Them"So what do you charge?"

You"It depends on scope, and I don't want to guess at a number that turns out to be wrong. Most projects like this land between [X] and [Y]. Tell me what you're trying to do and I'll come back with a fixed price."

A range is safe here because you're anchoring, not quoting. Set X at a number you'd genuinely be happy with. Never set X at your floor.

You"It's $6,400 for everything in the scope, half to book the dates and half on delivery."

Then stop talking. Don't explain, don't justify, don't fill the pause. The silence after a number feels like a minute and lasts three seconds. Whoever speaks first negotiates against themselves.

Them"Can you send over a proposal?"

You"Yes. I need twenty minutes with you first, otherwise I'd be writing a proposal for a project I've guessed at. Are you free Thursday?"

Speculative proposals are unpaid work with a low hit rate. The call is the qualification.

You"I'll send the invoice for the first half today. I book the dates once it's paid, and I've got the week of the 12th held for you until Friday."

The held date does the work. It's true, it isn't a threat, and it gives a reason to act now that has nothing to do with pressure.

Them"We've only got $3,000 and that's really it."

You"That's workable. It won't be everything we discussed, so let me tell you what I'd cut. For $3,000 I'd do [core deliverable] properly and leave [the rest] for later. Does that solve enough of the problem to be worth doing?"

Reduce scope, never rate. Same hourly value, smaller project. Cutting your rate teaches them your prices are fiction.

Them"That's a bit more than we were hoping to spend."

You"Totally understand. That's the price for the scope we talked about. If the budget is fixed at a lower number, tell me what it is and I'll tell you what fits inside it."

You haven't defended the price and you haven't dropped it. You've moved the conversation from cost to scope, which is the only place it can be solved without you losing money. Roughly half the time they find the budget.

Them"We had a quote for half this."

You"That's a real option and you should take it if price is the deciding factor. What you'd get from me is [the specific difference]. If that isn't worth the gap for this project, no hard feelings at all."

Never criticise the cheaper option, it makes you sound worried. Giving explicit permission to leave is what usually keeps them.

Them"While you're in there, could you also just..."

You"Sure, happy to. That's outside the scope so it's about two hours, $250, and it doesn't move the deadline. Want me to add it?"

"Sure, happy to" first, every time. The yes disarms it. The price is just information after that.

You"We've added about six hours of extra requests over the last two weeks. I've been absorbing them and I can't keep doing that. From here I'll quote anything outside the original scope before I start it. Nothing's changed about the deadline."

Say it once, plainly, without listing grievances. Naming the pattern is uncomfortable for about four seconds and it resets the entire relationship.

Them"Just a few more tweaks."

You"We're past the two rounds in the scope, so this one's billable. Send everything you want changed in a single list and I'll price it as one batch, which will be cheaper than doing them one at a time."

The batching offer is genuine value and it stops the drip of single-item emails, which is what actually destroys a week.

You"I had the feedback down for the 3rd and it came through on the 11th, so delivery moves from the 18th to the 26th. If the 18th is critical I can look at what's possible, though it would mean rush hours on top."

This is why the dependency line is in the scope document. You're not arguing, you're reading back something they already approved.

You"Hi [name], invoice 0114 was due last Friday. Could you let me know when it's going out? Happy to resend it if that's easier."

Short, unapologetic, no "sorry to bother you." You're not asking for a favour, you're asking to be paid for work you delivered. Send it the day after it's due, every time.

You"Heads up that my rates go up in January. For you it'll be $X, and anything we've already agreed stays at the old rate. Wanted you to know well ahead."

Give sixty days, honour existing commitments, and don't explain why. Explanations sound like a request for permission. Almost nobody leaves over a reasonable increase, and the ones who do were the ones costing you money.

You"I don't think I'm the right fit for how this project's running, so I'd like to wrap up at [milestone]. I'll finish [specific thing] and hand over everything in a usable state. I'll invoice for work completed and nothing further."

No blame, no list of what they did. Leave the work in a state the next person can pick up. You'll be recommended by clients you fired, which sounds impossible until it happens.