If my mother has drilled one thing into my head it’s “Details! I need details!” Her job has, for many years, thrived on making sure all details were in order. So, if I came home with a story of someone I knew and couldn’t answer her questions she would then rail me for not getting the details.

However, looking back, I now see just how valuable this little lesson is. When I first attempted to start selling my work on the side (about six or seven years ago) I didn’t bother myself with details. Neighbors or family would approach me for little projects. I didn’t even think to do homework on the “client” or what might best fit their needs. And the details, or lack there of, came back to bite me every time. Eventually, I would end up spending hours upon hours of time reworking projects because I ignored the details.

Once, I even accepted a logo project where the client was looking for something very specific. He gave me sketches and showed me websites. But, I never spent more than ten or fifteen minutes talking to him before I agreed to the assignment and got down to work. The project quickly became a disaster. Had I spent the time to discover the details, I would have found that the sketch and websites that he sent me were not a true representation of what he had inside his head – the part I couldn’t see that contained the key bit of information relating to a toy he had shared with his brother during childhood. The toy had nothing to do with the business, but the memory was highly important to the feel of his logo. Eventually, he asked for his money back and I gave it to him. I knew that it was my fault. I had missed my chance to get the details.

Details are everywhere. They can be in your client’s head, or their personal history, or even in a single word they say in general conversation. And no matter how small or slight one may seem at the time, you never know if ignoring it will come back to bite you. Now, I take time to listen to my clients talk – really listen and better yet, remember the details. It’s not enough to know the basics of a project for you might then be wasting loads of time on an unhappy client making you and them look foolish.

As for my mother, I have promised her I will try harder to get the details of the stories so I don’t make her so crazy. After all, it’s good business.