Free Assessment: How does your inbound marketing measure up?

Get Started
Close

Free Assessment:

How does your inbound marketing measure up?
Take this free, 5-minute assessment and learn what you can start doing today to boost traffic, leads, and sales.
Get Started
inbound-marketing-strategy-playbook-cover

Free Assessment:

"Complaining About Clients & Playing the Victim" (Creator's Block, Ep. 61)

By Liz Murphy

"Complaining About Clients & Playing the Victim" (Creator's Block, Ep. 61)

Last week, while I was in the office, I remember saying to someone as a joke, "Our jobs would be perfect if it weren’t for clients, am I right?"

We were feeling a little stressed, and we had a good laugh about it. But later on, I regretted saying it -- even though it was said in jest.

This may make me sound like Pollyanna, but while I think venting is healthy, especially in an agency environment -- or heck, any work environment with insane deadlines and lots of collaborators -- I also worry about where we draw the line.

At some point, letting off steam in a totally normal way about clients -- or even the coworkers we’re partnering with on projects -- can devolve into something that’s really toxic, if you don't keep it (and yourself) in check.

It can drag everyone down, create opportunities for people to play the victim instead of taking responsibility, tarnish your reputation, or even completely subvert the positive culture your company is hopefully trying to cultivate.

So, that’s what we want to talk about today.

Why does this happen? Why is it a bad thing? How do we know when we’re crossing a line? And what do we do about it if we’re surrounded by it?

Enjoy!

Listen to the Episode

MarketHer iTunes Subscribe

What We Talked About

  • How and why do these moments of stress occur?
  • What's the difference between healthy venting and unproductive, victim statement-laden complaining?
  • What are the real consequences of being the unproductive complainer, and how does it impact your reputation?
  • How do you handle those stressful moments productively? Should you not talk about it to anyone?
  • How have we struggled with this in the past, and how do we deal when we need to vent?
  • Why is situational awareness so important?
  • How do you handle situations where others around you are being toxic with their negative statements?

Resources We Discussed

We Want to Hear from You!

First, subscribe to Creator's Block on Apple Podcasts. Second, have a question or an idea for a future episode of the podcast? Let us know! 

Or, you can leave us a comment below! Until next week...

Free Assessment:

How does your inbound marketing measure up?
Take this free, 5-minute assessment and learn what you can start doing today to boost traffic, leads, and sales.

Topics:

Creator's Block
Executives and Leaders
Published on February 13, 2018

Recent Articles

"The farewell episode" [Creator's Block, Ep. 123]
February 25, 2020 • 1 min read
"The power of sharing personal stories" [Creator's Block, Ep. 122]
February 11, 2020 • 1 min read
"Why emotional web design is so important" [Creator's Block, Ep. 121]
January 21, 2020 • 1 min read
"Down with new year's resolutions and rethinking goal setting" [Creator's Block, Ep. 120]
January 7, 2020 • 1 min read
"How do we measure success in our careers?" [Creator's Block, Ep. 119]
December 24, 2019 • 1 min read
"The anti-productivity mindset: How doing less can be doing more" [Creator's Block, Ep. 118]
December 10, 2019 • 1 min read
"How to take client feedback like a pro" [Creator's Block, Ep. 117]
November 27, 2019 • 1 min read
"Why we should all play at work" [Creator's Block, Ep. 116]
November 12, 2019 • 1 min read
"To become more efficient, ask better questions" [Creator's Block, Ep. 115]
October 30, 2019 • 2 min read
5 Creator's Block episodes for when you are in dire need of some self-care
October 16, 2019 • 2 min read
"The Biggest Misconception of Client/Agency Relationships" [Creator's Block, Ep. 114]
October 1, 2019 • 1 min read
"Are Designers Ruining the World?" [Creator's Block, Ep. 113]
September 17, 2019 • 1 min read
"How To Really Win the Afternoon… or Not." [Creator's Block, Ep. 112]
September 5, 2019 • 1 min read
"The Biggest Mistakes You’re Still Making on Your Website" [Creator's Block, Ep. 111]
August 21, 2019 • 1 min read
"Are Voice Assistants the Next Frontier or the Start of Armageddon?" [Creator's Block, Ep. 110]
August 6, 2019 • 1 min read
"10 Bad Habits of Unsuccessful People" [Creator's Block, Ep. 109]
July 23, 2019 • 1 min read
"How to Survive a Company Restructure at Your Agency" [Creator's Block, Ep. 108]
July 9, 2019 • 1 min read
7 Episodes to Listen to On (or Before) Your Summer Vacation [Creator's Block]
June 25, 2019 • 3 min read
"How Minimalism Fosters Productivity" [Creator's Block, Ep. 107]
June 11, 2019 • 1 min read
"Avoiding Empty Promise Purgatory: When Good Intentions Are Not Enough" [Creator's Block, Ep. 106]
May 28, 2019 • 1 min read
"Progress Over Perfection: How Striving For Perfection Hurts the Creative Process" [Creator's Block, Ep. 105]
May 14, 2019 • 1 min read
"Agency Tough Love: When It's Time to Break Up with a Client" [Creator's Block, Ep. 104]
April 30, 2019 • 1 min read
Best Podcasts for Marketers and Creatives to Listen to During Their Week [Creator's Block]
April 3, 2019 • 2 min read
"The Life Changing Magic of Brain Dumping" [Creator's Block, Ep. 103]
March 19, 2019 • 1 min read
"What is 'Hustle Culture' and How Do We Break It?" [Creator's Block, Ep. 102]
March 5, 2019 • 1 min read