08/06/2026
Story Time…
Last week I had a new house to clean around 95th Ave & Deer Valley. They had just moved in, and she walked me through everything she wanted done. She also asked that I use all of her cleaning products and equipment. Honestly, it’s easier in some ways, but I still feel like I do my best work with my own supplies. Of course, my clients come first!
About an hour into the cleaning, she let me know she had to leave. No problem—I have clients leave all the time. Looking back, though, I have to take some responsibility too. I was in my cleaning zone and completely forgot about payment before she left.
She asked if I accepted Venmo. I told her I usually prefer cash, but I also take Zelle, Apple Cash, Cash App, and PayPal. She said she had Apple Cash. My first mistake was not asking her to send the payment before leaving. We were already more than halfway done.
When I finished, I texted to let her know. She replied, “Okay, I’ll send the payment when I’m done with my meeting.”
🤦🏽♀️ I immediately thought, “Here we go…” 😂 But I replied, “No worries. Thank you!”
A few hours passed…nothing.
Then she texted saying her Apple Cash wasn’t set up and she’d have to wait until her son got home to help her. I totally understood—I struggle with technology too!
Later she texted asking, “Is this you?” with a screenshot of my PayPal name and phone number. I confirmed it was.
My second mistake: I should have asked her to send $1 first to make sure everything worked. I’d never had a client pay me through PayPal before.
You can probably guess what happened… 😏
The payment never showed up.
I checked my PayPal account and realized it still had an old phone number attached to it. I updated everything, but by then it was too late. I did receive the email saying she had sent the payment, but when I tried to accept it, nothing transferred.
I reached out and apologized, explaining what happened. She chose not to cancel and resend the payment, which is her choice. So now I’ll wait the 30 days and hope it gets returned so she can send it again.
Lesson learned! Every experience teaches us something. From now on:
✅ Payment before I leave if the client isn’t home.
✅ Test PayPal with $1 if it’s a first-time payment.
✅ Double-check all my payment accounts regularly.
Owning a small business means learning as you go. Some lessons are just a little more expensive than others. 😂
Hope everyone has a great day!
