There is a certain kind of account that arrives wrapped in urgency and praise. They hire you because you are the expert, then argue with every recommendation. They promise payment, then fall behind and ask you to keep going because the work is too important to pause. They pull your senior people into late-night edits, they loop in new voices every week, they change the brief after each meeting.

Meanwhile, your good clients wait while you try to rescue the loud one. After a few months, the team is tired, your cash flow is stressed, and your reputation is attached to work you would never choose to ship.

You do not need to accept this as the price of growth. You can prevent it with better qualifications, contain it with clearer terms, and end it without drama. The goal is not to teach anyone a lesson. The goal is to protect capacity for clients who match your values and benefit from your best work.

See the problem early

A bad fit typically shows up before the first invoice. Watch for boundary testing during discovery, such as requests to begin work before …