It started with a T-Pain song.
I wasn’t looking for it. But there it was: “Chopped N Screwed.” It’s meant to describe a club scene, one I don’t engage in, but underneath the beat and bravado, the lyrics hit on something deeper: the moment you realize you’ve been played.
“And she said it’ll be 60 bucks.”
A man gets flirted with, led on, and then slapped with a price tag. It’s not a scenario I’ve experienced. My first dates are Dutch, no exceptions, but I recognized the feeling immediately.
Because “chopped and screwed” isn’t just a club thing.
It happens in jobs. In relationships. In friendships. In daily life.
So the real question becomes: Why do we keep putting up with it?
Recognizing the Pattern
It’s easy to laugh at the guy in the VIP room who gets hustled for $60. But it’s not as funny when you realize we let people pull the same trick in less obvious ways:
- Your boss promises a raise…six months ago.
- Your partner swears they’ll change, but nothing changes.
- Your friend’s always late, no matter how often you ask them not to be.
- You pay top price for a game, and it launches broken.
- You sign up for a gym in five minutes, but need five months and a lawyer to cancel.
- A mechanic “finds” five mysterious problems after you just wanted an oil change.
Sometimes it’s subtle. Sometimes it’s blatant. But in all cases, you’ve been chopped and screwed.
And far too often, you take it.
The Real Cost of Letting It Slide
Everyone has their own threshold for what they’ll tolerate. I’ve let some things go if they weren’t worth the energy to fix. Others fight tooth and nail even if they’re shorted a dollar. Neither is wrong, until you notice a pattern of being mistreated, and doing nothing about it.
Let me be clear: not every loss requires a war. But when disrespect becomes routine, when being undervalued becomes normal, that’s not humility. That’s erosion.
You start believing that being screwed over is just the cost of being polite. You start expecting to be ignored, lied to, or taken advantage of. You lower the bar because you’re tired. Because “it’s just easier.”
But the damage adds up.
When “Enough” Is the Healthiest Word in Your Vocabulary
There comes a point when the healthiest, sanest thing you can say is:
“I’m not taking this anymore.”
Maybe you don’t yell it. Maybe you don’t even say it out loud. But you act on it.
You leave the job.
You stop answering the texts.
You cancel the subscription.
You stop playing nice with people who treat you like a doormat.
Sometimes, it takes preparation. You don’t quit until you have something better lined up. That’s not weakness. That’s wisdom. But staying stuck in a cycle that chips away at your self-worth? That’s dangerous.
Being chopped and screwed repeatedly isn’t just unfair. It’s unhealthy.
Say It With Feeling. And Action
If someone plays you once, that’s life. If they keep playing you, and you keep showing up, that’s a pattern.
And the only way to break a pattern is to interrupt it. Boldly, clearly, and with your whole chest.
Just like the song says:
“You must’ve flipped your wig. You got to be out your mind.”
Sometimes, the only right response is to stop tolerating what should never have been acceptable in the first place.
Whether it’s a job, a relationship, or a $60 drink scam, the moment you decide to stop letting people take advantage of you is the moment you take your power back.
Don’t just sing it. Mean it.
📌 Changelog
- June 5, 2025: Article re-written to narrow focus of article. Changed image.
- Oct 17, 2008: Original article posted.
