these strategies, service-based entrepreneurs can navigate the dangers of people pleasing and scope creep, increasing client satisfaction, improving profitability, and enhancing overall well-being.

Conclusion:

As service-based entrepreneurs, we must know the dangers posed by people pleasing and scope creep. By understanding the impact of these challenges and implementing effective strategies, we can protect our businesses, maintain healthy boundaries, and ensure long-term success.

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Podcast Transcript:

Kiva Slade 0:01

Welcome to Collab with Kiva, where we let our inner nerd geek out on all the non sexy parts of your business. I'm talking data and operations, neither as flashy or glamorous, but both are foundational to your business growth. I'm your host, Kiva Slade, your strategy and analytics guide here to break down what feels complicated. So it is understandable and executional. Let's dive in. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Collab with Kiva. To day, I am going to talk about something that is rather close to my, I'm not even going to say heart, I'll say mind at this particular point. And it's about scope, creep, and people pleasing. Because both of these can have a negative impact and a significant impact on our success as entrepreneurs in several different ways. And I really want to talk about this. Obviously, it's been creeping up in my own work and life, because you guys know, I see these things. And I'm like, oh, we need to talk about this.

Kiva Slade 1:18

First off, let's talk about people pleasing, which can have different connotations for it. But basically people pleasing is very impactful for service based entrepreneur. And people pleasing is often defined as when we prioritize the desires and expectations of others over our own needs and boundaries. And as entrepreneurs, we want to make our clients happy. Yes, we do. And we want to deliver exceptional service. Yes, we do. But we have to find a balance. Because if we don't find the balance, we're gonna run ourselves aground. For example, let's take Sarah, talented graphic designer, always goes above and beyond for our clients, she takes on extra work, she agrees to tight deadlines, she often sacrifices her personal time. While her clients are likely thrilled. They are thrilled beyond belief with her dedication, Sarah is the one that gets things done. Sarah herself is likely feeling overwhelmed, burnt out and really frustrated because she's unable to maintain a healthy work life balance.

Kiva Slade 2:29

Who can identify with Sarah, raise your hand? Okay, so honestly, this has been such a thing lately, where our composition, our makeup, who we are, in many instances, it can also hurt or harm us because consequences of people pleasing are far reaching. Like we're not only talking the compromise boundaries that are existing, which you know, overwork, ultimately, dissatisfaction, you know, whether that's on the clients and or you're in, and it affects our well being, which also can impact our business's profitability and growth, like that's a lot in one small bubble, have the impact of people pleasing, if we don't do something to get it under control? Because the reality is, sometimes we're choosing clients that, hey, we might need money. And so we're taking on things that may not be clearly scoped out may not be the best fit for us may be a totally high maintenance client with expectations that you're never ever going to meet no matter how much you bend over backwards in like a game of Twister. But whatever the reason, we have to start to understand that for ourselves, know which clients are best for us what kind of work arrangement works best for us. And then, figuring out how we make those things become aligned. And I talk about people pleasing and scope creep, because I feel like the two of them are connected. Because our people pleasing tends to lead to scope creep, in most instances, so when we're talking about scope creep, that's like what occurs when the scope of the project just starts to gradually expand beyond what was agreed to, often without proper documentation and compensation. So you're starting to do more and more and more, and there really isn't a updated addendum to the contract to specify these things. And in most instances, we do not charge more for the more work that we are now doing.

Kiva Slade 4:55

So obviously, when scope creep begins to happen we can be looking at project delays, resource depletion, financial losses, all things that are not good. No bueno. Let's talk about Mark. He's a web developer. Yes, Mark's got it. He's going to design the website, clear scope and timeline. All kinds of milestones are clearly laid out. However, as that project progresses, the client is like, how about this additional feature? And what about this change, all the things that weren't part of their original agreement. And without proper management, is going to throw mark off schedule, strain his resources, and impact his ability to deliver on time. Again, if you can identify with Sarah, likely, you can also identify with Mark, because these are real things in many of the businesses that we have running, things just start getting added to the plate, maybe you started with a team, and you are managing four independent contractors, the team has now grown to eight independent contractors, your pay is still the same, but I guarantee you're managing four people is different than managing eight people. So your position has increased, like the work and responsibility associated with it has, its increased, but your pay hasn't. Scope Creep. Because when you initially started it was a four people. As that was growing, as people were being hired and added on. It was time to re-negotiate, re-assess what that scope of work looks like.

Kiva Slade 6:46

And hey, no shame, no shade, because we all do this. And again, it's important though, that we get a hold of it, that we stop it. So setting some clear project boundaries, managing client expectations, they're both essential in mitigating. Notice, I did not say eliminating, mitigating the risk of scope creep. Because communicating the project's scope, documenting the changes that are taking place along the way, establishing transparent communication channels with your clients, all of the things that are needed to keep everyone on the same page. Making sure in the beginning of a project, you're doing a weekly report to say, Hey, this is what we talked about this is where we are. I cannot stress this enough about scoping out work. And I have a podcast on this. It is so critically important. Because if your scope is generic, let's say you're going to provide operational management to the business, which includes team management strategy, and project management. What exactly does that look like? Again, maybe you started four, then you have eight people that you're now in project managing. Maybe the client had five clients, now they have 25 clients. So your team management looks different, your project management looks different, which means your strategy looks different, which means the project has swelled. Your compensation hasn't. But your frustration likely has swelled as well. And so it's critically important important that we scope out the work that we're going to do.

Kiva Slade 8:56

And sometimes we have to put, you know, like when you meet with some client, you don't really know how, you know, depending on new type of work, you may not know all of where the bones are buried and the ghosts that are in the closet and the things that they've stuffed under the proverbial bed. But as you discover those things, to not be afraid to rescope the project based on what you have discovered. They might tell you that something is 75% done, you get on board and realize it's 25% and so that 25% You thought that you were just going to be able to push it across the finish line is now no, it's just getting started. You're going to have a whole lot more work to do. Don't be afraid to re-assess the scope as things change. And so let's talk though Through that, like, true actionable strategies on how to do this, not only to protect your business, but to protect your clients if we're honest.

Kiva Slade 10:08

First, obviously, is setting clear boundaries. Who understand your capacity and limitations, communicate those openly with your clients learn to say, No. When necessary, and prioritize your well being and sustainability of your business. It is okay after 30 days, 60 days to say, You know what, our styles are not in alignment. This is what I will finish to complete this work. And we need to mutually agree to go our separate ways. There are some times that we're working with people that again, no matter what you do, they're never ever, ever, ever, never going to be like, Oh, wow, that was really great. And that helped my business. Their expectations are so skewed, in probably not only in business in the rest of their lives as well, that nothing you do is ever going to be good enough. Nothing you do. And you're always going to be feeling like the end of the day, the end of the week, the end of the month, what did I accomplish? Did it actually move the needle in the business and you're going to start questioning yourself questioning your ability, self doubt is going to creep in. And that is damaging to you, in how you show up for your additional clients and how you show up for yourself in the marketing of your own business. So set clear boundaries, learn to say no. And remember, no is a complete sentence. Doesn't need to be no, we're not able to do that right now, at this particular moment, that client will remember and come back to you in another moment and asked about the same daggone thing? No, because in most cases, they're probably not willing to pay for what it is that they really want. And they're trying to have that scope expand.

Kiva Slade 12:01

So another one is learning to practice assertiveness, no. Like really understand how to confidently express your needs, your expectations and your concerns to clients. Because the fact that communication is truly key to maintaining healthy client relationships and managing expectations. And yes, we all would love for every single client engagement to work out and be happy, imperfect, it's not going to be that way, you are going to kiss some frogs bite into some lemons, you might be the frog and lemon for some clients, whatever the situation is, not everybody's going to get along. It's just not going to happen. And while at first it may seem like oh, we click this any other, there might be shifts in their business that mean that they can no longer pay you what they were paying you. Doesn't matter how well you liked each other at the end of the day it's your business. And you need to be figuring out what needs to take place in your business for your own viability. So understand that you are an entity yourself, whether it's a sole proprietorship, and LLC, you're an entity, and you have to do what's best for the survival of your entity. And again, sometimes that might be, hey, it's not you, it's me. And we have to go our separate ways. And this is how I'm going to make you whole in this particular instance. And go from there.

Kiva Slade 13:40

So last thing is prioritizing your own self care. Taking care of yourself, like physically, mentally, emotionally is crucial for maintaining a strong foundation in your business. Whether that's involving like schedule, regular breaks, I've talked about this a lot, have a CEO day, get yourself away from your desk, your work environment, wherever you do, the thing is that you do and to get yourself out of there and just go someplace else, think something else, do something else. Get support from your peers, mentors, like truly cultivate a healthy work life balance. It is super, super, super, super important. So I think that whatever that is for you because it's going to look different for each and every one of us. You need to figure that out for yourself and then actually execute on it.

Kiva Slade 14:33

And lastly, managing scope creep through Project scoping. Thorough project scoping is essential. Clearly define the project objectives, deliverables, timelines. Regularly communicate with clients to ensure that everyone is aligned and any changes are documented and they are approved. Don't go do an extra work when there is no extra pay. Just saying. So in conclusion, I just really think it's important as service based entrepreneurs in particular, that we address the dangers that comes with people pleasing and scope creep. Because they're real, they're not made up. They're truly real issues and concerns and problems that many of us have, and we're afraid, maybe embarrassed to talk about we shouldn't be. So before I wrap up, again, reminders, set clear boundaries, you know, prioritize your needs, and communicate your limitations to clients. Practice of assertiveness, like confidently expressing those needs, your expectations and concerns and prioritize your self care. Like you got to figure out what that looks like. Because burnout is real. And when that happens when you've reached burnout, it's too late. It's just too late, you're at the point of exhaustion and ready to burn it all down and and be Angela Bassett in Waiting to Exhale like a match and just sit that sucker on fire. That's when it's too late. You want to get that before you get to that point.

Kiva Slade 16:13

So people pleasing scope creep, they can have significant consequences on our businesses. So we want to be aware of the risk and implement proactive measures before we ready to burn it all down to ensure not only our long term success and growth of our businesses, but also that exceptional client delivery that all of us are here for. So I hope that this was helpful for you guys, I, in many cases and talking to myself, but I know that I am not alone in this particular area. So again, do the things that you need to do set your boundaries, practice, assertiveness and also prioritize that self care. And I'll talk to you next time. Bye. Thanks for tuning in to another episode of Collab with Kiva. I'm wildly cheering you on as you go forth and execute data and operational efficiencies in your business. If you need additional support, connect with me via my website, the516collaborative.com your reviews on Apple are appreciated. See you next week.

Meet Kiva Slade - the Founder and CEO of The 516 Collaborative. With a unique background in high-power politics on Capitol Hill and sixteen years as a homeschooling mama, Kiva found her calling in the online business world as a trusted guide for entrepreneurs looking to build the business of their dreams.

Kiva's work began behind the scenes, orchestrating the back end of businesses and managing teams. But her inner data diva couldn't help but notice that small businesses needed help harnessing the power of data for growth. So she and her team set out to uncover and tidy up the data required to enable clients to grow their businesses confidently and easily.