Entrepreneurs struggle to value themselves. The trending attitude in culture says that selling is stealing. To charge for what you sell is to take advantage of the buyer.

Here are 8 reasons that attitude is dead wrong.

1. Your own Value and Ethics

If you are doubting the value of your products or service, or if you’re having difficulty charging for them, that is enough evidence that you’re an ethical person. You’re not the type of person who will take advantage of your customers or your team.

That’s good, but you can still probably charge more for whatever it is that you sell, and still be fair while doing it.

2. No Exchange is One Dimensional

There is no such thing as a sale that benefits only the seller.

There are people in the seller’s life who benefit from the money. For example, my wife and daughter benefit from our mortgage being paid, and having food in our refrigerator. Meeting those needs requires that I sell something. Beyond family, there are the people that I am able to help when I have resources to spare.

There are people in the buyer’s life that benefit from the purchase. My wife and daughter benefit when I pay for food and shelter.

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re assuming that only you benefit from the exchange.

3. Your Independence Depends on it

We have a wrong headed concept of independence. We think that it means not needing anyone. In reality it is the freedom to choose when to pay for someone else’s skills, or to do it yourself. I am a chronic do-it-yourselfer, and that tendency has been the complete opposite of freeing for me. My DIY habits have lead to more stress than most other things in my life.

No matter how much money you have, you only have 24 hours every day, 7 days every week, and 365 days every year. Fear of charging for your goods and services steals your independence because:

• You have to spend more time at work to bring home the same amount of money.
• You get cornered into Do-It-Yourself projects that you don’t have the time for.
• You loose time DIY-ing because you’re slower than a professional.
• You can’t hire new team members so that work takes less time.

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re losing your independence.

4. Your Family Depends on it

Your family needs you to conquer the fear of charging. They don’t just need the benefits of food, shelter, and safety that money brings. They need you. They need your time. They need the investment of your energy into them. If you’re stuck at work or stuck DIYing something that you shouldn’t be, your family is losing.

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re stealing from your family.

5. Your Customers Depend on it

Past profit is what helps you hire new team members today. Past profit is what helps you survive financial droughts. But you won’t make a profit if you don’t charge fairly. If you’re here to meet your customers’ needs today but out of business tomorrow, you let your customers down because you didn’t charge enough.

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re failing your customers.

6. Your Confidence Depends on it

There’s a strange chicken and egg relationship between confidence and pricing. You’re confidence empowers you to charge more, and your fee builds your confidence. Charging too much makes you cocky, charging too little…

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re destroying your own confidence.

7. Your Growth Depends on it

Profits made today allow you to expand your team tomorrow. As your team grows, so must your leadership skills. Kind of like in weight lifting, you have to lift heavy if you want to get stronger. You won’t be a leader if you have no one to lead.

If you want to grow personally as a leader, you need people to lead. If you want people to lead, you need to grow your business. If you want to grow your business, you need to charge more.

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re hampering your own growth.

8. Your Dependability Depends on it

You may have noticed a theme in the way that I labeled the sections above. Your family, customers, independence, confidence, and growth depend on your pricing.

If you aren’t charging enough for what you sell, you’re not dependable.

Add Your Voice (comment below)

1. What is holding you back from charging more?
2. Which of these reasons to charge more is most impactful for you personally?

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