I want to say something up front. I am not writing this to tell you that you can never trust anyone. I trust people every day, and I will keep doing it. Business does not work any other way.
What I am saying is that trust and protection need to travel together. I learned that the hard way more than once, but I’ll share with you two examples today, and I want to save you some of the tuition.
I Moved My Whole Life on Trust
In 2023 I moved my entire life from Columbus, Ohio to Miami, Florida. I did it to chase a business opportunity with a family member. I did not just take a trip or open a second office. I picked up my whole life and moved it. I mean, we're talking about that in October of '22: I got married, and by January of '23, I lived in Miami. I didn't even find out about the opportunity until November of '22.
I am going to leave out the heavy details, because they are not the point and I do not need to relive them here. The short version is that it ended up being a horrendous decision.
Here is what I took from it. Working with a family member does not mean you are safe. I know that is not a fun thing to hear. It is not what we want to believe about the people closest to us. But a family member can still do it to you, and mine did. Looking back, I let the relationship carry weight that clear terms and some protection of my own should have carried.
My Number One Client
The second story is smaller in scale, but it taught me the same lesson from a different angle.
For over a year and a half I worked with a client I will call my number one client. I am not going to name the company or anyone there. That is not what this is about. The work was good, the relationship was good, and I honestly thought we had something solid.
Then it came time for the sale of that business. Our contract had a 30 day termination notice. That is the kind of line you sign, file away, and assume you will never need.
I did not get 30 days. I got 13.
So I asked to be paid for the remainder of the month, since the 30 days of notice was not given. That is when it turned. I was treated as if I was the one who had done something wrong by asking. The notice period I had in writing became something I was supposed to feel bad for bringing up.
Nobody has to agree with how I saw it. I am telling you what happened and what it cost me. It hit my bottom line, and it came from the client I trusted most.
Relationships Are Not Contracts
This is the lesson underneath both stories. A great relationship is real, and it is worth building. But it is not a contract, and it is not protection.
I built a phenomenal relationship with my number one client. I still got hurt. That is what I need you to hear. You can do everything right, be easy to work with, deliver every time, and still end up on the wrong side of someone else's decision. When a business is being sold, or money gets tight, or a plan changes, people tend to look out for themselves first. Your paperwork is what speaks for you when the relationship goes quiet.
The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps. Proverbs 14:15 (ESV)
I read that verse as a call to be wise, not a call to be cynical. Those are two very different things.
What Protection Looks Like
If you are a freelancer, a contractor, a small business owner, or a real estate investor, this applies to you. It applies to the client who pays your bills, the partner on your next deal, and the person you hand a key or a check to. Here is what I do differently now.
Get terms in writing. Not a handshake, not a text that says "sounds good." A real agreement with the scope, the pay, and the exit spelled out.
Enforce notice periods. A notice clause means nothing if you never ask for it to be honored. Be kind about it, but be clear. If you do not value your own terms, nobody else will.
Never let one client or one partner be your whole income. My number one client was great, and that was the danger. The bigger one source gets, the more a single phone call can change your month.
Keep your own runway. Hold cash that gives you room to absorb a surprise without panic. Runway is what lets you stay calm when someone else drops a surprise on you.
Trust but verify. Trust the person, and check the paperwork, the numbers, and the details. Verifying is not an insult. It is part of doing business well.
Protect yourself before you need to. Once the problem shows up, it is too late to wish you had written it down. Do the boring work while everyone is still getting along.
Protection Is Not Bitterness
I want to be honest about where I am with all of this. I am not angry. I do not want to tear anyone down. People make choices, and I made mine too, including the choice to trust without enough protection around it.
My faith helps me here. I can forgive someone and still put a clause in writing. Those two things do not fight each other. Forgiveness keeps my heart clear. Protection keeps my business standing. I need both.
Actionable Takeaway
Take twenty minutes this week and look at your biggest source of income. Ask three questions. Is the agreement in writing? Do I know the notice period, and would I actually ask for it to be honored? And if this one source ended tomorrow, how many weeks could I keep going?
Fix the weakest answer first. Then do the same for any partner you are working with. Trust the people you work with, and protect yourself too.