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**Subject: I almost killed the studio over a $40 invoice**

Last Tuesday I spent four hours arguing with myself over whether to chase a client for $40. Forty dollars. I run a six-person design studio and I was ready to torch a two-year relationship over the cost of a nice dinner.

Here's the thing nobody tells you about running a small shop: the small stuff will eat you alive if you let it. Not the big losses — those you see coming. It's the $40s, the "can you just tweak this real quick," the Slack message at 9pm you answer because you feel guilty.

I finally wrote it off. Took ninety seconds. And I noticed something — I'd been treating every tiny leak like it was the dam breaking.

Real talk: most of what I worry about is rounding error. The clients worth keeping don't remember the $40. They remember whether I was a pleasure to work with.

And while I'm ranting — "hop on a quick call" is never quick, and we all know it. Default to async. Your future self will thank you.

What's the $40 you're chasing this week? Hit reply — I read every one.

— Dana