Over promise and under deliver

I’ve heard that you should under promise and over deliver my whole life.

It’s a feel good thing that we throw out in conversation, then nod sagely like we get it. Like we have it figured out.

Well, I didn’t figure this out until a few years ago. And if we’re being honest I still don’t fully know what it means.

This also goes along with the saying that the customer is always right. Each of those should have a big fat asterisk beside it.

Here’s what it’s supposed to mean.

Let’s take a client project. You’re building a website for someone.

When you’re selling the project you agree to a price and a definition of done. If you’re like me for much of my career you commit to a sufficient level of done, add in time to account for challenges, and a price that you feel is good enough.

But then the reality of the project hits home and you have to juggle what the client is expecting and paying for against the reality of moving bits and bytes around to meet their needs.

And you probably didn’t charge enough.

The client has a dream for what they want, and you have a dream for doing great work and finding satisfaction in it (and hopefully keeping the lights and the kids fed).

If you’re good at your job you are able to get it done efficiently, even account for the unknowns, and the client walks away happy and willing to give a good referral.

But that nagging saying still comes back to me.

What you’re supposed to do is commit to a tiny amount things, a small definition of done, and then surprise the client later with either faster delivery, higher quality than expected, or features they didn’t even know they needed.

This works if you’ve figured out the main element, charging an appropriate price. If you’re charging too little you’ll burn yourself up, with nothing left for those you care about. If you charge too much you risk the client wanting to go elsewhere.

One of the worst projects I ever took on was less than a thousand dollars. It was early in my career and I was taking it on in the hopes of it leading to more work later. That seems to be the journey of every young creative.

My breaking point came when the client was yelling at me over the phone, verbally accosting me, and making me feel like rubbish. I did the thing I’ve rarely had to do. I fired them. I let them know I was done, and wouldn’t work with them anymore. Their tone immediately changed. They turned from demanding to pleading, accusing to demuring. Anything they could do to get me to continue the project. Because I hadn’t collected a down payment (my own mistake) I owed them nothing.

So I walked away.

It was the best feeling ever. I was out a little money, but I didn’t have to deal with the anxiety of an abusive client.

So, I agree with the premise of under promise and over deliver. But you need the right starting point. You have to assume you’re being paid a decent price, and the client isn’t abusive. You also need the skills to get the work done, or the ability to acquire those skills.