When Your Pastor Becomes a Client
Pastors are a significant part of our lives, and we should do our best to ensure that we don’t offend them for any reason. Unfortunately, many people have lost their pastors because they entered a business transaction with them. I have had many issues with many pastors or people who occupy pastoral positions in society and I have equally record some success with others. To avoid doing business with them is hardly realistic. So, wisdom is to get doing business with your pastor right. On Brojid Money this week, I will share with you lessons I learned from my failure and successes to arm you with five practical things you must get right when your pastor becomes a client to avoid a fight.
Be Sure You Can Deliver
Before you to take a job from your pastor, please be sure you can deliver. Don’t accept the job ‘by faith’. Accept it because you know that you can deliver what he wants.
Your pastor may have used testimonies of people who got jobs they are not qualified for to teach you favour, but he wouldn’t want to hand over his pregnant wife to an unqualified doctor or hire you to design a website for him when you can’t deliver.
If you can’t do a job, don’t allow pride or your pastor’s belief in you make you take it. If you are still getting started, make it clear too. When your pastor becomes a client, you must minister quality service to him! That’s the least of what you should do for him.
One reason why you should not accept to do a job you can’t really do from your pastor is that that’s being a fraud. The second reason is that that experience will seriously affect your reputation before him such that even for the jobs you can do, he may not trust you to be able to do it.
The third reason is that it is wickedness to collect someone’s money for a service, yet fail to deliver. Jesus Christ teaches us to do unto others what we will like them to do to us.
No matter how close you are to your pastor, he believes you in you or the impression you have of him not having high taste, your primary duty is to ensure that you deliver quality service to him in record time the same way you would have to anybody like company executive or governor of a state.
You are forbidden from doing shabby work just because he is your pastor. Pastors are still humans and still have tastes. When they become your client, they are customers and should be treated as such.
Now, there are times that your pastor will be among the first few people to patronize you just like family and friends. In that case, let your price reflect that you are just starting so that in case of blemishes he can fix it with the shortfall in your price.
Be Clear About Your Expectation
Next is that you should be very clear about what your pastor wants from you before you start. This is a common business sense, but it’s even more important that you observe this when the client you are dealing with is someone you have a relationship with that you don’t want to lose.
Without clarity of what they want, there is a big chance that you will end up not satisfying him. The dissatisfaction of a customer is the root of troubles when pastors, friends and family become a customer.
Moreover, when you are not clear about what your pastor wants from you, you may overcharge him and scare him away or undercharge him and get into stuck.
So, don’t be in a haste to swing into action. First, be clear about the details of your job, it’s called a brief. Don’t assume when you are not clear, ask him questions. It’s may appear laborious but that’s nothing compared to the damage of losing a valuable relationship with him.
Now, when you are clear about what you want from your client, decide whether you are offering your service for free or at a cost. Many of your pastors are so used to getting things free that they don’t ask for how much what they want will cost.
Asking Your Pastor to Pay You
Some even assume that your services and product are offering to God. That’s yours to decide. But don’t just assume he will pay and how much he will pay, tell him your service charge! You can give him a discount; but don’t ever think it’s a sin to ask for money in exchange for your services.
I have encountered pastors who make it look like you are doing evil by charging them for your services or products. But don’t ever feel guilty charging your pastor for your services. You are not stealing from them, you are solving a problem they have or meeting their needs.
If you choose to use your service as your tithe or honour to your man of God, good for you. Don’t be scared of asking for your payment. Your pastor doesn’t fuel his car by favour, and he should have enough sense not to emotionally blackmail you into giving your service for free.
As usual, you are not likely to charge your relations or people you are close to the normal price. So, feel free to give your pastor that discount. Truth is that if your pastor is a confam pastor, you can’t quantify the value he is giving you. You can’t!
So, use every means possible to do them good as a ‘thank you’ for the good things they have done for you. Just be clear that there is NOTHING wrong with charging your pastor and I don’t consider responsible for assuming they will pay instead of telling them how much they should pay.
I have seen people complain that they expected their pastors to know that they should be given at least fare for coming to do some work for them or giving them something to encourage them in exchange for their services.
Let your last complaint be the last! You either make up your mind to expect nothing from your pastor or clearly state what you want in exchange for your services. When you don’t state your price, a typical pastor thinks that the Lord sent you to bless him without them equally blessing you.
It’s common sense to make the terms of the blessing clear to in a way that there won’t be any confusion! When you choose to charge him, let him know the blessing you will deliver and the financial cost of it.
For clarity, the fact that you are charging for your services doesn’t mean you weren’t sent to bless your pastor. The fact that God led you to acquire certain skills, knowledge and develop expertise is a sure sign that you have a blessing to share.
Making it available for your pastor at a fee doesn’t diminish the blessing. Have you imagined what it will be like if you refused to become a home lesson teacher? Your pastor will have difficulty getting one for his children. Making yourself available makes you a blessing, not that you don’t charge him money!
As usual, your pastor will ask for a lower price. He will haggle and tell you how there is no money and that the work you are doing is for the kingdom. That’s no big issue. Just know that if you undercharge him, you won’t be able to deliver a good job for the kingdom, you will hurt kingdom people and lose kingdom relationships.
So, be clear on the expectations and charge a comfortable price and allow him to decide whether to give you the job or not. You must not do every job; don’t do the one that will ruin your name!
Many times, pastors don’t have money on the ground for the project they are embarking on which they have hired you to do. That’s not terrible. We all believe God for provision.
However, so that you don’t run into trouble, be sure of at least down payment that will cover the cost you will incur in the course of service delivery or production. That way you are able to deliver on time and wait on God with them for the balance.
No doubt, these things may be hard to do, but insisting on them is a way to ensure that you don’t get the relationship with your pastor so damaged that you can’t hear him when he is preaching.
You can be sitting in a church but the pastor’s words won’t mean anything to you. Have you wondered why some people who are very close to your pastor dey fall hand on some matter you expect pastor’s right-hand people to have outgrown? Na see finish o!
My point?
When your pastor becomes your client, focus on satisfying him. Don’t take jobs you can’t deliver. Be clear on your expectations from each other. Don’t be afraid of charging him for your services, it’s not a sin. No matter the haggling, don’t undercharge unless you want to make it up with your money. Make your payment plan in such a way that you won’t get stuck because of lack of funds or get forced to deliver a shabby project. Deliver top-notch service, God will reward you and the Pastor will recommend you for more jobs and you will be happy with yourself.
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