Let’s say the hardest thing first: if you raise your fees, it’s possible you may lose some clients. And I hear the fear over losing anyone. However, if you raise your fees by ten percent or less, it is likely that you’ll lose very little business. (And it’s also likely that if someone leaves over a small fee hike, they were likely going to leave soon anyways.) Still, it’s possible.

Yes, you could lose some clients if you raise your fees – even if you raise them by a small amount. AND this could be an appropriate and good thing. You’ll make more money (and have more time!) working with fewer clients who pay you a higher fee than if you work with everyone who pays you a lower fee. Think of it this way: You must make room for higher-paying clients by letting go of some lower-paying clients at the bottom.

I once presented a rate-setting seminar to a group of therapists, and the possibility of losing clients due to a rate hike was the hardest part for them. Some of them had worked with the same clients for many years without ever raising their fees. They felt that they owed it to their clients to not raise their rates. But this is simply unreasonable. You must raise your fees by about 5% each year simply to keep pace with inflation. Where does it say that we should put our client’s needs in front of our needs and our family’s needs? Where is it written that we should sacrifice ourselves on behalf of our clients? Low fee clients exact a price paid for by our increasing deprivation.

Your lower paying clients will decide on their own if they can afford you, but no professional, including therapists and other healing professionals, should promise her clients that she will never raise her rates. Remember, if nothing else, you have to raise your rates to keep from falling behind.

Our relationships with our clients are very powerful. We may sometimes become very wrapped up and enmeshed with them. We can honor and care deeply for them, but if you don’t take care of yourself financially, the quality of your work will suffer. It makes little sense to deprive yourself in order to help others. Low fees contribute to the syndrome of the wounded healer.

Of course raising fees is difficult. It feels very emotional. But we owe it to our clients to raise our rates fairly and regularly. If you are doing great work and your clients are getting results, they will rarely leave you over a 10 percent rate hike. But sometimes it happens. Time to breathe deeply.

TIME TO EARN MORE?

If you would like to earn what you’re truly worth and step into greater abundance, please see Mikelann’s Unlock Your Earning Power toolkit.   Identify what has been holding you back, learn the skills to ask for more and start earning at your true potential. For both self-employed and salaried women.

Here is a common question I get from women who are wrestling with what they charge: “How can I justify my price?” But let me ask you a question- who are you justifying your price to? The truth is that there is only one person you have to justify your price to.

Yourself.

Coming up with a price is a combination of many factors such as what similar service providers charge and what the market will bear etc. And you don’t have to charge what everyone else charges.

You can also charge more than others if you can check off one or more of the following. Provided, that is, that YOU believe in your own prices.

• You’ve got a lot of experience.
• You’ve got a great relevant educational background- certifications etc.
• You provide a specialized service.
• You get results for your clients.
• You are primarily driven by referrals

I share this list merely to help you “justify” your price to yourself. It’s to make you feel better about your fee. Because you don’t need every bullet point. You only need ONE. If you have a lot of experience, then rest easy about your price. If you’ve invested in your training, then you should charge good money and feel good about it. If you are brand new, but you get great results for your clients, then I also want you to feel great about what you charge.

Now I realize that you are not perfect, and it’s likely that your service is not perfect either. Getting caught up in the pursuit of perfectionism is a huge hang nail for good girl service providers. You’ll simply never attain perfection. And because we are not perfect, we fret about our fees. But tell me this:

Do you think that the results your clients gain are worth more than the cost of your service?

If the answer is yes, then rest easy.

So when you tell prospects what you charge and the type of results they may gain from your work, this is not about justifying your price. You are helping them make an educated decision. You are looking for a win-win. They will decide whatever they decide. You can’t control that. (Sorry.) If you feel good about your price, and stand firm, then people will self-select.

Ultimately, this is about convincing yourself. You are the only one you have to justify your price too. People will either take it or leave it. Not everyone will be able to afford you. And not everyone is a good client for you. (And some may not be a good fit for your service.) You simply want enough people to pay your fee, but you don’t need everyone to pay your fee.

The only person you have to justify your price to is yourself. If you feel good about your fee, then this will come across.

Try this: grab a piece of paper and list five benefits of working with you. How are people’s lives or businesses better as a result of your work or product? Then ask yourself, are these benefits worth more then what you charge? If the answer is yes, rest easy. You’ve justified your price—to yourself.

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Want more help transforming your relationship to money? Check out all the eBooks, audios, and more robust products Mikelann has created. Are you ready to break free of the “money fog” and step into earning what you are worth? Are you are ready to get in touch with your emotions so you never feel out of control around money again? Are you ready to love your financial life? Let Mikelann help you get there. Free items are at the top of the page.

Well, the year is coming to a close. I’m beginning to think more and more about next year. (Anyone else ready to let go of this year?)  I am working on my 2010 personal annual spending plan. How much money am I planning on spending in 2010? Jeepers- there are a lot of things I need and want next year.  So before I started plugging numbers into my annual plan, I got a big cup of coffee and got out a blank sheet of paper.

I want you to get a blank sheet of paper too. Title it NEEDS AND WANTS

On the left side of this sheet I want you to write “2010 NEEDS” at the top. On the right side I want you to write “2010 WANTS”. Then I want you to dive in and brainstorm along three lines:

• What is all the STUFF you need or want? (material items)
• What are all the SERVICES you need or want?
• What are all the EXPERIENCES you need or want?

Part of this exercise is simply writing down everything you need or want. Think about your home. Do you need or want new furniture? What would it take for you to love your home more? Think about your self care. How can you improve your self care?

Put down how much each item would cost. Guess where you have to.

The other part of this exercise is deciding what is a “need” and what is a “want”. This is different for all of us, but the exercise of actually having to write something down on one side or the other is powerful.

For example, on my list I wrote down “secretary desk” on my wants side. But after thinking about it, I realized I needed it. In my new house I have no where to put all the damn paper that comes in. (I’m still getting settled.) I’ve had to stash the mail in the linen closet when company comes over! So I’ve got to get some systems in place quick. The bakers rack is more of a want. I want laser hair removal. I want to get a tree removed from my front yard. On second thought, given its leaning nature, maybe that is a need.

I’ve gone back to my needs and wants list three different times now. Each time I refine it and add to it. Sometimes I move a need to a want or vice versa. I dream about things. I want, for example, another bedroom on my house. That may not happen in 2010, but it doesn’t change the fact that I want it!

Take some time and really play with this. This exercise is deceptively simple. But when you open up to what you truly need and want, and look at how much it costs, it is one more connection to looking at the money we earn. I’ve had many clients use this exercise as an incentive to raise their fees or launch a new income stream.  It also helps you prioritize how you really want to spend your money.

Dream. And share with us—what did YOU put on your needs or wants list?

In my own personal Mastermind group last week, I sat around a large table with other business owners and contemplated 2009. Yikes. What a year. Some of us had a very hard year and some of us were doing okay. Personally, I’m eager to jump into 2010 and start planning it. But my group forced me to reflect for a moment (for an hour!) on 2009. I had to answer questions like, “What was my biggest achievement in 2009 in business and/or my personal life?” And “What was my biggest disappointment in 2009 in my business and/or personal life?”

How would you answer those questions?

Hmmm. Well, it feels like this year has been a very “interior” year for me. My biggest achievement was buying my house. My biggest disappointment was that I didn’t teach some classes I wanted to. The truth is that I’ve been focused on the home front and my new single life.  Big changes, to be sure. It’s been a crazy money year too. Some income streams were down and some were up.

What do you notice about 2009? What did you achieve? Focus on that for a moment!

Here are five more questions for you. (I adapted these from my Vistage/ Mastermind group.) Read them and share how you would respond:

1. What is one thing that if you STOPPED doing, would help you earn what you’re really worth?
2. What is one thing that if you STARTED doing, would help you earn what you’re really worth?
3. What is working that you want to continue doing next year?
4. What isn’t working?
5. What are your self-limiting beliefs that prevent you from earning more money? (Yes, I know, that’s a big one.)

I know they’re all big questions.

Regardless of how you answer them (and I’m curious to read your answers!) it’s important to stop and think about this year. What is working and what isn’t? If you can’t name what isn’t working, you can’t shift it.

One year, in answering these questions, I reflected on the fact that I didn’t have enough time to work ON my business. You know- time without clients. I felt scattered and I felt behind. If I STOPPED being so scattered, maybe I could actually find the time to blog and market. What I decided to START doing is to devote one day a week to working ON my business and not see any clients that day. My Mondays were born.

I haven’t seen clients on Mondays in five years. That is my day to read, write, prep, market, and catch up. Sure I do some of that on other days too. But now, I actually look forward to Mondays!

Bonus: I don’t work on the weekends. I know I have Mondays to prep.

So what about you? What are your reflections for 2009? What worked and what didn’t? What are you going to start or stop doing so you can move into 2010 and really earn what you’re truly worth?

Get out a piece of paper or open a new file and write out your own answers. Have a good cup of tea and really think about this. Then jump back on my blog and share some of your answers.

There I was, in Bed, Bath & Beyond, contemplating using a credit card. Horrors!

I am, first and foremost, a money coach. And as such, I’ve spent ten years working with people on their relationship to money—needless to say; this is a complicated and emotional relationship! And one of the most emotional aspects is in how we spend. (Remember, it doesn’t matter how much you earn if you spend it all!)

This is explored in the hot new field of neuroeconomics—the merging of neuroscience and economics. Wait! This IS really fascinating! Keep reading! This field studies WHY we buy. @amandasteinberg of www.dailyworth.com turned me on to a great article called Your Brain on Shopping, which explores this inner battle between our pleasure and pain centers. (I’ll get back to Bed, Bath & Beyond in a moment.)

It goes like this—as you know, we are all motivated by pain and pleasure. These really are our two base motivations. So when we shop, there is a war between the pleasure of acquisition and the pain of paying for our pleasure. We want the fabulous new couch table in distressed red-painted wood, but we don’t want the pain of paying $459 for it. Ouch! (Can you tell this is a personal example? Surly you all know by now I just bought a house!)

Truly, our brain battles this out at an almost unconscious level. And retailers know this battle very well. For example, they know that if they can stimulate your pleasure centers in general by giving you free food samples, you will move more fully into that part of your brain and seek even more pleasure—pleasure from buying. From this perspective, pleasure can act almost like a drug. You experience pleasure and then you want more pleasure. Rest assured, this is very human.

And we all know one thing: pain sucks. Pain is to be avoided. One of the best ways we’ve come up with to avoid pain is to use a credit card. If you use a credit card, you are delaying the pain of paying. There! Now you can buy the perfect couch table and not have to pay for it right now.

I’ve read countless studies over the years that all document how much more people spend when they use a credit card. In the Your Brain on Shopping article, they also document this.

Check it out:

In a 2001 study, two professors at MIT’s Sloan School of Management held an auction for tickets to a sold-out Celtics game, and divided subjects into those who must pay cash within 24 hours and those who must pay with credit cards. The credit-card buyers were willing to bid on average up to twice as much as the cash buyers, they found.

Wow. TWICE as much. It is sooo true.

Now, I’ve been a money coach for over a decade and I’ve helped countless people get out of credit card debt. But it usually comes down to unhooking them from using credit cards in general. (Once you have no credit card debt, it is possible to use credit cards wisely, but for many people, this is not possible even then. Don’t kid yourself.)

I don’t like to use credit cards. I simply pay as I go. I have a lovely spending plan that has guided me to greater and greater heights in my life—increasing my earnings and making many things possible. I truly loath credit card debt.

And yet…. I just bought this house. I am hemorrhaging money. Was it all planned? Yes. Well, okay, there were some unplanned things that happened. I didn’t anticipate the kitchen plumbing project, for one thing. And all the new light fixtures.

And curtains. I have to buy curtains for every single freaking window in this house. Good curtains, since I can’t upgrade my windows until next year. So I’ve been buying curtains, trying them out for color, and returning them, for nearly a month—looking for the perfect curtains. And I put these purchases…. on a credit card. My rationale was that I was buying and returning them constantly.

On Saturday I was at Bed, Bath & Beyond, looking at their curtains. And I realized with a jolt that I had fallen into a typical problem. Their curtains were much cheaper than what I had been purchasing at another store. Why hadn’t I looked around more? Why had I simply bought curtains at this other store? Why? Because I put them on a credit card. I swear—if I had put those other curtains on my debit card, I would have thought deeper about how much their curtains cost….

And while we’re on the subject of Bed, Bath and Beyond, let me share this—In this article on brain and shopping, George Loewenstein, (professor of economics and psychology at Carnegie Mellon University) shares several tips. One is to keep moving and not buy too much in one store. Why? Because you may experience what he calls “decreasing sensitivity to losses.” He says “Especially if you’ve spent a large amount, say $100, at a store, you don’t want to start buying a bunch of small stuff, because it will start feeling free. If you go to another store, it won’t feel free.”

So there I was, at Bed, Bath & Beyond, cruising the aisles. (Danger, Will Robinson!) I had just put in my cart a $100 electric hand broom—think of a dust buster with a large handle so you can sweep your floor without using a broom and a dustpan. Oh, I wanted it! A hundred bucks. Then I looked down at my cart and saw three small baskets, a set of hooks, a curtain tie back, and the perfect spice rack. Hmmm. They seemed like such small purchases next to the dust buster. And I really wanted that dust buster!

For a moment, a small part of my brain said the word “credit card”. Amazing! Me! I don’t even like the damn things! Well, except I’ve had that curtain experiment going on…. So I sat there and calculated the cost, knowing it would come out of my bank account almost as soon as I went through their checkout line. Oh the pleasure of those goodies. Oh the pain of paying for them.

The baskets went back, and the cute closet hooks.

I left the store and immediately bought a huge yummy latte—my pleasure center demanded it.

The lesson in all of this? Yes, we really do spend more when we use our credit cards, so don’t use them. I know people go on and on about free airline miles and better security with a credit card, but study after study tells me that they are evil. (And only 20% of Americans use their credit cards and pay them off in full each month. So if you are in that 20%, good for you. But please realize that you are in a minority of the population. Don’t advocate this practice in general. It’s very dangerous for most people.)

And spending is emotional. Don’t pretend it isn’t. The best way to get in touch with your pleasure and your pain is to pay as you go and use your debit card.

(I returned the expensive curtains and put them back on that credit card. A zero balance is a beautiful thing.)

This is from Cristina Adams, editor,  Daily Worth blog. Write this on a 3×5 card and post it to your mirror!

You’re Not on Sale
You are not Filene’s Basement.
Nor are you a 60% off end-of-season sale.
So don’t offer your skills and services at bargain-basement prices.
Do the research and find out what you’re really worth.
Then ask for it.
And don’t settle for less.

Repeat this over and over!

TIME TO EARN MORE?

If you would like to earn what you’re truly worth and step into greater abundance, please see Mikelann’s Unlock Your Earning Power toolkit.   Identify what has been holding you back, learn the skills to ask for more and start earning at your true potential. For both self-employed and salaried women.

Sometimes it feels like we work so hard to make money—and then we subtly sabotage ourselves. Maybe we overspend, or we just don’t make enough in the first place– our work efforts become inconsistent, or we just drop the ball on something. And then we blame ourselves! So what is this really about? Why would we do anything that didn’t completely support our desire to have and keep more money in our lives? After all, we’re working hard!

Well…. It’s likely linked to an unconscious money belief. What you believe about money—deep down—affects your behavior. What you experienced as a child around money informed your earliest beliefs about finance.

If, for example, you grew up hearing your parents fight about money, you likely connected money to pain and conflict. You developed an early belief that money can harm relationships. As an adult, you may think many wonderful things about money. But if a part of you still believes that money can cause pain (it made mom cry), you will likely sabotage your efforts at making money, at some point.

Most of us were raised by parents who did the best they could in their individual circumstances. This isn’t about blame. It’s about trying to figure out what our buried beliefs about money really are—where did they come from and how do they affect us?

Here are some questions to ponder and journal on:

How was money handled in your family? Was there enough money? Did your parents fight about money or was it handled in secret? Did your family have any sayings about money? (For example, “Money doesn’t grow on trees, you know!”) Did your parents model different things than they actually said? If you had to guess, what would they (the people who raised you) say the “point” of money was? Was money for luxuries and spending, or only for necessities? Was it okay to spend money on yourself, or only on other people?

Remember, the biggest battle is to figure out what you believe about money in the first place. You can’t shift what you believe if you don’t know what you believe.

Laura’s Story

Laura grew up poor—very poor. As a little girl, she has vivid memories of her parents fighting about money. One time she remembers hiding in a closet and listening to her mother cry while her father screamed about not being able to buy a better car after their car broke down (again). She learned quickly to “disappear” when her parents talked about money or paid the bills.

When she was eleven, her mom gave her twenty dollars to go to the corner grocery store and buy some groceries. Laura agonized over the few purchases, trying to make the money go as far as possible. When she returned with her purchases, she felt proud and grown up. But when her mother unloaded the grocery bag, her mom became upset at how little Laura had purchased and how much money Laura had spent on the bread. Sick inside, Laura vowed to do better next time.

As an adult looking back on these experiences, she realized she had many money messages that wreaked havoc in her life. For one, she believed that money did cause pain, as she had seen it upset her parents. As an adult, she hid from money, keeping it as far from her as possible. Of course she had never thought about this. She didn’t mean to keep money away from herself! But just thinking about it brought up old feelings. And she also realized that one of her money messages was that it was best to get by on as little as possible. Keep your needs small so they are easier to satisfy. Laura also realized that deep down, she didn’t feel she could be trusted with money.

As Laura wrote and processed her money history, she began to make many connections as to how she handles money as an adult. And she began to see how it fueled her underearning. She wondered if one of the reasons she didn’t make more was because she didn’t trust herself with money—and besides, she kept her needs so small that she didn’t need to make a lot of money….

What do YOU believe?

So what do you believe? Do you believe it is possible to be “good” with money? Do you believe there truly is enough money and that you deserve to have money? If your parents did not give you these beliefs, it is still possible to believe and experience this. But you have to be more conscious about it. Be clear about what messages you inherited. It’s not possible to change what you believe until you get clear on your money beliefs in the first place. From there, a whole new world opens up where you get to consciously decide what you believe and how you want to live. I believe that the more conscious you are about your money beliefs—both the old beliefs you are ready to let go of, and the new beliefs you want to embrace, the more abundance you can allow into your life.

Want more?

In September I am offering a four week class on writing your personal money autobiography. We will uncover your money beliefs so you can shift your relationship to money. This class is amazing. If you like journaling and are ready to dig down and see what you really believe, so you can earn more with ease, join me. If you register before September 1st, you may register for $149. I’ve limited this class to 15 women so we have time to really share our money stories and get clear on our core money beliefs. If you are ready to take your relationship to money to the next level, this is the way to do it. http://www.womenearning.com/writing-your-personal-money-autobiography-teleclass/

People ask me all the time how they can change what they believe about money. The problem is that many of us don’t know everything we believe. And this makes it a lot harder to change your belief system! I want you to have more abundance. So the first step to working on your abundance mindset is to clear out old beliefs.

Deep down, what do you really believe about money? Do your half-buried beliefs affect your ability to handle money gracefully and earn money with ease? Are you frustrated by your underearning yet can’t figure out how to earn more? If any of these questions ring true for you, it’s highly possible you’ve got old hidden or conflicting beliefs about money wreaking havoc with the “adult” you. Join me for this four-week teleclass, Sept 10 – Oct 1st, where I show you the steps to break free!

During this teleclass, you will:

* Uncover and understand the impact of your financial history on your financial behavior.
* Discover key moments and important patterns in your financial life.
* Gain clarity, and adopt a more balanced, authentic approach to money.
* Share your own money stories with other women who are also dedicated to exploring their beliefs

This class will help you uncover the underlying motivation of your money behaviors and gain clarity in regard to your wants and needs, putting an end to chaotic, unnecessary spending—as well as open up to earning more. And, it will end the worry and frustration that can come from self-defeating money behaviors so you can enjoy a more balanced and abundant financial life.

If you’re ready to gain more clarity, financial balance and abundance, and truly uncover what limiting beliefs are holding you back, join me for this teleseminar series September 10- October 1st. I limited this to 15 women, so grab your spot soon!!! ($149 if you register before September 1st.) Click for more info. When you register, I will send you your very own money autobiography to begin working with.
http://www.womenearning.com/writing-your-personal-money-autobiography-teleclass/