If you’ve worked in the creative profession for any length of time you’ve probably encounter nightmare clients. Hopefully you’ve been able to weed them from your life. You know the type. The ones who demand premium quality work on an absurdly tight deadline, but don’t want to pay top dollar.

Or worse, they nickel and dime the project to death, they miss client meetings and reschedule calls over and over. They are constantly changing the scope of the project or art directing it to death. Or, heaven forbid, all of the above.

What usually ends up is a steaming pile of mediocrity and an unhappy client.

They are toxic to our business and our soul. Sometimes we even need to fire them.

Any of this sound familiar?

We despise this kind of behavior in our clients, so why do we do tolerate these same antics with ourselves?

We want to produce high-caliber work, but rush to get it done—or settle for “good enough.” We skimp on materials. We keep promising ourselves that we’ll get to it tomorrow. We procrastinate over and over. We blow off studio time. We start one way, then change it, then change it back again. Or, heaven forbid, all of the above.

What usually ends up is a steaming pile of mediocrity and an unhappy artist.

Worse still, sometimes it gets personal. We ignore our loved ones. We ignore our health. We replace sleep with coffee—or worse.

Time we started being our own best client. And perhaps we have to begin by firing our old selves.