The BizChix Podcast: Female Entrepreneurs | Women Small Business | Biz Chix · Natalie Eckdahl, MBA

619: Setting and Holding Boundaries in Your Business

·30 min·1 clip

Do your clients know your boundaries? Natalie starts in the messy middle of business, where raising prices, building a retainer business or high-ticket project business, serving clients, and carrying a full home life all pull from the same capacity. This is not about acting tough. It is about using policies, contracts, and plain language so the business does not wobble every time a client assumes the work has expanded. Boundaries show up in small, uncomfortable moments. A client may not really ask for extra Instagram captions. They may arrive as if that work has already been handed over. Natalie names the business issue without dressing it up. If the service is blog writing, the answer can be no without a long speech about focus, specialization, or personal preference. Elizabeth feels the awkwardness right away. She wants to soften the no, because the client is coming in like yes has already happened. Natalie does not wave that off. She uses it to show how women can get pulled into defending business decisions that are already settled. The coaching stays practical. One answer is simply to say the business does not do Instagram posts and thank the client for asking. It may sound blunt at first, but too much explaining can invite a debate instead of holding the boundary. Contracts carry some of that load too. Natalie points to 60 days notice, early-exit terms, and buyout options as tools that protect the client relationship and the owner's stability. A 14-day exit window feels risky. A 60-day notice period gives the business room to adjust instead of letting the whole client base shift at once. The episode is calm, specific, and very much about keeping the business enjoyable, profitable, and sustainable.

As heard by us

Boundary-setting becomes practical when policies, contracts, and a direct no support a steadier business.

Natalie Ekdahl and Elizabeth Cook turn boundary-setting into something practical, not abstract. The discussion is strongest when it moves from reassurance to the mechanics of running a business: clear policies, solid contracts, and a clean way to say no without overexplaining.

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Why you'd press play

If clients keep stretching your scope, this gives you cleaner words and firmer lines.

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