I Said “No Problem” Twice Today. Both Times, There Was a Problem.
And I am blaming no one but myself.
Welcome to Weekly Receipts — a weekly honest reckoning. Not a highlight reel. A real look at who I was this week, what it cost me, and what I am taking forward. Because awareness is where everything begins.
Receipt #1: The Starbucks Mug
I walked into Starbucks this morning the way I always do — mug in hand, ready for my discount. You know the deal: bring your own cup, get RM 3 to 5 off. I handed my mug to the barista and he asked, “Do you have a voucher?”
I said no. Confused, but I said no.
He charged me RM 16. I almost walked away — I usually skip the receipt — but something made me take it. And there it was. Full price. No discount.
I pointed it out. He explained that bringing a mug counts as the “voucher” he was asking about — he needed me to say yes for the discount to apply. A miscommunication. Technically, nobody lied. But I walked away paying more than I should have.
And then I said it. “No problem.”
There was a problem. I was the problem — for assuming he knew what I meant, for not asking the right question, for not watching the screen, and for letting myself off the hook with two words I did not mean.
Receipt #2: The Grab Driver
That evening, I finished my shift and it was pouring. I booked a Grab to the LRT. By the time the driver arrived, the rain had other plans. I asked if we could change the destination to my home instead.
We could not change it on the app. So we made an arrangement — he would mark the trip complete for RM 7, and I would pay the difference for the longer route. I had checked earlier: home was RM 28. We settled on RM 30 total, including the RM 7 already charged. I was clear. In my head.
My gut said something was off. I ignored it. I did not repeat the agreement out loud. I did not confirm we were on the same page. I just got in the car.
When we arrived, I handed over RM 23 — the balance after the RM 7. He pushed back immediately. He thought RM 30 was on top of the original charge, not inclusive of it.
I paid RM 30. Unhappily. And then I said it again. “No problem, it is just money.”
It was not just money. It was me abandoning myself. Again.
“The universe sent me the same lesson twice in one day. I failed both times. That is not a coincidence. That is a curriculum.”
The lessons I am keeping
1. Assumptions are expensive.
I assumed the barista knew what bringing a mug meant. I assumed the driver and I understood the same agreement. Neither assumption was confirmed. Both cost me.
2. Say the agreement out loud.
Especially when money is involved and there is no paper trail. Recap the terms. Make sure both people are nodding at the same thing.
3. Listen to your gut before it becomes your regret.
Something felt wrong in that car. I knew it. I got in anyway. My gut was not being dramatic — it was being accurate.
4. “No problem” is a habit I am breaking.
Saying it when there is a problem is not kindness. It is self-abandonment dressed up as politeness. I am allowed to acknowledge when something is not okay — without blowing up, without blame, but honestly.
I am not angry at the barista. I am not angry at the driver. I take full responsibility for both situations. That is actually the point of this whole column — not to vent, but to look clearly at who I was in those moments so I can be someone different next time.
You cannot change what you refuse to see. And you cannot see it if you never stop to look.
That is why we are here. Every week. Checking our receipts.
Salima
Just me thinking out loud over here