Quote:
Originally Posted by look 171
Mr. Dudley,
That's the stuff I am looking for. I am really trying to understand due to their tight schedule and their priorities. I have given up time with my kids to meet with clients and I am perfectly OK with that and have done it many times. Thanks to you, I learn something new. Never knew about the whole coffee, greeter thing and the commitment to church. Now I know. Remember, you are talking to a guy who's never stepped one foot in a church parking lot and know nothing about why they do what they do.
BTW, I am not offended, but I see some impossibility to only have a 4 hour window weekly to meet, discuss and make decisions on a pretty complex project that needed to be completed in 2 months. They made it clear that's their only time to meet for the week.
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Church time for many is not a leisurely activity - many churches have outreach activities with homeless shelters, youth programs, nursing homes, and the like. Perhas your customer down-played what they are involved in at church so they don't come across as holier than thou, or having a pompous attitude. .. or maybe their involvement which church is purely social and they don't have the right mindset to get the work done... Either way, unless you know the motivation of their hearts, it's a judgement call. And I'm pretty sure none of us here know the motivation of their hearts...
I go to church - sometimes I skip a Sunday service, and I am not as involved as I can be in my church's outreach programs due to various excuses I can come up with. But church is an integral part of my life - not because I want to have a holider than thou attitude or earn my way into heaven -- but because I seek to learn more about God and what His plan is for the world, and how I fit into that plan.
But let me get off my soapbox...
As you stated, they haven't bought a home before, so they likely don't fully understand the timeframes and deadlines involved. It sounds to me like you have experience in this, and do quality work based on feedback others have given here - perhaps they just need a little direction from you about such projects.
Question: were you available to meet with them at 2 on Sunday? If not, maybe there is a mutual time where you can agree upon that is an ideal time and location? Whether they had legitimate reasons for not being able to meet with you, or they just blew you off -- I think it may be worth your time to give them a second chance -- at a time that works for all parties involved. If they give you problems for this meeting, then you can move on - knowing you put in the extra effort to help them, but without putting in so much time and effort that it cost you.
My $0.42,
-Z-man.