About a year ago, I was feeling bad about how my Instagram feed looked. Yep, I was caught in comparison mode, judging my feed compared to other people’s accounts. (Can you relate??) And then, I realized that the only difference between my feed and their feeds was.... money. Those feeds were investing in stock photography, custom illustrations, their own on-brand photography, and up to that point, I hadn’t been. I was trying to piece together a look without any of the pieces, and it wasn’t working for me. So, I decided that if I wanted the same look, all I had to do was create the income to be able to pay for it.
To level up in business, you’re going to need to make investments. Sometimes investing your time is enough, and other times, it’ll cost money to get what you want. Every time I’m about to make a business decision, I’m asking myself the following question: "But seriously, how am I going to pay for this?"
Assuming it’s out of budget right now, there are two choices:
1. ADD VALUE to your services and increase your prices to finance the investment.
- If you typically offer a 1 hour call, increase the time to 90 minutes and increase the investment.
- Consider creating a subscription out of a one-time service to create recurring revenue.
- Add bonuses to your educational content and raise your prices.
- If you offer group programs, create a new cohort with an extra 1:1 call with you and charge more.
- Create a small pop-up offer that gives you a cash injection.
- Offer a larger service with a variety of payment plans, which can increase sales and create ongoing revenue.
- Scaffold your services. If you have a lot of services at a low price point, create mid-priced and high-priced versions that offer more value so that you can charge more. If you have only high-end services, create mid and lower-cost versions that speak to a different audience or solve a different need.
2. OPEN EXTRA SPOTS to your services to pay for the investment.
- Don’t usually work Saturdays? Add 4 extra coaching call spots for a few Saturdays to make the extra money you’ll need.
- Always saying no to rush projects that you know you could charge a premium for? Skip one weekend at the lake to take on a project with a quick turnaround for a quick cash injection.
- Know of a few perfect people for a new offer you’ve been considering? Create a special pop-up service for the students in your successful online course, and slot that client work in on a few weekday mornings a week until you’ve saved up enough.
- Only ever offer full-day rates? One day a month, open a few 2 hour slots for smaller micro-services, so your clients can see results quickly and you’ve get a few more dollars towards that investment you’ve been planning.
- Do you only ever work 1:1, but feel you could help a small group of friends achieve the same results? Offer a 1-day retreat to a small group and schedule it in on a lighter week, then use the proceeds for what you’ve been dreaming up!
- Do you consider 4 clients a booked-out month? Take on 5 or 6 next month and then used the extra income towards that new investment.
Now for the exciting part! Grab your favourite notebook, and set yourself up with two blank pages.
On the right-hand side of the page, write down the following:
- what you want to invest in
- the dollar amount that it will cost
- how it fits into your current business strategy
- the feelings you have around the investment
On the left-hand side of the page, journal about:
- which ideas from the list feel most interesting to you and connect best to your truth
- your intuition’s ideas for what you could create or which strategy feels best
- what dollar amounts each idea will generate
Continue until the dollar amount on the left side of the page matches the dollar amount on the right side of the page. Now you can move on to planning, implementing, and generating those dollars so that you can make the investment you’re planning.
If you’re struggling to figure out which ideas might work best for you, or what steps to take after you’ve journalled, I can help! In my one hour 1:1 Clarity Calls, I help clients make decisions and give them support so that they can determine their next steps. What I’m best at is helping you realize your truth and generate new ideas based on that truth in these micro-coaching calls. Talking through decisions with someone who gets it can make a world of difference - after a call, clients report feeling much more clear about what actions to take to support their goals.
For help to create a plan or generate cash-producing ideas, purchase your call here and then immediately get taken to my scheduler to book into my calendar!
