It is easy for us to blame our frustration with a particular project on the client. Like it or not, we often think of clients as a necessary evil to the work we do. I know thats a sad way to think, but we all know its true.

I have no doubt that many, if not all, of you have experienced the “client from hell.” You know the one Im talking about. The one that has no sense of style and wants everything “bigger and shinier.” Or perhaps they change their mind about the project every step of the way. Regardless of the story, the end result is always the same, frustration to the point you want to shoot yourself in the head.

Now, I want to propose something and please don’t shoot me in the head for it.

What if, in fact, you are the client from hell?

By that I mean, what if you are the real reason behind the frustration?

Think about this for a minute; most of your clients probably come to you with no experience in how the design and development of a website works. They may have some ideas, preconceived notions, and maybe even a touch of experience. But, for the most part they are uneducated in the matter.

So, it stands to reason that if we fail to educate our clients from the get go, we are in fact doing them a diservice. We are allowing them to become the client from hell through our own doing.

I encourage you to take a step back and review you client education process. How much do you educate your client? What sort of tools or materials do you give your client to educate themselves with?