Clients who think they know everything are a pain to deal with. They are usually very confident about their knowledge and abilities. They think that they can do everything themselves and don’t need help from anyone.

A good example would be when you ask them if they need any help with something and they say ‘no’ or ‘yes, but I can handle it myself’. This can be difficult to deal with because it can be frustrating having to deal with such clients.

They might not mean to be condescending, but their confidence can come off that way.

It's important to remember that they're not wrong—they have the right to be confident in their own skills and know-how. But it's also important to remember that clients are paying you for your expertise, so even if they think they don't need it, it's still your job to help them out.

Tips

There are a few strategies for handling clients who insist on doing everything themselves, or who don't want to listen to your advice.

  1. First, it's important to realize that some clients can just be stubborn, or have different priorities than you do. You can't change the way they are; you just need to find out what those priorities are. If your clients want something done a certain way because they have a different understanding of what "good" means than you do, then they need to be able to articulate why they think their definition is more valid than yours.
  2. When you work with 'I-know-it-all' clients, it can be tempting to get frustrated because they don't listen to your advice or suggestions. But remember: you're there for them, not the other way around. Make sure your client knows that while they might not always agree with your recommendations, they still value your opinion and want you to be an active participant in the process.
  3. If they have a lot of ideas, ask them if they've tried any of them out before or if they have any examples they can show you of what they mean by "this" or "that." If not, ask them if they're willing to run some tests so that you can see how things work together.
  4. Explain why certain things won't work (or why they'll take longer) in simple terms so that your client understands why it's not possible—or at least what steps would need to be taken first before moving forward with their job plan (if possible).