Rather than trying to explain in different terms, he would REPEAT HIMSELF IN ALL CAPS. (Like the math teacher repeating himself louder, as if your problem was deafness rather than lack of comprehension.)

Finally, I responded to him very bluntly: “I understand that you are frustrated. I am too. I am not stupid, and do not respond well to being treated like an idiot. Please treat me with respect and you will get much better results.”

It worked like a champ. I earned his respect by standing up for myself in addition to doing good work for him, and the relationship has been excellent (and very lucrative) ever since.

Lori, you're too nice to work for a politician!

Eileen, great one. I loathe political discussions of any sort. Too volatile. And honestly, it has no place in a business discussion unless I'm working for a politician (even she kept it politically neutral) or the government.

[hijack]
Wendy, did you get the email I sent you yesterday?
[/hijack]

The woman from a year ago stunned me by bad-mouthing the publisher and then trying to pass it off as a joke when she didn't hear me joining in. She painted the publisher as a self-absorbed narcissist who succeeded by strong-arming others into doing things his way. Yet she was the one who demanded to see the article before I turned it in; when I refused she claimed "everyone else" does it that way. I didn't bend – that's when I realized she'd probably say the same things about me, since I didn't bow to her ridiculous demands.

More recently, I told a potential source the topic of the article, she scoffed and said she didn't see how they stayed in business re-hashing the same things all the time. Later, she said she used to work for the publisher – perhaps I was "re-hashing" one of her old stories?

I turned both situations around and ended up with good quotes. But will I ever willingly call on one of them as an expert? Not if I can help it.