“Our discomfort in discussions about money as well as our beliefs about our personal/businesses’ worth often lead to an impasse in our business development which is hard to overcome.”
One of my favorite books on this subject is T. Harv Eker’s, “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind.” He makes hundreds of insightful points about a person’s limiting beliefs when it comes to money but there are two in particular that really hit home for me.
Honestly, for some people I’ve told to read the book they shared sentiments that it seems a little “cult-like” since he’s trying to reprogram your mind and how you feel about money. However if you can just embrace it for what it is and appreciate the message I think it’s a wonderful and powerful tool especially when trying to come up with a pricing strategy for your business.
This book has brought people close to me to tears because it opened their eyes to the reality of how the things they thought they wanted and were hoping to achieve had nothing to do with their own passions but about proving something to the world.
Two of the major topics he brings up that are relevant to ousting these negative mindsets:
- Our limiting beliefs about money in general which often are passed down from our parents, peers, and other people who influenced us growing up affects our drive to pursue bigger and better things.
- Our unwillingness to receive money and/or not believing we are worthy to receive large sums of money prevents us from ever letting these opportunities into our lives.
In the book Eker states,
“You have inherited your thoughts and beliefs about money from various sources – and in order to reach a new level of success, you must identify those limiting beliefs and replace them with more powerful, more useful beliefs.”
Most often these beliefs stem from our parents. For example, how did your parents react when someone won the lottery? Were they angry? Supportive? Or how about when someone with money like a pro-athlete signs a huge contract?
You often hear people say things like “money is the root of all evil,” “getting rich takes too much work and struggle,” or “rich people did something bad to get the money.”
However, the majority of people with money do a great deal to help others. And most negative comments like this come from people who never had the money or truly believe they are not supposed to or are not worthy of having money.
You must do what you can to remove these limiting beliefs about money. Until you truly believe you are worthy to receive a large sum of money you never will be able to handle it. Often people who are presented with the opportunity before they are ready will self-destruct or self-sabotage simply to avoid what it might mean for them. How we feel in our own head will shape our future more than the outside world. Eker puts it best in the book when he states, “Your inner world reflects your outer world.”
One final point about self-worth. If you lack the confidence or belief that you, and by proxy… your business, are worthy of the sale it usually won’t happen or if it does only at a far lesser value than you should have priced it for. Make sure you actually do have a business, product, or service that is competitive and professional within your market. What I’m saying here is do not completely dismiss your feelings of uncertainty if they are valid. Your product or service should be solid before you will ever feel confident trying to sell it.
So, get out of your head, stop letting other people’s beliefs about wealth determine your own. Until you remove limiting beliefs you will have a very difficult time establishing pricing for your business that truly puts your value and worth at the forefront pricing your products and services.
For those questioning worth or having a problem talking about money, ask yourself one important question, and really think about it.
Why are you in business? Or, What is your reason for being in business?
9 out of 10 people can identify a why, other than money if they seriously consider the question. Yes making money and holding onto a larger piece of the pie is most certainly a huge benefit, but it’s not your only or primary motivational factor, especially when first starting out.
You work a job because you want or need money.
You focus on a career because you want or need money and have a passion or interest in a particular topic, industry, or type of job.
But business owners, are different.
We take our passion, our interest in a particular profession, industry, topic, etc and transform this into a revenue generator for ourselves as well as our employees.
We provide value to the world and many times provide a service that is unique because we are the ones delivering it.
Every business helps someone in some way solve a problem or fulfill a need. Shifting your mindset to focusing on the satisfaction and peace of mind you provide will put things into perspective. What you charge should be competitive of course, but it must also, first and foremost, take into consideration the value your business provides to others. And that should help transform the mindset from one surrounding dollars to one surround value. That, in my opinion, removes many of the uncomfortable feelings, thoughts, or beliefs inherited about money, wealth, and whether you are worthy of receiving the earnings and fruits of your labor and effort.
This article is part of a 7 part series I’ve put together to help you effectively price small business services:
- Getting Rid of Limiting Beliefs About Money
- Creating a True Cost Analysis of Your Business
- Avoiding the Pricing Push (overpricing)
- Avoiding the Pull to Cheapen Your Worth (underpricing)
- Pros and Cons of Time-Based Pricing
- Pros and Cons of Value-Based Pricing
- Monitoring & Grow While Maintaining Pricing
Keep in mind, these concepts should be considered in their entirety and all are critical to developing a well-rounded marketing plan.
