The client who CC'd my boss on a fake complaint taught me a hard lesson

Last month, a client in Austin claimed I missed three deadlines and CC'd my manager on the angry email. The thing is, I had every delivery logged in our shared tracker with timestamps. When I pulled up the proof, she backed off fast, but the damage to my reputation was already done. I now send a brief recap after every call and require a written sign-off, has anyone else dealt with a client rewriting history like that?

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linda_butler15d ago

That CYA habit is everything. After a similar mess, I started sending a one line email after every meeting like "Confirming we agreed X by Friday" and honestly it saved my ass twice already. The trick is to keep it SUPER boring and neutral, just facts and dates. Clients hate feeling called out, so I frame it as "just keeping everyone on the same page" not "gotcha." Also, screenshots of the shared tracker with the timestamp circled have shut down two other disputes before they even got to my boss. It feels like extra work at first, but after a month it's just muscle memory.