A quiet signal that you can be trusted. The test that decides whether you get bigger work.
"It is just a small detail. Does it really matter if I do it my own way?"
It matters more than the detail suggests
The short answer: following instructions exactly matters because it is how a client measures whether they can trust you, before they have any other proof. I followed my client's resume format carefully because I understood that following instructions carefully is itself the test. A small instruction done perfectly tells a client you will handle their brand, their deadlines, and their customers the same careful way.
The detail is rarely the point. The point is what your handling of the detail predicts. Reshape a simple instruction to your taste, and the client quietly wonders what you will change without asking on something important. Follow it precisely, and they relax. That relaxation is trust, and trust is what gets you the next, bigger thing.
After you have followed well, not instead of it. Your ideas are valuable, and there is a right moment for them: once you have proven you can be trusted with direction. Earn that with precision first, then suggest gently. Trust first, ideas second.
Hold steady, BFF Team. We keep going together.
– Lala