You know what show made astrophysics sexy? The Three-Body Problem. (I didn’t read the book, but I really enjoyed the Netflix version - that is pretty unusual for me…) Anywho, three celestial bodies locked in an unpredictable gravitational dance where the math is literally unsolvable. Chaos theory in IMAX.

Now here's the part where I ruin the metaphor for you:

You've got three bodies in your little solar system:

When they're all in a nice stable orbit?

Sweet Sassy Molassy!

The work flows. The team delivers. Sleep visits you gently every night. Checking your emails or texts does’t make you feel like the bill collector is chasing you. Life is good.

Then some shiny new client or opportunity wanders in like a rogue planet, and suddenly everybody's orbit goes haywire.

You land a bigger fish.
Maybe they're in an adjacent industry.
Maybe they're 3x the size of your typical client.

Your team. who's been killing it, suddenly doesn't know what the hell to do. The client's internal team is more sophisticated than what your people are used to. The deliverables are different & the expectations are different. It’s like gravity is different.

Your team is drifting & getting pulled toward this new client. (Damn gravity…) Their usual orbit is wonky. They ask more questions, they move more slowly (on old clients and new) because they lost their mojo when somebody moved the furniture on them. Instead of feeling all feng shui’d, the change from this new client is making your team say “Fucking shit…is this right? Do we have to change how we do this with other clients too? Why do these people expect us to justify every decision and opinion - our other clients just BELIEVE us!”

Meanwhile, you, the person who already has 47 things on your plate, has to figure out how to stabilize this whole freaking planetary system before everything crashes into each other in a spectacular fireball.

It's paralyzing. And I get it. I've been there.

A million years ago, we landed One Medical as a client. It was awesome. They were great. But they were different. They were selling doctor’s visits and subscriptions while our expertise was in driving ecommerce purchases and matching in-store purchases with ad clicks…

It all made sense to me. We had great experience in tracking web & in-store purchases for The Source, Joe Fresh & Woodcraft. Logically, this was the same - we track ad clicks and match them up to appts and subscriptions. Same mechanism.

But the language, ad approvals, timing, and reporting needs were just different enough that One Medical knocked my team ass over teakettle. I wanted to jump in and take over One Medical - after all, I landed them. I knew them and I could see the bright line connection between what my team did really well and what they needed.

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Here's what most founders do (and what I REALLY wanted to do):

Both of those are wrong.

Reworking all your SOPs because one client doesn't fit perfectly? That's like redesigning your house because you bought a new couch.
It’s an overreaction and a complete waste of time.

And your team will resent the chaos.

Stepping in and running the account yourself? OMFG, you just became a $250/hour project manager. Plus, as a bonus, your team learns nothing, they see you make choices and decisions that they wouldn’t or can’t and your team will resent the chaos you bring to their world. As a double bonus, you amp up the burn out odds for yourself, and as a RARE TRIPLE BONUS, the second you step away, the whole thing collapses.

I'm serious. The solution is orbital mechanics.

If you've made the strategic decision (and this IS a strategic decision, not a default one) that this new client type or opportunity is going to be part of your universe going forward, then for a short period (6-8 weeks), you become a moon orbiting both your team and your client.

Here's what that means:

Pre-call: You brief your team. You give them context they don't have yet. You help them see around corners.

Post-call: You debrief. What went well? What did they miss? What does the client actually mean when they say "we need more strategic thinking"? (Spoiler: it usually means “yo - we already know that stuff, show us something smart”)

Client-side orbit: When you swing around to the client's side (because you are going to do a strategic check in with your champion & if you can, their boss), you are gathering intel & impressions. You aren’t managing the relationship but listening and understanding what your team needs to to do in order to level up. You bring that classified eyes-only intelligence back and help them implement it.

You are scouting & preparing mission intelligence. You are coaching & advising. You act as a gravitational stabilizer. You mitigate the gravity storms and solar flares.

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When you play this moon role correctly, two things happen simultaneously and they're both strategic as shit":

Nothing about what we do is truly standard. What we're really building are operational frameworks with desired results. Your job is to insure that everyone on the team knows what the outcome needs to be, and they each own their part of getting there. That's not a procedure. That's ownership.

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Here's the part most people gloss over:

This only works if you've deliberately decided this new opportunity is worth the gravitational disruption.

Not every big fish is worth catching (many will crash your spaceship). Not every new industry is worth learning (deeper insight is better than broad opinions). Some clients are rogue planets that will tear your whole solar system apart no matter how good your moon game is.

Before you start adjusting orbits, sit down and answer one question:

Is this new client type or opportunity going to be a repeating pattern in our future, or is this a one-off that's going to drain us?

If it's a one-off?

Politely decline, refer it out, or set very clear boundaries on scope. Protect your current orbit.

If it's the future?

Then go full moon. Six to eight weeks of increased involvement, thoughtful coaching, and deep behind enemy lines intelligence-gathering. Then pull back as your team finds their new orbit.

Your agency's three-body problem isn't actually unsolvable. It just feels that way because you're trying to solve it without understanding that your orbit needs to grow in order to keep the universe stable. Around your team, to your client and back. Around your team, to your client and back.

No panic-hiring, disruptive process overhauls, or jumping in elbows deep and fucking around with your team’s mojo.

The real solution is elegant and seemingly peaceful. Become a moon, coach your team, learn the client type and return to orbit when everything is stable.

Three bodies. One deliberate orbit adjustment. Zero interplanetary catastrophe.

Like I read 10,000 times to my kids, “Goodnight moon, goodnight stars, we will make this client work no matter how weird they are…”

The best marketing ideas come from marketers who live it. That’s what The Marketing Millennials delivers: real insights, fresh takes, and no fluff. Written by Daniel Murray, a marketer who knows what works, this newsletter cuts through the noise so you can stop guessing and start winning. Subscribe and level up your marketing game.

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