I think the key here is as the business owner, you CAN tell the customer/client that you don't want to do business with them! I only did this a couple of times in 13 years, but it sure made me feel good and I didn't have to worry about being fired.
It depends.
Although most wage slaves don't have much real freedom, a salaried employee with a high-demand skill set can often refuse to do specific types of work, or too much work ... and the employer will have to accomodate them, or they will 'jump ship'.
Conversely, many small business owners have only two or three major clients, to whom they must kowtow or risk jeopardising their entire business. And this is also true of some very large businesses: e.g., few consumer products companies can afford to argue with huge retailers like Walmart or Costco.
I think many entrepreneurs work harder and longer hours than the average salaryman to keep their customers and grow their businesses.
Yes, I agree. Certainly the entrepreneur has much more incentive than a salaried employee, whose long-term future with the employer is dependent upon factors entirely beyond his or her control.
Like "Peter Gibbons" said in
Office Space: "It's a problem of motivation, all right? Now if I work my ass off and Initech ships a few extra units, I don't see another dime; so where's the motivation? ... [M]y only real motivation is not to be hassled; that, and the fear of losing my job. But you know, Bob, that will only make someone work just hard enough not to get fired."
My clients often try to tell me what to do and when to do it. If they need something, they might need it now. I have to do it or lose the client. My associates sometimes have problems with this concept.... I ask for something on Friday (because a client asked) and they say they have plans for the weekend and can't get it done. So I do it myself, or have the associate grumble because I made him miss his weekend.
Of course, I could tell my clients to wait. But I think I would lose my biggest and best clients if I did so.
Martha, I don't know your practice, the nature of your clients' typical problems, or the strength of your client relationships. But it strikes me that the key sentences in the above passage are (1) "If they need something, they
might need it now", and (2) "I could tell my clients to wait. But
I think I would lose my biggest and best clients if I did so".
Perhaps it would be possible to ask your clients how time-sensitive each new assignment is. The assumptions that everything is urgent, and that your best clients will drop you like a hot potato if you don't jump through arbitrary hoops, might not be warranted.