My Etsy order disaster last Saturday made me rethink rush jobs completely

I had a customer who needed 50 custom t-shirts for a family reunion by Sunday morning, and I agreed to do it even though my gut said no. The white ink on my screen printer kept clogging after every 3 shirts, and I spent 4 hours just cleaning screens instead of printing. By 9 PM I had only finished 12 shirts, and the customer showed up at my door at 8 AM Sunday angry as all get out. Popular opinion says you should always take the work when it comes, but I learned the hard way that saying no to tight deadlines saves your sanity. Has anyone else had a job spiral like that where you wish you just turned it down?

2 comments

2 Comments

jake_kelly2418d ago

That thing you said about "my gut said no" really hit home for me. A buddy of mine does custom wood signs and took a rush order for a wedding, 40 signs in 5 days. He was up till 3 AM every night and his laser cutter caught fire on day 3 because he was pushing it too hard. The bride was nice about it but he had to refund half the money and still lost sleep for a week. Sometimes that little voice in your head knows better than your wallet does.

olivia57318d ago

Jake, I heard a business coach say gut feelings are just patterns your brain already noticed.