A few months ago, a guy on my email list asked if he could hire me for a full day of consulting.
“Sure, just fill out this application.” I replied. “All the info is on there. My consulting fee is $35k for one day, and $45k for two days. Those prices are for consulting done in Austin. If I have to travel, the fee is higher“
After I sent that, I immediately got a reply from the guy trying to guilt me into lowering my fee for him.
“Ok so I really want to work with you, but we are going through a tough cash-flow situation, so I don’t know if we can afford that right now. Could you do a day for like $10k?“
At this point a LOT of consultants would give in and say “YES”.
Why?
Because they’re desperate for the money.
And because they don’t want want to lose a potential client.
Fortunately for me, I don’t rely on consulting days to pay my bills.
Consulting money is basically like “Vegas money”.
I use that money to buy stuff I wouldn’t normally splurge on.
Like a pool for my house…
Or a Range Rover.
Consulting money is extra money that I’m not counting on at the beginning of the year.
So I don’t have a real need for it.
But what’s even more important than that is that I have REAL boundaries when it comes to consulting.
And this is something I had to learn.
Cause I didn’t know a damn thing about boundaries when I was younger.
But people love working with people who have real, solid boundaries.
When someone wants to work with me, it’s not on their terms…
It’s on my terms.
It’s like when you go to the doctor to get a surgery done.
The doctor doesn’t sit there and negotiate with you about the price of the surgery.
He says here’s what it costs, and here’s how we do things around here.
Same thing with working with clients.
And guess what?
Clients LIKE that.
Clients like working with people who are confident in how they do things.
They want to come into your world and know that you have a well-oiled process.
And that can only come from having REAL, bonafide boundaries.
Things you won’t break for anyone.
Because here’s the truth…
People are ALWAYS going to try and guilt you into working for less.
They’ll bitch about your fees…
Or your royalties…
Or say they can hire some other guy for half the price.
And guess what?
If that’s what they want to do, then they aren’t a good fit to work with me.
And I’ll tell them that.
“Maybe it will be a better fit for you in the future” I say.
And I go about my day.
That’s the essence of boundaries.
And knowing the value you bring to the table.
If you work with clients in any regard, keep this in mind.
Because it will pay off in spades.
Enjoy your day,
– Justin
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