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I Don’t Talk About This Publicly Often. But This Is Exactly What Nobody Prepares You For.

A client payment is now 60 days late.

Here’s every step we took — because if you’re in this situation right now or you ever will be, this is the playbook.

Step 1. Business manager, not you
After a few follow-ups, I handed it off. My business manager sent the first formal notice with the subject line: [ACTION REQUIRED — 1st Attempt Payment Status]. That’s part of why you build a team. The relationship between you and the client doesn’t get awkward over money because you never made it personal.

Step 2. The CEO call
When that went nowhere I made a direct call myself to get more information. What I found out: the person I’d been dealing with the entire time wasn’t the decision maker. She was the middle man. This is critical information we didn’t have before.

Step 3 — Formal escalation
My business manager sent a follow-up email: [ACTION REQUIRED — 4th Attempt Payment Status] with a clear message, if no response this week, we want to speak to someone who approves the payroll.

Step 4 — Intel gathering
We researched the owner and their representative directly. We called past clients who had worked with them. We connected with someone who had a personal relationship with our client and gave them a heads up about what was coming. This step is underrated because it creates soft social pressure before you ever file anything legal.

Step 5 — Small claims prep
Internally we started the paperwork for small claims. Before we filed, we received confirmation that the payment is arriving July 15th.

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What actually made this survivable

None of this would have felt manageable if my expenses weren’t already covered. Below are some financial goals I set to ensure I can survive these moments

What actually made this survivable

None of this would have felt manageable if my expenses weren’t already covered.

I keep at least 2–3 months of operating expenses in a separate account at all times. When I say operating expenses, I mean both business and family operating expenses.

In this example, your minimum emergency fund target would be about $16,000.

The exact number will be different for everyone, but the concept is the same:

Add up your monthly operating expenses.
Multiply by 3.
Keep that amount separate from investing, growth plans, and opportunity capital. A simple money market account is fine.

That account isn’t there to make money.

It’s there so one late client payment, one slow month, or one unexpected expense doesn’t force you to make emotional decisions.

Your emergency fund buys time and time is one of the most valuable assets a business owner can own.

If you’ve been here — or you’re here right now — I want to hear about it.

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After Hours 🌒

A client has been late for 60 days here is…