Last month I lost a client I didn't expect to lose.

Not because I did bad work. Not because of some big falling out. It just didn't work out. That's the business.

But it still stings. You still replay the conversations. You still wonder what you could have done differently.

And then you check your cash flow. And you feel that tightness in your chest.

When you run your own thing, the weight is yours. Every decision. Every risk. Every quiet Sunday night when you're running numbers instead of relaxing.

I've had months where three clients signed in one week. I've had months where the pipeline went quiet and I questioned everything.

I've worked with clients who energized me. And clients who drained me. I've learned the hard way that not every engagement is worth taking, no matter what it pays.

This is the stuff you don't learn unless you go through it. The emotional weight of running a business isn't defined in a playbook, it's not X's and O's. It's sometimes luck that comes with a Hail Mary. Other times, it works out just like you planned.

It's also what makes me good at what I do.

When a founder tells me they're overwhelmed, I don't just nod sympathetically. I know what that feels like. I've been up at 2am staring at a spreadsheet, trying to figure out how to make the numbers work.

When a CEO is struggling with a difficult personnel decision, I get it. I've had to make those calls too. I know the weight of it.

When someone is stuck in the chaos, making decisions from fear instead of clarity, I recognize it. Because I've been there.

Running my own business didn't just teach me about operations. It taught me empathy. Real empathy. The kind you only get from going through it yourself.

I'm in it too. Same as you.

I've felt the highs of landing a big client. I've felt the lows of watching one walk away. I've made smart decisions and dumb ones. I've trusted my gut and been right. I've ignored it and paid the price.

All of it makes me better at my job.

Because when you're sitting across from me talking about the chaos in your business, I'm not just listening as a consultant. I'm listening as someone who knows what that weight feels like on your own shoulders.