Paying yourself without starving the business
Owner-pay decisions made in the moment usually break either the owner or the business.
Set a fixed owner salary, weekly
Pay yourself like an employee, same amount, same day each week. Big variable draws make planning impossible and tax season worse.
Take distributions on a schedule, not impulse
Quarterly or semi-annual distributions, sized to actual net profit, after taxes are set aside. The shops that get this right have predictable owner pay and predictable business cash.
Don't fund the business out of your own savings forever
Topping up the operating account from personal money is a temporary fix. If it keeps happening, the business isn't viable at its current pricing or overhead. Fix the root.
Take your version of this question further
This is one operator-tested angle on the question. Your shop, your size, your trade, and your team change the answer. Ask your specific version inside Ask a Shop Owner to get a response grounded in how owners like you actually handled it.