Don’t Price Your Worth

In 2015, I attended the Illume Retreat led by Bonnie Bakhtiari. Since then, I have loved watching her branding business grow. She recently posted a blog about Why You Should Stop Charging Your Worth, and it perfectly articulated why I’ve always struggled with the phrase “Charge Your Worth.”

“Know Your Worth” and “Charge Your Worth” are cute, feel-good phrases within the creative community. And they have good intentions, usually trying to encourage business owners to raise their prices. But there is a glaring problem.

My worth has nothing to do with my business.

I believe my worth is found solely in being a child of God. I am who HE says I am. My self-worth and self-esteem must be anchored in something much deeper than the prices I charge for my photography. If it isn’t, I am in trouble every time someone books me or every time someone says I am too expensive.

You see… if I believe my worth is tied to the pricing of the service I offer, every time someone hires me I tie myself to a false confidence that can be quickly broken. And every time I get turned down, I take that rejection personally. My self-esteem would ebb and flow with my bank account, and I would let other people control my emotions.

Pricing has to do with numbers. It is math. YOU are way more than a number. But your business should be priced based on profitability and sustaining the lifestyle you desire.

The pricing course I created has the spreadsheets and tools I used to understand the price I need to charge.

My marketing course covers the tools I use to communicate the value I offer in order to book those prices.

God, and who He says I am, is the only source I need for knowing my worth.