hey friend 💌 

it's been a minute. actually, it's been 56 days. but who's counting?
(me. i'm counting. and the guilt has been eating me alive.)

i'm writing this from my hairdresser's chair while my roots get touched up because apparently being a founder means taking calls while wrapped in foil. it’s giving baked potato.

but enough of the pleasantries because i’ve got a lot to say today.

here's the thing about disappearing for almost two months: everyone assumes you're falling apart 🫠

but sometimes you're not drowning… you're actually swimming! deep in the trenches of building. sometimes the quiet isn't death, it's growth 🌱and sometimes we need to stop performing progress to actually make some.

so let me catch you up on what’s happened in teague media since our last july 4th newsletter, including:

💸 why i fired a difficult client (and why energy vampires are more expensive than you think)
🚀 savvie's latest step on the evolution from notion doc to real app
✈️ going back to oregon for the first time since grad (cue the waterworks)
🧾 my first quarterly tax payment + the insanity of self-employment taxes
📱 onboarding 50 creators in a month without losing my mind

grab a coffee. or wine. and let’s close out august together in style ↓

savvie by teague media

💸 savvie tip of the week:
the hidden cost of difficult clients (aka mental energy vampires)

last week i fired a client.
not because they weren't paying enough.
but because difficult clients are way more expensive than you think.

the client who trusts you:
→ gives feedback
→ pays your invoice on time (crazy, huh?)
→ takes up 2% of your mental real estate

the energy vampire client:
→ questions every decision
→ wants endless revisions
→ sends 3am anxiety emails
→ takes up 73% of your mental real estate
→ literally feeds on your will to live <3

but that 71% difference?
that's where your growth lives.
that's where new ideas form.
that's where you build the things that matter.

i wasn't just servicing one difficult client. i was letting them monopolize my brain.

the real math: one energy vampire client = the mental space of five great ones

as if only to prove that thesis, within days of closing that chapter:
→ i signed 2 new clients who trust my expertise
→ i pushed forward on savvie wireframe reviews!
→ i remembered why i love what i do (and that i’m pretty good at it!)
→ my personal favorite: i stopped dreading their next email

mental energy vampires don't just drain your time. they drain your ability to invest in yourself, your growth, your actual goals.

they're expensive in ways that don't show up on spreadsheets but will absolutely show up in your life.

this week's money medicine: the vampire audit

we all have energy vampires. maybe it's not a client for you. maybe it's that friend who only calls when they need something. the coworker who makes every meeting feel like a root canal... the distant relative who you meet and somehow makes you question every life choice you've ever made.

here's the audit. list the main people/commitments in your life.
next to each, write:
→ energy they give you (1-10)
→ energy they take (1-10)
→ how you feel after spending time with them

if you feel drained after every interaction, you might have a vampire problem.

is there anything in your control to change the dynamic?

can you set boundaries? limit exposure? in extreme cases, is it possible to remove yourself entirely? because here’s the thing…

your peace is part of your profit margin.

whether that profit is money, happiness, or just the ability to get through tuesday without wanting to scream.

📱 building in public (+ having a blast)

app update: from "what's a splash page?" to wireframes ✨

confession: when our ux/ui designer first starting throwing the term ‘splash page’ around, i was legit picturing that section at SeaWorld where you get drenched in water.

turns out it's actually the first screen you see when opening an app.
the one with the logo.
revolutionary, i know…

bless her heart, miss girl is so patient with me.

but here's the wild part. building an app is actually fun??? and is the most creative process ever.

check out this progress after just 5 hrs each week ↓

• early july: a notion doc and a dream

• mid july: brought on our incredible ux/ui designer who explains things to me like i’m five with a smile without making me feel dumb

• august: wireframes coming to life (!!!!) we're really doing this!!

we've now built:
→ the splash page (which i now understand!)
→ onboarding that doesn't feel like tax forms (you’re welcome)
→ first three wireframes of actual functionality
→ zero panic attacks because this is actually exciting

watching this evolve from random notion pages to real screens is like watching your idea learn to walk.
except instead of a baby, it's a financial wellness app.
and instead of a parent, i'm a 24-year-old girl with a credit card and a dream.

2026 launch feels far away but we're actually building something real and the feeling is indescribable!

this week in teague talk creator strategy

🎬 how twitter's ugc community changed everything for us

the last month has been insane around here.

we onboarded 50+ new creators into our roster. fifty. five zero.
and it's all because of ugc twitter.

seriously. the community over there is unmatched. one tweet about looking for creators and my replies exploded with portfolios.

creators supporting creators, sharing opportunities, actually showing up for each other. all on twitter (i refuse to call it X)

how we're managing the beautiful chaos: started using brkaway for creator management and comms for one of my clients. it's literally everything in one place. automated reminders. no more "which brief was this?" emails at midnight. agency owners everywhere exhale

but the real magic? the ugc community that made this growth possible. if you're not tapped into ugc twitter, you're missing out on the most supportive corner of the internet! these creators don't just make content, they really build each other up.

shoutout to everyone who retweeted, referred friends, or submitted their portfolios. y'all are the real MVPs.

🧠 what i’m loving rn

trend: "corporate trauma dumping" where people share their worst workplace moments.
here’s my swing at bat: you know you started your career in capital markets when your accountant calls you 'extremely organized' and you almost cry

tool: the 2 VAs i just hired (shoutout the dream team hazel + cyrll!!) because delegation isn't giving up, it's growing up 🌟

quote: "you can't pour from an empty cup" said every wellness influencer ever… but they're not wrong

new client win: signed an app i actually use daily. when you genuinely love the product, the content creates itself. revolutionary concept, i know.

referral reward update: exclusive resources startin’ at 3 shares!!

✈️ going back to the beginning

next week i'm going back to oregon for the first time since graduation.

college was an insane season of change and discovery. like seriously a lifetime of learning crammed into four years. oh and a mere pandemic curveball in there for my friends doing the math in their head.

22 year old me thought i could be a banking girlie forever (spoiler alert that literally lasted 18 months) and had no idea teague media would exist.

i had no idea i’d have my dream job at 24. and not because i landed a cool contract or got lucky, but just because i took a chance on myself and kept my nose to the grind.

22 year old me felt like she had little to look forward to.

but everyday now i look forward to what’s to come ☘️ life’s weird.
i couldn't imagine running my own thing and just 2 years later, i can’t imagine not running my own thing.

there's something beautiful about returning to places that knew a different version of you.

eugene holds all those versions of me: the finance girlie, the new testament scholar, the sorority girl, the cru member, the stressed student… the person discovering who they actually wanted to be.

excited to go back and soak in the memories. see how far we've come.

(go ducks 4ever and go character development)

🏢 updates from HQ

the last 8 weeks in bullet points:

• onboarded 50+ creators (and counting!)

• fired one energy vampire client (W)

• signed 2 new ones including an app i'm obsessed with

• hired 2 assistants (delegation era activated)

• built actual savvie wireframes with our amazing designer

• revenue up despite firing clients

• survived july and most of august (it’s the 29th…can’t celebrate too soon)

savvie app progress: from notion dreams to actual wireframes. seeing the splash page (which i now know is a thing!) made it feel real. 2026 launch, here we come.

coming in q4: money mindset ebook. think "financial therapy meets gen z reality." early bird list opens next week!

💭 lessons from the trenches

here's what the past two months of building has taught me:

• your brain can only hold so much — evict accordingly.

• building something real > posting about building.

• asking "what's that?" doesn't make you dumb.

• quarterly taxes will humble you no matter your education.

• some months are for doing, not documenting.

your mental space is your most valuable currency. protect it like the irs protects their money.

💚 made it this far?

that’s all for this week.

thank you for still being here after my 56-day disappearing act.

thank you for understanding that sometimes the work happens offline.

thank you for caring about the unglamorous middle of building something real (including the part where you write painful checks to the government).

next week i'll be back on schedule. probably. unless i'm having nostalgia spirals in eugene. or onboarding creator number 83. or googling "what happens if you don't pay quarterly taxes" for the 47th time.

but that's the thing about building something real. these things don’t quite follow a content calendar!

it follows life! and life is messy!

it’s quiet sometimes and loud others. but it’s always worth sharing when you resurface.

talk soon (and by soon i mean actually soon this time),

callie 🤍

p.s. — if you see me and my dad in eugene next week getting emotional over a two towns in rennie’s, the gen z in me wants to say no u didn’t,,, but i’m never in the pnw. so say hey if you’re in the 541 next wknd 🥂

p.p.s. — the ebook is going to be $27 but reply "early bird" and i'll put you on the list for $17. because you stayed despite the silence (and because i need to recover from that aforementioned tax payment).

p.p.p.s. — currently my hair is processing and lexie (my hairdresser) is 100% reading this over my shoulder. hi lexie, thanks for letting me be the weird client who works during appointments. and for being the one who just asks about your cats.

forward to a friend who needs permission to fire their energy vampire client.
follow @withsavvie + @teague.media for proof of life between newsletters.
+ reply with your own tax trauma bc misery loves company and i love validation.