The number looked slightly off,

but it worked in her favour.

Priya was reviewing a spreadsheet before a meeting.

Everything appeared normal at first.

Rows aligned.

Formulas in place.

Totals calculated.

Then she noticed one figure.

A cell referencing the wrong column.

Small.

Easy to miss.

But the result made her project appear more efficient than it actually was.

She checked it twice.

Confirmed the error.

Fixing it would have taken seconds.

One adjustment and the total would change.

The comparison with her colleague’s work would look different.

The meeting started soon after.

Slides presented.

Numbers discussed.

The incorrect figure remained.

No one questioned it.

Her colleague presented accurate results.

Less favourable.

The contrast held.

After the meeting, her manager commented on how strong her work looked.

Priya agreed.

The spreadsheet stayed unchanged.

No follow-up email.

No correction sent later.

The project moved forward based on those numbers.

Her approach was adopted more widely.

Years later, she still remembers that moment.

Not the meeting itself.

Just the small decision to leave one number as it was.

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Confessions podcast | short human stories | reflective storytelling | Simple Stories Project