32. It's not about charging your worth: What it actually takes to build wealth
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SUMMARY
Your worth — your value as a human here on Earth — is so much more precious than anyone could afford. So why are we taught to charge our worth? And if that advice misses the mark, what should we be focusing on?
Financial behaviorist, Jacquette Timmons, joins the show today to talk about building the financial success and sustainability you desire.
WELL KNOWN FOR HER FOCUS ON THE HUMAN SIDE OF MONEY, JACQUETTE JOINS INDIA TO DISCUSS:
The dark historical roots of conflating a person’s worth with a dollar amount,
Two sides to pricing that we should be considering in addition to the financial side,
When you should and shouldn’t be concerned with having accessible price points, and
How to take financial risk without being risky.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Pricing isn’t about charging your worth. It’s about understanding what number will make you feel wealthy.
You don’t manage your money. You manage your choices around money.
The three sides to consider when pricing are financial, emotional, and personal.
You shouldn’t aim to be accessible to everyone if it’s going to harm your financial health.
Journaling is a powerful way to get curious and track data about your money-related thoughts.
QUOTED
JACQUETTE TIMMONS
“You don’t manage your money. You manage your choices around money.”
“It’s not about charging your worth. There is no price on your humanity. It’s about figuring out what the value is of what you’re bringing to the table.”
“Value = how you are helping someone to do something, to have something, to be someone that they would not be without what it is you are contributing.”
“If success were just a mathematical problem everyone would have everything they ever wanted.”
“What’s the number you need to see that will make you feel wealthy?”
“You can’t interrupt a pattern you don’t see.”
“I don’t have time to be anything else than myself.”
INDIA JACKSON
“Sometimes the most innovative thing we can do is look at what we already have and figure out how to make it work in the current circumstances.”
“You will create transformative results so much more rapidly working with someone than you can consuming content.”
“Prioritize insight over information; How-to’s will only get you so far.”
The historical context of charging your worth
As two Black women having a conversation about charging your worth, Jacquette and India admit to having a very strong reaction to this phrase. Jacquette brings up the point that historically Black people had a price tag put on their humanity, so her reaction to that is that there is no price tag on anyone’s humanity.
They agree that while many business coaches encourage clients using this advice, it’s important to be mindful about the language they use and we have a responsibility to call people out when they aren’t aware of the impact of their words.
Jacquette mentions that she believes charge your worth is often associated with individuals who are undercharging and over delivering. They see the solution to this as taking charge, valuing, themselves, and raising their prices, when really these things are rooted in comparison.
3 sides of pricing
Jacquette says that the mistake many of us make when it comes to pricing is that we reduce money to pure numbers. In reality we all apply emotions to pricing. Because of that we have to remember that the answer to, “What should I charge,” is more than a mathematical problem.
The three sides of pricing are:
Financial,
Emotional
Personal
Jacquette gives the example that you can get a hamburger anywhere — from McDonald’s to a steakhouse. They all come with a different price point and with that a set expectation about the quality of meat and dining experience.
The best way to back into pricing is to think similarly about how you want to position yourself: budget, standard, mid-range, or premium?
Should your services be accessible to everyone?
India brings up the fact that many entrepreneurs strive to have a variety of price points in order to be accessible. Jacquette says that isn’t a bad thing, but what entrepreneurs have to consider — and often don’t — is whether they can currently do that without sabotaging their own financial health.
She says it doesn’t make you a bad person if you can’t be as giving as you want to be in the moment. By taking care of your own financial situation now, you’re setting yourself up to be able to give, perhaps more generously, in the future.
Jacquette reminds us: When you charge $1000 you don’t get $1000; you get more like $700. You have to ask yourself if that number will allow you to feel good in the way you show up.
If you’re offering something at too accessible of a price point it’s likely you will be resentful of it and people will always feel that resentment.
Building wealth
India referenced Jacquette’s position on building wealth. To that, Jacquette responded that there are 3 ways to do so: start a business, invest in the stock market, or have income-producing real estate.
The most important thing about wealth is asking yourself what number will make you feel wealthy. It’s different for everyone and yet many don’t determine a number to reference.
Jacquette says that one of the best decisions you can then make is to set your business up to meet that number. She says to think about your package of offerings as a portfolio. Ask yourself: What’s taking up the most of my time and energy? How am I charging for this? What should I eliminate based on what I find?
If you’re afraid to charge a certain price, you have to ask yourself what risk you’re afraid of taking. Is it that you’re afraid that someone will push back and you’ll have to justify it? If you don’t know the reason, you can’t take the action.
Jacquette shares that risk-taking can sometimes look like being resourceful and asking yourself: where’s the opportunity here? When things shift (hello, 2020) you need to be innovative without reinventing the wheel.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, Jacquette recommends journaling how you’re reacting to conversations when money is brought up and tracking your money. She recommends doing this not to build a budget, but to identify patterns in your thoughts and behaviors.
How Jacquette flaunts her fire
When asked how she has learned to flaunt her fire, Jacquette points to two specific things: time and grief.
Jacquette says that time has allowed her to feel more comfortable in my own skin and embrace her difference. Going through profound losses and grief has taught her how to have solid boundaries. She now recognizes, “I don’t have time to be anything other than myself.”
Your Action For This Episode
JOIN JACQUETTE IN THE PAUSE ON THE PLAY COMMUNITY FOR A SPECIAL TALK ABOUT VOTING WITH YOUR DOLLARS
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