As a business owner, do you know what one of the best feelings in the world is?

Being able to tell a prospect NO.

Are you scratching your head? Or wondering whether I drank something funny?

Trust me, I didn’t. Having the power to say NO in your business is so incredibly empowering. I know you’ve probably been told over and over again, that you have to do your dirty work and take on not so great clients, in order to get your footing, and while that might be true in the very beginning, it isn’t something that you need to commit to for the life of your biz.

When you’ve gotten to a point in your business where you are bringing in regular and reliable dream clients, turning some away, especially the ones who don’t fit in your ICA (ideal client avatar), is A-OK, and even REALLY healthy for your business and your mindset.

How Saying NO Works in Your Favor

One of the first things you need to realize is that there are going to be prospective clients or customers that don’t feel good right from the get-go. I’m all about trusting your intuition and letting the customer GO, right away. If you know they’re not a good fit, don’t string them along, just like you wouldn’t want someone to string you along.

Be polite and professional. But, say NO and let them go!

It’s inevitable, you’re going to find yourself in meetings with possible clients that make your heart speed up and fills you with uncontrollable excitement, but at the end of the meeting they may come across as a little wishy washy.

Your job is to work hard on finding out why they’re not a firm YES.

It’s likely not personal, but it’s good practice to do a little digging. They may have preconceived notions with working with you, they may not be the decision maker, or maybe they’re just indecisive. Whatever their reasons for not agreeing to sign on the dotted line immediately, is something you should try to figure out.

If, after digging, they’re still refusing to commit, it’s time for YOU to tell them thanks, but NO thanks. And, then just wait for the blowback…

If this is a dream client, this might put the heat on them. They may realize they are ready to work with you, they just couldn’t make a decision.

Or, if it is someone who was essentially wasting your time, they may be annoyed that you told them NO, but at least you’ll be able to stop wasting your time trying to convince them to work with you.

A NO Isn’t Always About Them, Sometimes It Is About You

A guest on Success Unfiltered, Amy Selbach, experienced some pretty defeating NO’s in her career, but one of the toughest for her was when she decided to shut down her fitness studio.

For over a year, Amy poured her heart and soul into this fitness studio, but after getting sick and realizing that her parents were aging, she decided she wanted to move back to the US, not to mention that her business was dwindling because she wasn’t giving it the love and attention it needed.

She had to tell her clients, employees and contractors that she was closing. They were understandably devastated with the closing, but some many of them did not give any thought to Amy’s reasons. They took it personally and some of the employees did unethical things that were upsetting (if you want to hear the whole story listen to this Success Unfiltered episode, HERE!).

Next time you think about saying NO to someone, be ready for them to come back and want more from you. It’s hard to think that professionals would do something like this, but it does happen, so prepare yourself.

How The Pitch Queen Handles Telling a Prospect NO

I had a client that was interested in a program that I was helping a friend grow her company with, a program for CPAs and one for Financial Planners. I took the time to rearrange my schedule to give a prospective client an opportunity to talk with me about the program. I offered to spend time with him on a Saturday because he felt as though we were blowing him off and since I was fully booked during the week.

I cleared my schedule, committed a time with him, and then heard crickets. NOTHING.

The next day he sent me an email that he would like to have a call, so again, I arrange my schedule so that I can take his call. I got another email, the morning of our meeting, with him telling me that he doesn’t have the time to put forth into chatting with me or the program, and that he doesn’t think we should talk.

Want to know my response?

“Correct, we should not talk, because things we want to achieve in our businesses don’t come easy. You actually have to put work in, and in order to get the result you want, you need to put time and effort, money and energy to and you need to commit to yourself.”

I received a blow back email that basically said he was shocked I was not going to do the call with him.

This is a TRUE story!

People go crazy when you tell them NO, or when you agree with their decision of NO. When you can get to the point where you can walk away from opportunities because, A. they’re not a good fit or B. maybe they’re going crazy like this prospect did– You do NOT want to work with them anyway.

That is how I say NO. Feel free to steal it and use it for yourself!

In Conclusion

You are who you hang around. You have to keep people who support you through the good and through the bad at your side.

In the beginning it will seem so tough to tell clients who don’t feel would be a good fit, NO and turn them away. I know this, but TRUST that intuition, it doesn’t steer you wrong and in the end you’ll be rewarded with working with the RIGHT types of clients.