What is the right way to say this?
When people say, "hey, I chose not to hire you to do this and now I am stuck on a part I don't know how to do, here's my stuck part, how do I get unstuck? Please tell me for free right now, ahead of your paying clients who made appointments."
How do I tell them that I decline the engagement?
They do it by phone. They do it by email.
I have more work than a human can accomplish. I don't have time to shower or eat dinner with family and sixteen paying clients are ahead of these people in line.
How do I extricate myself politely from the conversation? Because people who chose not to hire me to do this - but hire me sometimes for other things - don't mean to be rude. They know that I know the answer. They know that I could tell them in less than ten minutes...
Now assume in your answer that this scenario occurs 1,000 times a year.
How do I tell them that I decline the engagement?
They do it by phone. They do it by email.
I have more work than a human can accomplish. I don't have time to shower or eat dinner with family and sixteen paying clients are ahead of these people in line.
How do I extricate myself politely from the conversation? Because people who chose not to hire me to do this - but hire me sometimes for other things - don't mean to be rude. They know that I know the answer. They know that I could tell them in less than ten minutes...
Now assume in your answer that this scenario occurs 1,000 times a year.