Ever get stuck in a text exchange where you're talking past each other—or worse, the other person is clearly wrong and won’t admit it?

There's a point at which it's best to move out of the text realm. And you've got two options: try to resolve it in a live discussion or cut your losses.

I'm in the middle of this right now—with a $1200 charge from my accountant. It was for services supposedly done in 2022.

Three years ago? News to me.

I asked for clarification. Accountant says they're cleanup services, which I requested.

Now, my next response would be to ask where I requested those services. But at some point, the other party may just say "you said it." And it goes nowhere.

So do I just pay the fee to keep the working relationship? Do I refuse and then stop working with this person?

The communication’s already in gridlock. A he-said-she-said.

There's no proving anything. Some people are reasonable and say "yeah, you didn't approve that, ok," while others might say "well, we did it, so you owe us."

This kind of standoff isn’t just about money—it’s about energy, time, and deciding when to fight or let it go.

I don't like to admit it, but I do a calculus of asking whether the unfair cost is worth paying. Like the tax of working with someone — they generally do good by you, and just paying this solves the problem even if it's out of principle. I genuinely don't think I should pay this. But is not paying it going to harm me more?

Maybe it's similar to parking tickets. I've gotten parking tickets that are straight-up wrong.

Sent photo evidence. Still got told I was wrong.

So do I go through all the hassle and frustration of further hearings, submitting more proofs, arguing my point — is that worth a couple hundred dollars?

Usually not. It's usually not worth the energy that could be more productively spent making back that money. Better to drop the energy sink and move on.

Cutting your losses isn’t always about giving in—or being right.

It’s about knowing which fights just aren’t worth your energy.

You’ve only got so much attention to spend, and not every dispute deserves it.

You drop it—not because you're wrong, but because you've got better things to do.