$$ \begin{aligned} \frac{2}{5}x+4 &= -12&& \text{multiply ALL terms by } \color{blue}{ 5 }. \\[1 em]5 \cdot \frac{2}{5}x+5\cdot4 &= 5\cdot(-12)&& \text{cancel out the denominators} \\[1 em]2x+20 &= -60&& \text{ move 20 to the right } \\[1 em]2x &= -60-20&& \\[1 em]2x &= -80&& \text{ divide both sides by $ 2 $ } \\[1 em]x &= -\frac{80}{2}&& \\[1 em]x &= -40&& \\[1 em] \end{aligned} $$

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