diff --git a/tgbot.js b/tgbot.js
index 05dc522..6607a60 100644
--- a/tgbot.js
+++ b/tgbot.js
@@ -282,7 +282,17 @@ async function handleUpdate(update) {
           await dm(chatId, `✅ Linked to position #${rec.id}!\n\nFrom now on:\n💰 You get a DM the moment your position catches a payment\n📨 Team messages reach you here — reply to answer\n🎉 You're pinged when someone joins on your link\n\nTry: coach · team · links — or: msg <id> <your message>\n📱 Tap the ☰ menu button (next to the message box) to open your full dashboard right inside Telegram — no login needed.\nYour weekly 20-minute digest arrives Saturdays 10am Central (rhythm to adjust).`);
           return;
         }
-        await dm(chatId, `That link code is expired or already used. Get a fresh one from the Messages panel on your dashboard: https://rmcircle.team/my`);
+        // A dead code from someone who is ALREADY linked is not a failure — it
+        // is usually a stale link they tapped twice, or an old one left over
+        // from an earlier attempt. Telling them it "expired" right after we
+        // confirmed their link reads as a contradiction and sends them back to
+        // the dashboard to redo something that is already done.
+        const already = chatMember(chatId);
+        if (already) {
+          await dm(chatId, `✅ You're already linked to position #${already} — nothing more to do.\n\nThat code was an older one (link codes are single-use), but your link is active. Try: coach · team · links\n📱 Tap the ☰ menu button next to the message box for your full dashboard.`);
+          return;
+        }
+        await dm(chatId, `That link code has expired or was already used — they're single-use and short-lived.\n\nGrab a fresh one: open https://rmcircle.team/my → Messages → sign in with your wallet → "Connect Telegram", and use the newest link.`);
         return;
       }
       await dm(chatId, `👋 This is the RM Circle companion bot.\n\nTo link your position: open your dashboard (https://rmcircle.team/my), sign in to Messages with your wallet, and tap "Connect Telegram". That proves the position is yours — no passwords.\n\nOnce linked you get payout pings, team messages, and your share links right here.`);