It's Finally Over

Yesterday marks the end of a year long battle with a client to pay me money that I was rightfully owed. Things didn't go exactly as I had hoped in terms of money... but I won the most important part of the battle. The integrity part.

One thing I've learned from this whole process is to always trust my gut. Trust that little voice in my head that says run... or whatever it tells me to do. None of this would have ever happened if last year I would have only listened I would never have taken on this client. I've learned not to take on clients that are not of like mind with me. In other word clients that don't share a similar (for lack of a better term) moral compass.

I'm not in business for myself to rip anyone off or to be ripped off by anyone. This client, from the beginning, was out for herself. She wanted something for nothing and then tried to say she never hired me in the first place. That's part of the whole moral compass thing. My attorney told me the legal system works if both parties tell the truth. The system breaks down completely when one of the parties lies. Such was the case yesterday and why I didn't walk away with the full monetary value of my work.

What I did walk away with, what I did "win" is that I didn't lose my integrity nor my honor. Also, I didn't lose my dignity. It became very clear to me in trying to negotiate with said client that this whole thing was becoming about who was going to sink the lowest to make their point and I had no interest in sinking anywhere with this woman.

So she got some free work out of me. Big deal. What's worse is the time she stole from me. I can make more money. I can't make more time.