Showerthought: Overheard a plumber say 'paper trails don't leak' and it clicked for me

I was grabbing coffee last Thursday and this older plumber was telling his apprentice about chasing payments. He said "paper trails don't leak, but verbal promises sure do." Made me think about all the times I let a client say "yeah I'll Venmo you later" and then had to text them 4 times. Last summer I lost $750 on a small roof patch job because I didn't have them sign a simple invoice at the end. Now I make every single person sign something before I leave the ladder. Does anyone else have a dumb rule like that you stick to no matter what?

3 comments

3 Comments

kelly_rivera5d ago

Noticed the same pattern with people who say "my word is my bond" the loudest. Those are usually the ones who forget your handshake deal by the next Tuesday. But the guy who quietly hands you a written estimate and waits for you to read it before saying yes? That one shows up on time and pays what we agreed.

angela7285d ago

Respectfully, I've seen it go the other way too. Had a contractor who handed me a three page estimate full of fine print, real professional looking document. Then he didn't show up for two days and tried to charge me for materials I never agreed to. Meanwhile the old timer who just looked me in the eye and said "I'll be there Tuesday at 8" has never missed a single deadline in ten years. Sometimes a handshake is just a handshake, not a character test.

hunt.hayden5d ago

@kelly_rivera hit it right on the head. The whole "my word is my bond" thing is usually just a line they use to sound trustworthy without actually being it. I've learned to watch for the small stuff instead - like if they show up with a pen and paper to write things down, or if they actually read the contract before signing. The quiet ones who double check the numbers and ask follow up questions are the ones who stick to the plan. Handshake deals always sound good in the moment but written stuff saves you the headache when they forget what they said.