I'm writing this post from a strange place emotionally. I read a negative comment about my work this morning from a previous design client of mine. *insert womp womp womp sound* It hurt guys. Though it wasn't a personal attack or anything really even all that bad, it still hit me where it hurts the most. Long story short, a few months ago, a long time client of mine decided to work with a new designer that could offer them more of what they were wanting for the future of their business. No big deal, it happens. Goals change, and often you just aren't compatible anymore.

I follow their Facebook page and so I happened to see a post mentioning negative comments about my work for them. It stung. Behind my purple hair, goofy facial expressions and sarcastic humor, I am very insecure when it comes to criticism in any aspect of my life. This had me getting caught up in self doubt, sadness, anger and ultimately made me want to throw the towel in and be done with it all.

After I calmed myself, lol, I made myself accept the fact that no matter what you do, you CAN NOT and WILL NOT make everyone happy all the time or be everyone's cup of tea. And though your business and work may be incredibly personal to you, especially in the creative field, it is not a personal attack on you when a business relationship ends.  When your style, aesthetic and tastes no longer fit a client, it is time to move on and break up. And just like any personal break up it can hurt.

All you can do is step back and access what went wrong, if it could have been prevented, what you would have done differently, and how to grow from the situation. Or if they're the clingy, stalker ex type just run! lol This opened my eyes even more to the fact that I want to only take on my dream clients. I want to work with clients who look at my portfolio and say "This designer knows exactly what we want!"

How do you deal with criticism or negativity? Whether it be at your day job, freelance business or even handmade business? Have you ever had to break up with a client or been dumped? I love this post by Breanna Rose about Managing Feedback . It was exactly what I needed to read. Also, this hand lettered quote by Mark van Leeuwen is perfection. He's only a teenager and he's a fantastic designer / artist.