The 3 Strikes Rule: When to Fire a Client

I remember the first time I had to fire a client.

I'd bent over backward for months, ignored red flags, and sacrificed my own energy trying to make it work. When I finally ended the relationship, I felt like I'd failed them. The truth? I'd failed myself long before that.

Not every client is your client. And holding onto the wrong ones doesn't just drain you—it compromises your ability to serve the ones who are actually aligned.

The Environment Wheel tells you everything you need to know:

If a client lacks SKILL, you can teach them.

If they lack POTENTIAL, you can develop it.

If they lack CIRCUMSTANCE, you can problem-solve together.

But if they lack WILL, meaning that they're fundamentally closed to the help you're offering to them, you're not coaching anymore. You're enabling. And that's not sustainable for either of you.

Here's when you fire a client:

1. Professional Liability- They're asking you to compromise your ethics or operate outside your scope

2. Values Misalignment- Their behaviour conflicts with the standards you hold for yourself and your business

3. Reputation Risk- Their actions or demands could damage the relationships you've spent years building

4. Lack of Openness- They're not coachable, won't implement, lie to you, or refuse to take responsibility
   

The 3 Strikes Framework:

Strike 1: Direct, honest conversation about expectations and boundaries

Strike 2: Written documentation of what needs to change (yes, a contract that they will need to sign)

Strike 3: Professional exit with dignity intact

The key? Set this up from day one. Clear communication of guidelines and expectations gives you a leg to stand on when it's time to step away. All failed relationships are due to mismanaged expectations - you can quote me on that!

What this actually looks like:

Don't let it affect your energy. Stay objective. Remove the emotion and look at the facts.

Don't sacrifice yourself to avoid conflict or disappointment. That's not service, that's self-destruction.

If you're going to refer them out, don't send shit clients to people you actually like. That's not doing anyone any favours. Try to find someone equipped to work with a client like this one.

My mentees who struggle most with this are the ones who care the most. They see firing a client as failure. But here's the reframe: Sometimes ending a misaligned relationship is the most honest, caring thing you can do - for them AND for you.

Every hour you spend trying to force-fit a bad relationship is an hour you're not investing in clients who are ready, willing, and able to do the work.

Your energy is finite. Your time is finite. Your capacity to give a fuck is finite.

Protect all three as if your business depends on it, because IT DOES.

If you're holding onto clients who are draining you, compromising your values, or preventing you from serving at your highest level, it's time to have a conversation.

The ones who are meant to work with you will respect your boundaries and the ones who aren't will show you exactly why the relationship needs to end.

Keep Raising the Bar,

Paul Oneid MS, MS, CSCS