Feeling undervalued, you know your fees should be more than you charge? Are you underpaid, not getting the money you know you deserve? No matter how many times you tell yourself not to do it, you discount your prices for that one client. That one client soon becomes every client and before you know it, you’re barely breaking even. Stop discounting and stop devaluing yourself!

You started your own business to make money. Face it, no one works for fun. We all have bills to pay, unless of course you inherited some very, very large sum of money and in case, you wouldn’t be here reading this!

So, why do you knock off part of your fees, every.single.time? Often times, the reason is because you don’t value yourself. This happens often when money is running tight and you just want to land that client to pay the next bill. (Guilty!) Thinking you can’t afford to hire yourself, you offer a discount to your clients. You find yourself living client to client.

Desperation directly affects Confidence. As you get desperate for money, you lose confidence in yourself. You start charging a little less to everyone and before you know it, you’re not making as much as you were. Now you’re going downhill instead of moving up.

Stop! You must first value yourself. You set your prices, whatever they may be, for a reason and it’s important to stick to it. Pay it forward is great and all, but you can’t give away everything. You are in this business to make money, not to live paycheck to paycheck. If you give it all away, what are you going to do to make money?

Do not assume. You do not know anyone’s financial state. Everyone wants a deal, no one is going to offer to pay you more than you ask. Do not assume your next contact can’t afford you!

What can you do? Offer a payment plan instead. Spread your fees over 3-4 monthly payments if needed, but don’t go around giving out discount to everyone you encounter. By charging what you feel you are worth, you will build your confidence. Knowing your value, you will be able to sell your product or service to those that need it. Those are the clients you need to target, the ones that value you and are willing to pay you, not the discount seekers!