Final answer:
Sharon should break the link to the Excel file in the Word document before sending it to the client to ensure the document does not reference the Excel file.
Step-by-step explanation:
If Sharon needs to send a Word document to a client that contains a link to an Excel file but does not want to include the Excel file, she should break the link to the Excel file before sending the Word document. This will ensure that the Word document does not try to reference or update data from the Excel file when the client opens it, as the linked content will no longer be associated with the document. To do this, she can go to the 'Links' dialog box within Word, select the link, and choose 'Break Link'.