Are you clear on your boundaries in your business?
I was working with one of my favourite clients, she is a well established business woman, energetic, focused and highly driven. We were working on her business, she was growing but it was lacking foundation and visibility.
In one of our sessions we looked at her client base and some of her clients had not paid her for work she had completed. Even though she had contacted them on several occasions she still did not receive payment, it sounded like my client had not set her boundaries (and policies) clearly enough.
It prompted me to ask her some challenging questions and once we dove into this topic a little bit deeper we uncovered something quite interesting.
It turned out she was (without being aware of it) under-valuing herself and her services on a regular basis. She was telling me that when she submitted her quotes for jobs and the client would say “oh this is a bit expensive” she would quite often drop her price. This type of behaviour was not only present in business but in other areas of her life as well.
You see me client wants to be liked by everybody…. the reality is not everyone will like you.
We adjusted her strategy, implemented some steps that would give her confidence when having to address the payment or pricing issue in the future.
Soon after, my client contacted me to tell me about one of her clients she had recently quoted, the client rang her and said “your quote seems a bit pricey”, her response this time was different instead of reducing the price she stepped him through the value they would be receiving. She concluded the conversation with “I will leave it with you and let me know when you have made your decision”.
Within two hours she received a call back that she had won the job.
This is one of many stories, if you don’t believe in yourself enough or your product or service then how will your clients? If this question and story triggers some discomfort within you it is time to explore your belief systems and re-invent your communication from a new and stronger position.
Sarita, Business Mindset and Strategy Coach