Denise Duffield-Thomas's Blog, page 39

Pricing Mistake 4: Taking ‘You’re Too Expensive’ Personally

Hey gorgeous,

I'm Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of The Money Bootcamp.

Today we’re talking pricing and another one of the big mistakes I see entrepreneurs make - taking it personally when someone says you're expensive.

A tenet of the Chillpreneur philosophy is to “take nothing personally.“

You have to give up the illusion that there’s a perfect price and that you can avoid criticism when you find it.

You can't please everyone.

It feels horrible when you have the perfect solution for clients but they tell you flat-out that they can’t afford it.

That’s when women feel shame around their pricing, decide they’re being too greedy, and give discounts or concessions to fit into a potential client’s budget.

But “expensive“ is a relative term: Something that one person sees as obscenely expensive can seem dirt-cheap to someone else.

Nowadays, I’m much more chill about hearing someone say I’m too expensive because I know I’m just out of their budget at that particular moment.

It also might mean they can afford it but just don’t want to spend the money.

Or that I need to do some work on my sales page to better showcase my value.

You’ll see people say no to your very reasonable quote because they “can’t afford it“ and then see them spend money on something totally ridiculous the next week.

It’s not your business what people value or spend money on, and you don’t have to change your pricing to meet their financial expectations.

It’s just a mismatch of budget, money mindset, or values—not a moral failing on your part.

Your pricing is not a literal translation of your value as a human being. Money is just money. A price is just a price.

Having said that, yes, you can price too high.

That might sound weird coming from a money mindset mentor, but I don’t want to BS you.

For example: You can price too high for your ideal client.

If you’ve consciously chosen a target market that’s on a low or fixed income, your prospective clients probably won’t have the money to pay premium rates.

They’re likely to be too busy just trying to make ends meet.

So, it’s a trade-off.

A lot of women confuse their business with their charitable giving because they want so much to help a particular type of person.

There’s nothing wrong with that.

But you have to be the right match price-wise with your target client, and you have to have the right business model to support it.

You can also set your price too high for your client’s business level.

I don’t often recommend that brand-new entrepreneurs work with super-high-end coaches because they’re rarely in a place to get immediate value for their money.

For example, I’ve seen newbies get flustered when they receive advice about how to up-level their business or create high-end branding when they don’t even have the basics in place.

It’s okay to work with someone in line with where they’re at.

I once invested $7,000 for an intimate group business day with a high- end coach.

Half the room thought it was worth the money, and the other half felt like it was a big rip-off.

What was the difference? Half were six-figure business owners and the rest had million-dollar businesses.

We all heard the same advice, but it was mostly applicable to the million-dollar half of the room.

Not because we were smarter (far from it).

It’s just that, at that point in our business journey, the advice we received was more useful to us and had a quicker return on investment.

We got the same information, we paid the same price, but we experienced completely different value.

What do you think when someone is “cheap? “And remember, cheap is relative.

What you consider cheap might feel expensive to someone else and vice versa.

When people’s prices seem too low, we often think they’re just starting out or are inexperienced in business.

I know I do.

Are you giving that perception with your current prices?

Do they make you look like a beginner? Or someone who is insecure about their worth?

When people charge too little, it doesn’t automatically mean they’re inexperienced or bad at what they do, but it makes me second-guess working with them because I’m often suspicious of their price and the value I’ll get in return, especially when I know that it often indicates unresolved money blocks.

In my experience, that causes problems for me, like the supplier being slow to invoice (even when asked repeatedly), they will often over-deliver in a way that’s not always useful (like taking longer to complete work) or be timid in taking charge because they aren’t in their true power.

I can feel their money “stuff” leaking into every interaction and it makes me feel uncomfortable, or even like I should coach them, when I want them to take care of me.

As someone with money to spend, I want to work with people who have clean and clear money boundaries, and who don’t buy in to a power dynamic just because I earn more money than they do.

I’m coming to them because of their expertise and how they can help me, not so I can help them.

Quite simply: I like working with people who have worked on their money blocks!

That doesn’t mean they are perfect, but I can tell the difference.

Judging a service by its price doesn’t make you a snooty bitch, by the way.

Recently, we were purchasing a flight for my mother, so she could join us on vacation, and between the two major airlines, there was a $1,000 price difference. No problem, right? Go with the cheaper one.

Not me! I was too suspicious of the price and kept questioning Mark, “Why is it so cheap? Is it an old plane? Is it a terrible seat? Is there a layover?

Why? Why?“ I couldn't figure it out, and it made me not want to buy it because I assumed there would be some horrible catch down the road.

In my experience, when something is suspiciously cheap, it’s usually for a reason!

Whether you're just starting out or an established professional, you don't want to offer the cheapest services in your industry.

If clients say, “You’re so cheap!“ or refer others to you by emphasizing your low prices, take it as a sign that people have a different perception than you do around your worth.

It’s not necessarily a compliment!

Now, let’s look at the flip side.

What do you think when you see someone with “expensive“ pricing?

She must be really good and worth the money!

I’m not saying this is true or fair, but that’s the reality of pricing psychology.

A higher price often gives the perception of experience, mastery, skill, confidence, and higher self-worth.

Here’s another reaction to high pricing:

That’s not for me. Does it feel unfair, exploitative, or exclusionary?

Pricing yourself out of someone’s budget or comfort zone doesn’t make you greedy. It’s okay for those people to be served by someone else.

And it’s okay that some people have to save up to work with you.

Do you remember wanting something that was financially out of your reach?

You felt a sense of accomplishment when you could finally afford it.

Why rob potential clients of the sense of triumph they might feel when they can work with you?

I’m definitely not advocating price gouging.

Most women can tell the difference between knowing their worth and being flat-out evil.

Shitty, unethical people are usually shitty and unethical in all areas of their lives.

That’s not you.

It’s not evil or manipulative to make a significant living from your business—not only to put food on the table for your kids, but also to have enough money to live an extraordinary life.

Because, unlike greedy people I know you’ll do great things with your wealth.

Remember, there’s no magical critic-proof price, which is why the Goldilocks pricing method is so personal.

Even if you undercharge, someone will ask why you’re not serving clients for free—guaranteed!

Don't be offended; it's just a business rite of passage.

People will ask you to lower your prices, no matter how low they are to start with, and it’s okay to say no. I’ve heard this so many times.

An entrepreneur agonizes over the price and finally quotes what she thinks is a low but reasonable proposal and the response comes back “too expensive.“

Those people aren’t your customers.

One of my Money Bootcampers, Ingrid Tuffin, got an email from a prospective client saying, “We have received your proposal. Your price seems high for this job. Would you like to amend your quote?“

She simply wrote back, “No.“ We cheered her on!

Make sure you’re surrounding yourself with people who believe in charging what you’re worth, otherwise, you’ll constantly second-guess yourself.

Every time I’ve set my prices, I’ve had completely opposite reactions to the same amount.

Even on the same day I’ve heard, “That’s too expensive.“ and “Wow, that’s great value!“ Who would you rather serve?

I’m not saying you can just sell a bag of horse poo for $10,000.

But, if you’re giving good results for $10,000, and it’s appropriate for someone to pay that because they’ll get a great return on that investment, charge the ten grand.

With pride.

Then wait for somebody who says, “Oh, is that all? What a bargain!“

That’s the truth about pricing.

There will always be someone who thinks it’s too expensive, and there will always be someone who thinks it’s a great deal.

You’re not required to serve everyone, and many aren’t going to be a match for your services or pricing.

You don’t have to convince them.

You won’t get your pricing exactly right the first or the hundredth time.

So, try not to worry about what other people say or think.

Chill out and just pick a price.

I can’t tell you want to charge, but I can help you make sure your money blocks don’t sabotage your pricing and receiving.

If you want my help to clear your money blocks, grab my free workshop all about the seven most common blocks.

Go to DeniseDT.com/Blocks and watch it today

Remember, It’s okay to be expensive for some people.

It’s your time and you’re ready for the next step.

Denise xx

Pricing Mistake 3: Working for Free

Hey gorgeous,

I'm Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of The Money Bootcamp.

Over the last decade my books, courses and events have helped hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs like you to release your money blocks and earn the money you deserve.

Today we’re talking pricing and one of the big mistakes I see entrepreneurs make when setting their prices - working for free for too long.

One of the most symbolic milestones of your business journey is graduating from free to paid work.

For many, it feels like a leap too far, which is why otherwise talented entrepreneurs get stuck in their day jobs for way too long.

I very deliberately use the word “graduating“ when it comes to charging for your work because it should be a natural progression, like graduating from an unpaid internship into an actual paid job.

Real talk: Graduating from being a moonlighter (or hobbyist) to being a full-time entrepreneur requires you to actually charge people money!

At some point, you just have to decide that you’re ready and that, even if you never believe you’re good enough, you’re going to move forward.

The Chillpreneur way is realizing that your imperfection is perfect.

Because you’ll never feel ready, have enough testimonials, feel validated enough, or be free of doubts about whether you’re good enough.

That’s not going to change.

That’s the inner work you need to do, not the actual hard work and hustle.

Now, there’s a difference between working for free and intentional volunteer work.

It’s healthy and generous to build some philanthropy into your business, whether you’re giving time or money.

But know the difference.

Philanthropy usually feels good and has no other motive other than giving back.

If you’re being exploited, you’ll feel out of alignment.

Beyond philanthropy, you might decide to work for free strategically, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Valid reasons include:

Gaining valuable experience
Promoting your work
As a sales strategy
To gain exposure to your target market

Gaining Valuable Experience

Maybe you’re working toward a certification and need to log client hours to get certified.

Or you need testimonials for your website, test cases for your portfolio, or case studies for your blog.

In that case, working for free is the quickest way to achieve your goal. It’s totally fine: Get ‘em booked ASAP!

Just decide in advance how many clients you'll take on for experience purposes and cap it at that. You don’t need to live in apprentice mode forever.

You’re allowed to earn while you learn.

Promoting Your Work

Most businesses can find a way to let customers “try before they buy.“

For example, if you’ve got a book or a course, you can give away a chapter or some lessons for free and finish with, “If you liked this, here’s where you can buy the full version.“

Don’t forget to make the payment link really obvious. You don’t want to make people work to give you money.

As a Sales Strategy

People understandably want to see if there’s an energy fit before they commit to working with you, so doing a small (emphasis on small) amount of work for free can be an awesome sales strategy.

A lot of different service-based businesses can do this.

You could offer “mini makeovers“ for a web page (not the whole website), a free critique of a sales page, or copywriting feedback.

This isn’t working for free, and you have to be clear that it’s a taster or trial to see if working together is a win-win.

To Get in Front of Your Target Market

I do several interviews on podcasts a week, just to get in front of my target market. It’s totally a win-win situation.

However, nowadays I’m more selective about what I say yes to. It has to be a good fit, and it has to be a sizable audience.

I’ve done my apprenticeship and have been interviewed for a blog with five followers, but I’ve since graduated to blogs with a bigger reach.

When you’re starting out, say yes to almost every opportunity for the experience, and then become more discerning as you go on.

You’ll figure out what to say no to over time.

What About Speaking for Free?

I get asked to speak for free all the time, not just at local events in my hometown (which is an automatic no because I like to keep home and work separate geographically) but at events in different states and countries by organizers with zero budget.

Some thought “no harm in asking“ just in case I happened to be in their neighborhood on the other side of the world at the exact time and date of their event.

Um, no thank you. There’s a 100 percent chance I’m going to decline that “opportunity.“

Back in the blissful, carefree days before I had kids, I traveled around the world attending conferences all the time, so it was no big deal if I spoke at an event I would have paid for anyway. Why not?

After I had kids, I started adding up the true cost of speaking for free.

Most conference organizers booked the cheapest flight available, so I had to pay extra to check a bag or have more legroom, and they didn’t always pay for a taxi to the venue.

You’d be surprised how many organizers don’t provide food for speakers, so there are meals, snacks, and beverages to pay for.

There are also internet costs at the hotel plus tipping everyone from waiters to bellboys to taxi drivers.

To feel confident enough to perform well, I needed to look my best, so I usually have my hair and nails done.

And, now that I have kids, there’s the additional cost of childcare and the indirect cost of being away from my family.

Like many mothers, I feel obligated to make up that time with Mark and the kids when I return.

Then there’s prep time. All the “brain power“ invested in speaking for free comes at the cost of developing my own income-producing assets.

As an introvert, I also have to factor in recovery time.

Putting on a bra and Spanx to leave my house and be in a room full of hundreds of people can wipe me out for hours and sometimes days at a time!

If you don’t value your time, neither will others.

Let’s face it though: It’s wonderful to occasionally sleep through the night without my kids waking me up.

And I can be incredibly productive sitting in a quiet hotel room working on my book (which is where I’m writing this chapter).

I have a friend who gladly speaks for free as long as there’s a bathtub in the hotel room, so she can buy a magazine and soak for as long as she wants.

For her, that makes speaking for free worthwhile.

But get honest with yourself and calculate your costs: all of them.

Then you can decide if it’s worth doing.

Sometimes it is! Sometimes speaking for free is worth it if the audience is your target market and if enough potential clients are going to be there to make it worthwhile.

I’ve noticed that, when I’m speaking to the wrong crowd, it takes an enormous effort for me to “perform,“ and then I suffer for it later with a big integrity hangover that might take a few days to recover from.

I once got booked to do a cheap “inspirational“ keynote for a group of middle-management government workers.

I turned up in my sparkly blue caftan, talking about manifesting, and it was just the wrong crowd.

A few months later, I spoke for a few hundred bucks at a college “career day“ event and, again, I felt icky, like I had prostituted my talent for a tiny bit of money.

Don’t get guilted into speaking for free just because it’s a good cause or you feel like you should.

Appearance activist Carly Findlay often gets asked to speak for charities, provide disability awareness to organizations, and ironically, participate on panels to promote equality and women’s empowerment.

All for free.

After being asked to speak at a career day for disabled students at a for-profit educational institute (another irony), she wrote on her blog:
“No doubt they’d pay a consultant specializing in an area outside of disability.

No doubt the person running the event gets paid. For me, it’d mean an afternoon away from my day job, plus several hours preparing the presentation.“

When Carly said no, the organizer said she was disappointed (ouch, the D-word always stings), and that she should be “happy to donate her time“ because it was a worthy cause.

Carly says, “I believe the work that people like me and (other disability activists) do in educating people is important in facilitating change and improving access and inclusion, and it deserves compensation.

Our work is not to be given away for free.“

Melanie Ramiro, one of my Money Bootcampers (and someone I hired to coach me on speaking), advises having a personal quota for free events—say one per quarter.

When you’ve fulfilled that, it’s okay to say, “Sorry, I’ve reached my quota for pro-bono work this year.“

Many women have a seemingly unlimited capacity for giving, and they feel greedy if they expect something in return.

If this sounds like you, here are some tips that will help you “check yourself before you wreck yourself.“

Put clear boundaries around the scope of your giving.

If you’re giving away a certain amount of coaching or consulting hours, or designing a small website for someone, put it in writing, and when it’s done, it’s done.

If you’re speaking for free, don’t feel obligated to stay for the whole event. One keynote and you’re off the clock.

Don’t feel like you should market the event for free either – that can be part of your paid speaking package. 

Be clear about the expected reciprocity.

If you’re doing free work in exchange for a testimonial, professional pictures or video footage, make sure you follow up and actually get it.

You’d be surprised how often people overlook this because they don’t want to nag or bother others, even when they agreed to it up front, and did their fair share of the bargain. 

Make it worthwhile.

If you do pro-bono work, let the recipient know what your rate is going forward, and make an offer for further work.

If you’re a speaker, can you sell books or products at the back of the room? Can you use the time to meet up with some paid clients around the event?

It’s always okay to say “No, thank you.“ Working for free isn’t bad in itself: Just make sure you’re doing it intentionally and for strategic reasons—not because you feel bad about charging.

Be intentional about your free work and calculate what it actually costs you.

I can't tell you what to charge, but I can help make sure that your money blocks don't sabotage your pricing and income.

Grab my free workshop all about the the seven most common money blocks and how to clear them.

It's available at DeniseDT.com/Blocks

Watch it today.

It's your time and you're ready for the next step.

Denise x

Pricing Mistake 2: Undercharging and Overdelivering

Undercharging and overdelivering: Ah, what a classic combination!

Often, if charging is difficult for someone, when she finally does accept money, she'll feel compelled to over-give to the point where she might not make much money at all.

And even then, she’ll feel guilty!

I’ve done this often.

I’m Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of The Money Bootcamp and today we’re talking pricing and one of the big mistakes I see entrepreneurs make when setting their prices - undercharging and overdelivering.

So picture this gorgeous: I was on stage leading a free workshop, and it was time for the “upsell.“

This is my least preferred way of selling, and I hate it, so I always overcompensate with the bonuses.

My offer was a one-day live workshop, teaching all my secrets of manifesting success, for $97.

I undercharged in the first place, but then I went one step further. In my desperation to offer value, I also threw in two 60-minute face-to-face bonus coaching sessions.

Crazy, awesome bargain, right? But I wasn't done. “If you decide today, you also get these bonus earrings.” Yes, earrings.

In my defense, they were cool earrings with “Love” written on them, and one of my manifesting tips is to wear affirmation jewelry, but it was a completely unnecessary bonus.

The $97 offer was good enough as it was!

Women came up and threw cash at me for the workshop, and why wouldn't they?

I was practically giving away the naming rights to my first-born child!

Hey, why don't I come over to your house and clean your toilet while I’m at it? Cook you dinner? It was like a bad infomercial.

But wait, there's more!

Of course, once I added up the costs for the event (including ones I forgot about, like buying new pens and magazines for the dream board segment), the cost of all those in-person bonus coaching sessions (parking, coffee, and the hassle of putting on a bra), plus those stupid earrings, I wasn't making much money at all, certainly not for all that effort.

And that, my friend, is the huge mistake that a lot of women make around pricing: Being over-generous to the point of self-sabotage.

Maybe we do it because we don't believe we're worth it without all the bribes, bells, and whistles.

We want people to like us, and we desperately want to help people make changes in their lives.

Here's the thing: What you offer is already amazing and life-changing. 
Read that again. Let it sink in.

Your work can stand alone without making you broke or making you resent your clients. Plus, you're allowed to make lots of juicy profit!

Almost every time I create a new product or event, I fight the urge to overdeliver.

We usually think it’s a good thing to give our clients more, but it's not.

A course stuffed to the gills with extra information becomes incredibly overwhelming and failure-inducing.

I know this because I've researched why refund requests were creeping up for my Money Bootcamp.

It turned out we had too many modules and too much bonus material.

People thought they had to complete it all and felt like failures before they even started.

When we reduced the amount of content, refund requests went down. Turns out less really is more!

Overgiving can disempower your clients.

For that reason, I don't recommend ever offering bonuses like unlimited email coaching if you're a service professional (it's a pain in the butt that really doesn't teach your clients self-reliance or boundaries).

And I don’t recommend adding premium services like face-to-face coaching unless you’re charging appropriately for it (your personal attention should always be your most expensive offering).

Overgiving can also be terrible for the environment.

Think of any corporate conference you've gone to. What have you done with all those branded stress balls and endless USB flash drives?

Landfill mostly, right?

I decided that I'm not going to add to that problem, which is why I rarely give away freebies at my conferences.

I’ve learned my lesson about creating overstuffed goodie bags, but it’s a widespread phenomenon.

Even when I went to a VIP Oprah event, there was random unnecessary junk in the gift bag.

As if Oprah herself wasn’t enough!

The same goes for over-delivering in terms of time.

Humans need time to integrate and apply information, so if you're a coach, and you're having monster three-hour sessions with your clients (unless it's a VIP day), you're probably overwhelming them with information, most of which they'll forget almost instantly.

When we try to jam our years of experience and knowledge into one session, it's often incredibly tiring and uncomfortable for clients.

They don't rebook because they want to implement everything from the last session (which is impossible).

So, over-delivering can ultimately derail your client. Again, less is more.

Guess what? Not only are you allowed to charge what you’re worth, you’re also allowed to make a healthy profit. Say what?!

I once bought a beautiful handmade soapstone jewelry box from a local bookshop for $14.

Fourteen dollars.

I said, “You know, I think these are underpriced.

Clearly, a lot of love goes into them.“ The owner said, “I know. My wife does an amazing job, but we’d rather be affordable for people.“

First up, “affordable“ is different for everyone, right?

Those soapstone boxes would still be a bargain at $25.

Plus, handmade items should be more expensive than mass-produced ones, and many people are happy to pay a premium for something that’s made by an actual human being.

I hate to think how little profit they made on those boxes, especially factoring in his wife’s time (which I suspect they aren't counting at all).

It’s a shame, because I bet she’ll give up, get discouraged, and lose her enthusiasm for the craft pretty quickly.

My friend, multi-millionaire entrepreneur Leonie Dawson, says, “When I sold handmade prints years ago, I forgot to include the full cost of postage and the special tube I was sending.

In the end, I lost $4 for every print I sold. It cost me money to be an artist! That profit number obviously didn’t sustain me.“

That’s an understatement, but what Leonie did was really common.

In fact, my first-ever business was selling handmade bracelets made of wetsuit remnants.

I bought the raw materials for two dollars and sold each bracelet for…two dollars.

Okay, I was nine, but still.

The thing is: I loved having a business.

I loved creating, and I even loved selling. It didn’t occur to me that I could also make money too!

My hubby was an entrepreneurial kid too.

He bought bulk packets of candy and then sold them individually for a profit.

From the outset, his goal was making money, while mine was about creating and selling for the joy of it.

For years, I thought that money and joy were mutually exclusive.

Women often feel guilty about making a good profit, especially on something that feels good, is easy for them, or is something that helps people transform their lives.

But that’s the whole point of being a Chillpreneur: It’s supposed to be easy and feel good.

So, make sure you’re adding up all the true costs of doing business—including your time and expertise—and make sure you’re actually making a profit! If you’re not, you have to increase your prices.

You’re even allowed to pay yourself a salary! I know, crazy, right?!

Paying yourself is incredibly symbolic.

Why? Because most of us will move heaven and earth to pay our suppliers and make sure they are taken care of.

In fact, I’ve been so stressed about not being able to pay an invoice on time that I went after more sales or chased down clients who defaulted on invoices I sent to them.

I hate letting other people down.

But guess who comes last?

Who works her ass off?

Who does the buck stop with?

You.

You deserve to get paid, and not with the leftover scraps.

There will never be any “spare“ money left over for you until you stop undercharging in the first place.

Charging appropriately is an act of self-care and self-love. It’s not greedy or unethical to charge well for what you do.

Money is a tool that helps women take care of their own needs and use their energy and resources to help others.

You might think you're doing people a favor by undercharging, but it rarely works out.

It can lead to burnout and resentment, and you won't have the energy and vitality you need to make a difference in the world. So, stop being cheap with yourself. It serves very few people, least of all you.

You are enough.

You might not believe that, yet, because it's so deeply ingrained.

But you are.

So the lesson is

You don’t need to bribe people to work with you.

And you’re allowed to make a healthy profit.

While I can’t tell you what to charge, I can help make sure that your money blocks don’t sabotage your pricing and your ability to receive.

I’ve got a free workshop all about identifying and clearing the seven most common money blocks.

Watch it today at DeniseDT.com/Blocks.

You deserve to be paid beautifully and when you set the right price your sending a powerful message to the universe that you’re ready to receive.

It’s your time and you’re ready for the next step.

Pricing Mistake 1: Pricing By Committee

A simple question that’s often difficult to answer for business owners is: “So, how much does it cost?“

When asked that, do you stammer, try to justify, or deflect the question?

I have, many times!

Now that I’m on the other side of it, I get impatient when a business owner clearly doesn’t want to tell me how much something costs.

Please, just tell me the price so I can pay it! It’s annoying!

I’m Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of the Money Bootcamp and today we’re talking pricing and one of the big mistakes I see entrepreneurs make when setting their prices.

When I started out as a fledgling life coach, I was just as clueless about pricing as everyone else.

I had never had to think about it before—all of my previous jobs either had fixed day rates set by my boss (when I was a consultant) or were an internal cost to the company (when I was an event planner for a non-profit organization).

I didn’t like having salary conversations and never asked for a raise or bonus.

I took what I was offered (like a good girl) and never thought I was worth more.

When I decided to go into self-employment as a full-time life coach, it was suddenly my responsibility to assign a monetary value on my skills, and that was scary.

Too expensive would make it look as if I was too big for my britches, too cheap and I’d look inexperienced.

I wished someone would just tell me what to charge.

In working with thousands of women over the years, I’ve seen pricing patterns emerge among the mistakes they make and believe me, I’ve made them all too!

Knowledge is power, though, and if you’re aware of these mistakes, you can recognize them when they arise so they’re less likely to derail you.

The first big pricing mistake is Pricing by Committee

The worst thing you can do is ask other people what they think you should charge.

It’s an innocent mistake: As women, we think we’re being inclusive, collaborative, and harnessing the wisdom of others by asking them for their opinion.

But it’s a dangerous practice.

Here’s why: Every time you set your prices by committee, you’re taking on other people’s beliefs around money, regardless of their qualifications, experience, or money mindset.

Imagine that your money blocks are physical things— like rocks—and you have to carry them around in a backpack.

Obviously, the more money blocks you have, the harder you have to work just to go about your daily life.

When you crowdsource your pricing, you’re not just carrying your backpack of money blocks, you’re taking on everyone else's. It’s like carrying 50 backpacks at once!

Not all feedback is useful.

If you don’t believe me, try it yourself.

Go to your favorite business forum and ask a pricing question.

You’ll be astounded by the variety of responses. Everyone has a different perspective on “worth“ and “value.“

Before you pay any attention to what others say, ask yourself the following questions.

‘Are They My Target Audience?’

Taking advice from people who are nowhere near your target market, for example, your husband, uncle, or a random stranger, is a big mistake (don’t laugh, I’ve done this!).

I remember talking to a 50-something guy about my business at a networking event and, in a conversation about what I did, he said, “Wow. That sounds like you’re charging too much.“ I felt chastised and embarrassed because he was reflecting my own worst fears about my business and said, “Yeah, I think you’re right.“

This dude was the complete opposite of my target market, but I let his opinion sway one of my most important business decisions.

His opinion of my pricing could have been based on what his own target market could afford or on something more sinister, like an ingrained misogynistic view of what women are worth.

Either way, it was totally useless, but the interaction played on my mind for days.

He wasn’t my coach, and he wasn’t a pricing or marketing expert. He knew nothing about my business or target market.

He just made a snap decision based on what he “felt“ was too expensive, and I believed him!

His opinion was none of my business, so why was I soliciting it?

Why even have a money conversation with some generic dude or random stranger?

Honestly? Because I didn’t want to think about it.

I wanted someone else to tell me what to charge so I didn’t have to confront my fears about money.

I thought someone else would know better than me.

If you have a specific niche (and you definitely should), then how tightly do the people offering their opinions fit that profile?

For example: age, gender, geographical location, income level, stage of life, or business.

If your ideal target market is parents of newborns who have a healthy income, why would you take the opinion of a childless senior citizen or vice versa? It doesn’t make sense!

If you market to other business people, what stage of business are they in? What’s appropriate for a beginner to pay is entirely different from someone who’s financially successful in business.

Nobody knows more about your business than you do.

Nobody knows your target market’s hopes and dreams as well as you do.

And nobody is more deeply and emotionally connected to your business goals than you are.

Another question to ask yourself is;

‘Are They in The Market For What I Do?’

Until people actually need something, they don’t really know what they’d pay for it.

My Goddess, when I think of what I’ve paid for things, either because I needed them ASAP, or because I got excited about the results I was promised.

Literally hundreds of thousands of dollars by now! If you’d asked me what that product or service was worth beforehand, I probably would have vastly underestimated what I would’ve paid.

My budget is way more flexible than someone starting out in business and, to be honest, my time is worth more now, so I’m willing to pay to outsource to an expert.

I’ve always appreciated paying for professionals in my business, for example, copywriters, to help me with sales emails.

But I never considered paying a ton of money for copywriting until I needed to create 35 scripts in two weeks for a new course I was filming.

I procrastinated it until I had no choice.

I ended up paying four times my budget because I was suddenly in the market and needed it done ASAP!

It was totally worth it even though I had unrealistic expectations about what I should pay.

So, unless, the people giving you advice represent your target market and need you now, they won’t give you accurate or useful help at all.

If you need a ballpark figure, a better question to ask your business buddies would be, “What do you do, and how much have you paid for X?“

For example, “If you’ve been in business for at least two years, what did you pay for your website?“ or “Hey health coaches: What did you pay for your website photography?“

That way, you’re getting the advice of people who have put some money in the game, and it’s useful market research rather than confusing random opinions.

Asking Competitors or Peers

What about other people in your industry?

Should you ask them or sneak a look at their prices and place yourself accordingly?

Again, this isn’t even remotely helpful.

You might decide that the seniority (or popularity) of your peers means that you can’t charge as much as or more than they do.

I decided at the start of my business that I didn’t deserve to charge as much or more than established coaches who were decades older than me, regardless of their skill level.

Maybe you’re judging yourself against the “popular girls“ in your industry and think that social media follows mean superior experience.

Now, that sounds reasonable on the surface, but I was discounting my years of adjacent coaching and mentoring experience, of which I had plenty—both in jobs and as a volunteer.

In my own mind, that didn’t “count,“ and I told myself I needed to start at the bottom of the ladder.

Longevity doesn’t always mean you’re great at your job. I know lots of “experienced“ coaches whose skills have been stagnant for years and, frankly, aren’t that great. Maybe you know those types too?
Plus, look at professions like social media management.

A long career in that field isn’t even possible since technology changes so quickly. In a case like that, results and knowledge are just as valuable as experience.

Lastly, your industry might have massive money blocks (the alternative healing professions come to mind) so remember, when you’re averaging out the competition, you’re basing your income potential on collective insecurities and industry myths.

Money coach Kendall Summerhawk says it best; “Don’t base your net-worth on someone else's self-worth.“

So, if you can’t survey your audience (or a rando guy down the street), and if you can’t sneak a look at what your competitors are charging, what’s a Chillpreneur to do?

The simple answer is: You have to trust in your own wisdom and set your own prices.

Nobody is going to do that for you. Just pick a price and try it out.

The truth is that what you charge is entirely personal and not as black and white as you’d think.

You’re looking for the “Goldilocks sweet spot,“ which is the just right price for you, regardless of what other people charge.

In an interview that I conducted with author Danielle LaPorte, she called this being “comfortable in your money shoes.“

It has to be the right fit.

Too big price-wise and you’ll feel like a fraud, like you’re a little girl playing dress-up in your mama’s high heels.

But wearing too-tight money shoes that you’ve outgrown (prices that are too small) is incredibly uncomfortable too.

You have to feel as if you’re in alignment and in integrity with your rates, and only you can decide what that is for your business.

Sorry!

While I can’t tell you what to charge, I can help make sure that your money blocks don’t sabotage your pricing and your ability to receive.

I’ve got a free workshop all about identifying and clearing the seven most common money blocks.

Watch it today at DeniseDT.com/Blocks

You deserve to be paid beautifully and when you set the right price your sending a powerful message to the universe that you’re ready to receive.

It’s your time and you’re ready for the next step.

Millionaire Mindset Lesson #2 - There Are Easier Ways To Make Money

Hi gorgeous, I'm Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of The Money Bootcamp. As you might know, I teach money mindset and clearing your money blocks so you can live a first class life.

Today I’m sharing another one of my key Chillpreneur Millionaire mindset lessons.

Becoming a millionaire doesn’t really make you special or clever, but the truth is that my biggest secret for becoming one is focusing on some very specific mindset upgrades.

So here’s todays lesson… There Are Easier Ways To Make Money

When I was a teenager, I heard about a nationwide competition to win a new car. The catch was that you had to live in it with four other people. The person who stayed in the car the longest got to keep it. You got a bathroom break every two hours and could order any fast food you wanted, but all the rubbish had to stay in the car, and you had to sleep in it. No showers either. You stayed in it until you couldn’t handle it anymore.

The car visited my local shopping mall as part of the promotion. It was before reality shows became a big thing on TV, so I was excited to check it out.

By then, the contest had been going on for two weeks already, and they were down to four determined (and very smelly) contestants.

People lined up to take turns gawking in the window at these poor people who were sitting in their own filth wanting to win the car.

I think about that competition often because, first of all, who wants a car after it’s been lived in like that, and second, there are easier ways to get a new car. Just buy one!

Because I teach manifestation, often people ask me how they can win a competition to go on holidays or win a house through a raffle and I think – just work on your business and buy what you want.

That counts too! You don’t always have to win things.

Seth Godin famously said, “When in doubt, raise money from your customers by selling them something they truly need – your product.”

So - I'm telling you - if there's something you want... Go get more clients and buy what you want.

Now that sounds easier said than done - but there are ALWAYS more clients out there for you.

And - There are easier ways to make money.

I say this all the time when I find myself doing the opposite: overcomplicating things, pursuing an idea that’s not exactly in my zone of genius, or otherwise making things harder for myself. Maybe you do the same.

In the pursuit of the entrepreneurial dream, we often take the hardest route. That’s why a lot of my early businesses failed—not because the ideas weren’t good, but because they felt hard for me, and I just wanted the outcome (the money). I didn’t care about the business at all.

And sometimes, I pursued a good idea that wasn’t really a natural fit for me.

For example, I almost started a business about toilet hooks. Years ago, when I was still desperately looking for my “thing” (otherwise known as a calling or purpose), I read a book that said, “Solve a problem that you’re passionate about.”

I was passionate about a lot of things, but want to know what was really pissing me off at the time? The lack of hooks in public bathroom stalls. Every time I went into a public restroom, I’d get frazzled about where to put my giant coat, hat, scarf, and gloves (I lived in London at the time and wore lots of layers), not to mention the enormous bag that I carried around.

I read a study at the time about how dirty people’s purses were. Of the 145 purses that researchers swabbed, 138 were contaminated with bacteria such as strep and E coli. Why? Because their owners put them on restroom and other floors (eew), which spread disease in homes and corporate workplaces.

Wow, I thought. This is my cause! It seemed perfect for my pedantic, Virgo, fastidious ways. Plus, complaining seemed to channel my energy into changing things for the better.

So, to market my new “toilet hook” business, I thought I’d start with a name-and-shame letter campaign to businesses, and then progress to an app where I’d have a map of all the “Denise-approved” restrooms where adequate hooks were provided.

Women would thank me in droves. Fewer employees would be calling in sick. Productivity would improve. It was life-changing stuff! I was outraged about this issue. Outraged!

I had no idea how to monetize it (that didn’t seem to matter), but it was obviously something that was needed in the world, and I was the girl to do it. So, I enthusiastically told a friend about the idea. He listened to my entire rant (The germs! The inconsideration!), and when I finished, he calmly said, “Why don’t you carry around a bag of stick-on hooks, and when you’re in a bathroom without one, just stick one on.”

Mind blown. It was just so … Zen. In an instant, this guy wiped my “brilliant business idea” off the map. I sat looking at him dumbfounded. “But what am I supposed to do with my life?” I asked.

I seriously thought that my entrepreneurial dreams were dead. “Denise, you’re a storyteller,” he said. “Tell stories.”

So that’s what I do. I tell stories on my blog. I speak on stages. I write books. I basically make a living by telling random stories and inspiring women to create the life they want. It’s so much easier than being the “Toilet Hook Queen.”

I’m so grateful to him. Because, instead of rolling his eyes at my dumb business idea, he could see that underneath my “toilet problem” was a real desire to change the world.

It was such a relief to hear that I didn’t have to solve everything and that my real gift was telling stories and inspiring others to find their passion. It was a massive weight off my shoulders.

I thought aligning myself with a simple, annoying problem would be great. But it was the wrong problem. It’s so tempting to try and solve all the problems you encounter and to turn every emerging passion into a business!

At networking events, people sometimes tell me about their latest business idea, and I just want to interrupt and say “Honey, that sounds way too hard. There are easier ways to make money!”

Maybe you’re overcomplicating things; maybe you’re going into the wrong industry, trying to help the wrong people, or pursuing a business that’s simply the wrong fit for your skills and talents. There is a path of least resistance; you just have to find it.

Just remember: You don’t have to pursue random business ideas. You don’t have to buy all the catchy domain names. It’s okay to just let hobbies be hobbies (in fact, turning a hobby into a business can take the joy right out of it).

You can be an activist for change without turning your activism into a business.

If you don’t solve a problem, don’t worry, someone else will—you can count on it.

Other people created products like Loo Hooks, Hero Clips, and Bagnets to deal with the toilet hook problem. Thanks to them, I’m not trapped talking about toilet hooks for the rest of my life.

You’ll have to learn this lesson over and over.

When I first had a baby, I got pissed all over again that there aren’t enough baby changing facilities in the world, and airport restrooms were obviously designed by men who had never seen—let alone changed—a baby, but again: not my fight. Not my calling and definitely not my business! There are easier ways to make money!

Deciding not to pursue an idea doesn’t mean it isn’t important to you. You can: Care about something deeply, sign a petition, or make a donation, but not make it your business. Contribute toward someone else’s crowd-funding campaign without making it your business. Write a letter to your local newspaper, but not make it your business. Have a really fantastic business idea without making it your business

Saying no to a good idea is a hard lesson to learn, but if you don’t, you can’t focus on your real purpose.

I wasn’t put on this Earth to revolutionize toilet hooks.

There are easier ways to make money than to: Follow a path that’s not yours

Work with people you can’t really help, even though you think you should
Solve a problem that someone else can solve

There are easier ways to make money. If you want to hear more, pick up my book Chillpreneur from any good bookshop 

Got questions about my money mindset course and community?

>> Click here to message me and let's chat about whether whether Bootcamp is right for you <<

Millionaire Mindset Lesson #1 - There’s Always More Money

Hi gorgeous, I'm Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of The Money Bootcamp. As you might know, I teach money mindset and clearing your money blocks so you can live a first class life.

Today I’m sharing one of my key Millionaire mindset lessons.

Becoming a millionaire doesn’t really make you special or clever, but the truth is that my biggest secret for becoming one is focusing on some very specific mindset upgrades.

This is the first mindset lesson I want you to master: There’s always more money.

There’s Always More Money

One of the cornerstones of the Chillpreneur philosophy is that there’s always more. There’s enough for everyone, and we live in a world of abundance.

Have you noticed that there's always at least more hair band if you really look for it. There's always one more coin in the bottom of your purse?

Of course, it doesn’t always feel like that.

I’m not saying income inequality isn’t real, and that there’s no poverty in the world. But chances are, you have every opportunity to change your circumstances.

Wealthy women are great for the planet, yet we still hold ourselves back. One way we keep ourselves small is by thinking that the world is a zero-sum game:

If I win, someone else is going to lose.
If I’m successful, it’s at someone else’s expense. 

That’s not true.

You can do some amazing things with your wealth.

There is no limit to what you can dream, and there’s no cap on your earning potential if you’re willing to do the work necessary in your business.

Never has this been so apparent to me, and in such a hilariously literal way, than when I was freaking out about buying our dream house.

It took years to manifest and finally the day came. We were driving across town to pick up the keys and, instead of feeling great, I was experiencing what Gay Hendricks calls an “upper limit problem,” which is the feeling that we’ve hit our capacity for success. It can feel like resistance, guilt or even a feeling like we’re about to get into trouble.

It was as if the adrenaline finally kicked in, and I realized what a massive manifestation we’d had pulled off. Just six weeks before, we didn’t have all the money we needed to buy the house, and part of me still didn’t believe we did it, even though we just completed the most successful launch we’d ever had.

I actually felt sick; Had we bitten off more than we could chew? Who did I think I was? Could we really afford this house in this swanky neighborhood? All these thoughts swirling around in my head cast a dark cloud over what should have been a day of celebration.

This is normal, by the way. I call it a “success hangover,” which is when something that is supposed to feel good has the opposite effect, and you feel weirdly guilty or bad.

During the car ride to our new property, I said to Mark, “Babe, we’re going to have to be so careful about money this year. With the new house to build, another baby and two mortgages, we’re going to have to really tighten our belts.”

He looked at me surprised and said, “That doesn’t sound like you!” I’m usually the most optimistic of us when it comes to reaching big goals, and I obviously teach money mindset, so he’d never heard me talk so negatively before. But I was spooked about this big dream coming true, and it didn’t feel good.

I let out the breath I was holding and said, “You’re right. There’s always more money.”

At that very moment, a shower of $50 notes hit our car’s windshield: A literal cascade of money, at least a thousand dollars’ worth, exploded on our car like confetti.

Yes, really. This story isn’t metaphorical. Actual money hit our car! Mark’s windshield wipers came on automatically, and the money bounced and scattered all over the road, blowing into the trees lining the highway. We both screamed involuntarily and said simultaneously, “Did you see that?”

Then I said, “Did that really happen?” We were both hysterical. Mark said, “Should we pull over?” I still couldn’t quite believe what happened, especially at the very moment I had affirmed out loud, “There’s always more money.” But I knew that it was a big message from the Universe.

“That’s not the lesson,” I replied. “The actual money isn’t the point, and I definitely don’t want to scrabble around on this busy highway to collect money that doesn’t belong to us. The lesson is that there’s always more money, and we’re going to be fine.”

We both started laughing because it was just too weird. Was it a shared hallucination? All I know is that it was divine timing. Just at that moment of doubt and scarcity, the Universe decided to remind me that there’s always more money. There’s always enough.

And just like that, I felt incredible about the new property purchase. I decided to live in a world of abundance and not scarcity.

And now, I drive up and down that road several times a week and remember the lesson: There’s always more.

I’m sometimes tempted to look for a stray note in the bushes, but even better is that regular reminder to stay in prosperity consciousness.

To this day, I have no idea how it happened. Maybe someone was about to buy something in cash, and it accidentally blew out the window. Who knows? I’ve never heard another person from my town mention it. I still laugh about the divine timing, and I hope you remember it too.

There’s always enough. There are always enough clients. I mean, how many do you need to replace your day job or have a successful, thriving business?

Seriously.

Run the numbers and figure out how many you need. And if you increase your prices or streamline your business, you might need even fewer than you think. With so many billions of people in the world, there are a lot of potential customers looking for exactly what you can deliver. And you need only a tiny percentage of them to buy!

There’s always enough. There are always more opportunities.

So, you missed out on an important project or speaking gig. Who cares? There are a million other conferences to go to, and more clients that will probably suit you better, so breathe and let go of your fear of missing out.

There are always more opportunities.

There are always more ideas.

So, your practice business didn’t pan out. That doesn’t mean you’re a failed entrepreneur. It simply means you’re an entrepreneur! Think how many Virgin offshoots Sir Richard Branson has tried out (Virgin Brides or Virgin Cola anyone?). If Branson understands anything, it’s that ideas are abundant and, if one doesn’t work, there’s always another one around the corner.

There’s always more time.

So many women feel an internal urgency to do all the things right now. For example, how many potential book ideas are rattling around in your head at the moment (at least three for me) that feel like they all need to be birthed now? You can be in only one stage of pregnancy at a time.

Let it all unfold in perfect, divine timing.

Paradoxically, I’ve found that, when I take the attitude of “abundant time,” I get a lot more done! If I take the pressure off myself to do everything, I naturally find myself being more productive.

Maybe when you’re not forcing yourself, you don’t get as bogged down in resistance and procrastination.

Remember this lesson:

There’s always enough money, and acquiring more of it won’t deprive others of wealth. I want you to write this down somewhere where you can see it.

The world is an abundant place - and there's always more money. 

Got questions about my money mindset course and community?

>> Click here to message me and let's chat about whether whether Bootcamp is right for you <<

7 SUCCESS HABITS THAT TOOK ME TO 7 FIGURES

Hey gorgeous,

It's Denise Duffield-Thomas here, money mindset mentor, author and founder of The Money Bootcamp.

I knew forever that I wanted to create a million-dollar business pretty much forever – even before I had any real business ideas.

In my 20s I remember thinking “I want to be a millionaire by the time I’m 30,” and it took me until I was 35, but hey that’s not too bad!

There are certain success habits I’ve cultivated to get me to this level. And honestly, they are the same success habits that will take you from zero to earning that first couple of thousand in your business, and from there to earning six figures and beyond to seven figures.

So let me share:

Tip 1. Focusing on the basics.

The Basics Work It’s realizing that you can do the basics over and over again, so you can stop searching for that silver-bullet solution. 

You don’t need to find somebody else’s magic formula because really, I’ve created a million-dollar business from simply doing the basics.

I share on social media every single day in some form - a quote, a picture or a video.

I send out a weekly newsletter without fail - and I have for ten years now. It's not complicated - it's really basic.

SHOW up.

Does it get boring and repetitive sometimes? YES

Do I sometimes not feel like it? YES.

I’m always marketing and growing my business, and I don’t have any advanced strategies that you don’t already know or that you couldn’t read from a book or learn from a course.

The reason this is a success habit is because some people get really impatient with performing the basics – they can’t be bothered or they think it’s boring or too hard to do something mundane like a blog post every week.

Yeah, it can be, but this habit has helped me create a million-dollar business. It’s still the same “work” I started out with six years ago: me in front of a camera talking to you.

That’s all it is. Don’t feel like it has to be any more complicated than that. Make sure you have the basics in place.

Tip 2. Be Consistent

The second thing is to be consistent. I’m super-consistent in my business; as I said you’ll get an email newsletter from me every single week. That doesn’t just happen by accident. That’s a clear decision to be consistent.

To date I have 100k plus people on my newsletter list, but the work is the same as when there were only a couple of hundred people on my newsletter list. It’s only grown through consistency. Showing up, every single week.

Here’s a tip: when I started out and I didn’t have that many people on my list, I sent out my newsletter telling myself, “Somebody is waiting for this information. Somebody really needs to hear this right now.” 

Years later, people say “I wait for your newsletter to come in because I read it every single week.”  I manifested that years before it happened.

Consistency is such an amazing habit for every entrepreneur, and it really is how you’re going to take things to the next level.

The other part of this is that I haven’t changed my business model all that much over the years. I do see some people change every couple of months. They change their focus all the time and it’s really confusing for your audience if they don’t know how they can rely on you. 

You know that when you visit my website you can read about money, mindset or marketing. That’s pretty much all I talk about. I don’t try to go in other directions.

But that’s not saying I haven’t in the past. There were times in my business where I could have gone into spinoffs like Get Hitched Lucky Bee, for example, which was my soulmate book, and my attracting a soulmate course. I invested a lot of money into creating the book, then I thought “Hang on, This isn’t consistent with my brand. This is not how I want to be.”

Consistency is key.

Tip 3. Keep it Simple

I'm alll about simplicity.  And in fact - that's exactly what my book Chillpreneur is all about. Making things easy and profitable.

Keep things very simple in your business model, and be very clear on how people can work with you, because that is going to grow your business to the next level.

If you’re too broad or trying to be everything to everyone, it won’t give you the clarity and focus that money likes. 

Don’t make people guess about your skills.

Don’t confuse your potential clients with a million different services.  You know how to work with me. You can join my Money Bootcamp. That’s it. In fact that's my motto - all roads lead to Bootcamp. Eventually you WILL join - because I've made it simple for you.

But you can’t do my Soulmate Course because I killed it. It wasn’t part of my consistent brand and unique zone of genius. 

Keep it simple.

Tip 4. Make Decisions that are right for YOU

Consciously make decisions in your business, and don’t be swayed too much by other people’s opinions or trends that happen.

Your audience might say, “Hey you should do this,” and you think, “Oh maybe I should.”. It’s easy to get off track.  You have to make decisions that are the right thing for you.

For the season of life you're in and importantly what you LOVE to do.

I sometimes see a new marketing tool and get FOMO - or think I should start a podcast.

People ask me to create a mastermind - and I know I could make a lot of money out of it. But it doesn't fit my strengths or my lifestyle. End of story.

People could be asking you to change your business model for something that suits them. If it feels bad - say no. It's okay to not be all the things to all the people. Making clear decisions based on your values and business model is really important.

This could be anything for you. It could simply be making really conscious decisions about who you work with, who you partner with, what events you speak at, or what Facebook groups you join. 

Being deliberate about those decisions has really helped me grow but not being distracted by shiny objects or other people’s opinions about what I should do.” It's your business - your rules. And you can serve a lot more people coming from a place of joy than obligation!

Tip 5. Surround Yourself with Like-Minded People

A huge part of my success is that I’ve surrounded myself with like-minded people who also want to have a seven-figure business.

A couple of years ago, I was invited into a mastermind with somebody who was a little bit ahead of me in business; she was creating a group of women who wanted to go to seven figures and beyond. I was totally intimidated but I knew it was a symbolic next step. 

Surrounding yourself with people who are going where you want to go is so important, because you start to believe it can happen to you too. You see other people doing it and you hear about their real struggles.

And this comes back to my first point: you see that they’re just normal people doing the basics over and over again.

A perfect example of this is that I went to a conference and one of the speakers had a ten-million-dollar-a-year business.  He said, “Let me show you my entire strategy.” I thought “I practice that strategy already. Oh this must be the basic bit and then he’s going to go on to the advanced stuff.” Then he said, “That’s it. That’s what I do.” 

That’s when I realized that, first of all, there aren’t any really advanced strategies.

Also when you’re in those situations, you see that the people who are making the money you aspire to make are just normal people who are following the basics. They are being super-consistent, and keeping things very simple in their business. They make clear, conscious decisions about what they’re going to do. They’re not trying to be everything to everyone. And they’re surrounding themselves with like-minded people. 

Simple.

Tip 6. Ask: Why Not Me?

When you look at people whose businesses you admire, it’s tempting to put them on a pedestal and think, “It’s alright for them because they…” 

I used to think, “Oh she’s really skinny so it’s easy for her to be successful in business because she’s skinny and I’m not.”  Ridiculous. Weird. 

You might think “Well it’s all right for THEM, they’ve got a happy marriage,” or “It’s okay for HER, she doesn’t have kids,” or “It’s okay for HER, she lives in Hawaii. I’d be successful too if I lived in Hawaii.” Total BS.

Whatever your excuses are, you have to banish them and ask yourself: why not me? Even with all my skills, talents, insecurities and flaws. Just ask: why not? 

Realize that you can be a role model for other people if you get out of your own way.  Why not you? YOu can be a millionaire too!

Tip 7. Work on Your Money Blocks

The last success habit that has helped me get to six figures, then to seven figures is working on my money blocks. Constantly. 

You might think that you get to a certain level in business and you don’t have money blocks anymore, but it’s not true. Money itself doesn’t make you happy and money doesn’t solve money blocks.  It makes me laugh thinking about it, because my mastermind buddies and I are constantly working on ourselves.

That’s how we’ve become successful. By having the mindset that there’s always more to learn and always more to uncover about ourselves. 

There are always more ways to improve, so I work on my money blocks all the time.

I work on old recurring money blocks – things that have come up for me again and again (for example - that you have to work hard to make money). I work on new money blocks that come up when I hit the next stage in my business. I constantly work on myself and deal with my fears and insecurities around being in business.

It’s a process of continuous learning and development.

So that's it - that's how I got to six and then 7 figures - and that's how it's been for years a multi millionaire. I'm not perfect. I'm not any smarter or better.

Pretty simple huh?

So over to you - which of these habits do you want to cultivate for yourself? Because it's totally possible for you to be a millionaire too.

Do the basics
Be consistent
Keep it simple
Make decisions for you
Surround yourself with successful people
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Work on your money mindset

If you are still new to the money blocks conversation, or think that you’ve hit a wall with working on your money blocks, then guess what, you haven’t.  If you haven’t listened to my free money blocks audio, make sure you do it today. 

I talk about seven common money blocks that women have in business. You might think this is just for beginners, but it’s not. Usually when you have a money block, you have it for the rest of your business life. You just have to work on it in different ways because it will come up again and again. So make sure you carve out a little bit of time today to listen to that free audio class. 

Listen now at DeniseDT.com/blocks

It’s your time to take your business to the next level. It’s your time. Why not you?  It’s your time and you’re totally ready for that next step.

WHAT PROFESSION HAS THE BIGGEST MONEY BLOCKS?

Hello gorgeous, today’s video digs deep into a topic that I find so interesting: which profession do you think has the biggest money blocks? 

It’s pretty safe to say that everyone has money blocks, even if they don’t know it yet, and while it’s true that there are many commonalities amongst the people I teach, some industries have money blocks totally unique to their industry.  And in fact, you might resist money mindset work because you feel like it doesn't apply to you!

Here’s some Denise truth talk.

Unless you’re willing to clear your money blocks on an ongoing basis, you’re going to self sabotage and stay stuck at your current income. 

So, if everyone in your industry is broke and complaining about money, stop using your profession as an excuse, and instead find the hidden gold to move past your blocks. 

Let’s get started.  

As I mentioned, some money blocks are pretty universal for entrepreneurs - talk about these a lot in my book Chillpreneur.

The three most common are:

I have to work really hard to make money, 
I have to choose between helping people OR making more money
And... If I make more money - bad things will happen.

And everyone has their own version of that - for example - you won't be a good parent - you'll burn out, or you'll get into trouble with the tax man!

These blocks are pretty huge in themselves, but some industries have some even more specific nuances that go beyond these universal ones.

Let’s dive into it.

First up, let’s talk about entrepreneurs in the health industry.

I’m talking about health and wellness coaches, professionals like naturopaths or herbalists, weight loss coaches and anyone who helps clients transform their health or well-being in any way.

So many people working in the health industry have blocks like: 

Good health should be free, I’m taking advantage of people’s illnesses, and I can’t offer people solutions or supplements because I shouldn’t be “salesy”.

Stop!

The whole REASON that people come to you when you’re a health professional is to learn how to better take care of themselves.  Of course, good health is everyone’s birth-right but some people need a little more help than others. And they are coming to YOU for a solution. 

If they wanted, they could most likely find a low or no-cost solution to DIY it for themselves, but some people want deeper transformation and personal attention.  They’ve come to you for your knowledge, so not giving them a solution, whether that’s your knowledge and skills or a recommendation for a supplement – then you’re not serving them to the best of your ability. 

You’re actually stopping yourself from doing the work you’re here to do. 

Here is an affirmation for you, I serve, I deserve.

The affirmation “I serve, I deserve” is a really good one to use as a pattern interrupter for these sorts of blocks. It reminds you that you’re being of service to people, and it’s okay to charge in return for your expertise.  

Health IS wealth for people - and it's totally okay for you to charge to help people with it.

Next up, let’s talk.. Coaches and consultants 

Coaches often get tied up in their own perfectionism, which can have huge consequences for their abundance. 

If you’re a coach but you: 

Feel like you have to be more successful or earn more than your own clients,
Feel like a fraud, or
Feel like you have to be “perfect” before you can help others, 

... then you’ve definitely got the most common blocks in your industry.

I think coaches often feel like this because we want to prove that we’re past the problems our clients are facing.  

Clearing up the perfectionism is a first step to not self sabotaging yourself as a coach.  Remind yourself that clients are coming to you for your skills to hold them accountable, to hold the space for their dreams, and to help them work through their own feelings of not being good enough. 

You don't have to earn more than your clients. And you don't have to be the expert in everything. Think of Olympic coaches - they aren't necessarily the best runner or swimmer. That is the athletes they coach. They are the best at helping their clients with mindset - with getting out of their own way - AND holding them accountable to their training.

Every single person - the richest people in the world need people to hold space for them. Everyone has blind spots. So - stop thinking you have to be perfect before you help others. Give yourself a break and treat yourself with as much compassion as you do your clients.  

Next up… let’s talk finance professionals like Bookkeepers, accountants, financial advisors

You guys also have the tendency towards perfectionism.  If you’re a finance professional who feels ashamed because your books aren’t aren’t as well kept as your clients’ are, or because you don’t always follow your own advice perfectly, then you’ve got blocks that are keeping you from helping more people. 

Working on your own money mindset and clearing the perfectionism will also help you have more compassion for clients who get blocked around working with you in the first place.  

Next up - my lucky bees in the Spiritual world. 

I know so many gifted spiritual entrepreneurs who are really blocked about charging for their work.  It’s really common to hear, “I can’t charge for my gift!”  “It’s unethical to charge for spiritual things,” or “Nobody wants to pay for this,” 

Maybe you attract clients with a victim mentality or can’t afford to pay you.

You might even get negative feedback about you charging for your gifts from your tribe. 

It’s so important to remember the affirmation, “I serve, I deserve,” and remind yourself that when you release your blocks, more money can flow to you and you’ll be able to help more people! 

Artists and creatives

The final group I’m going to talk about here is artists and creatives.

If you’re in a creative business, then you’ve probably got a block around charging for your art.  There’s a real risk that you’re running the “starving artist” script in your life – that you can’t make a living from your art, and that it’s somehow noble to live in poverty rather than “selling out”. It’s as though the art is more real if you suffer for it. 

Add in another common belief, that “nobody will pay for art” or “people don’t appreciate creativity”, and you really will be the starving artist, or at least until you clear the blocks. 

I know plenty of artists who have made abundant lives and businesses from their art, without having to sacrifice their sanity or their bank accounts, and you can too.

Now I've worked with entrepreneurs like you in almost every industry all over the world.

When you're ready to finally deal with your money stuff and you want my support come and join us.

Go to Denisedt.com/bootcamp for all the details or send me a message on Insta and let's chat to see if this makes sense for you right now.

Happy block clearing, Lucky Bee! 

It’s your time and you’re ready for the next step!

7 WAYS TO DOUBLE YOUR INCOME WITHOUT BURNOUT

Hey Lucky Bee, it’s Denise Duffield-Thomas here, money mindset mentor, author and founder of the Money Bootcamp and today I’m going to talk to you about doubling your income over the next year. 

Do you believe it’s possible?

But the question is, HOW do you do it without working twice as hard and burning yourself out?

I’m going to share with you the main strategies I’ve used to double my income which I’ve done many times over the last few years, and these techniques will work for you no matter where you’re at in business.  Ready? 

So! Let’s talk about how to double your income without doubling your workload or stress.  In fact, it can be done by actually reducing the amount of work you do. I know you might not believe that right now, but it’s true. 

Tip #1 Outsource

As an entrepreneur, you’re probably already working a LOT of hours. Maybe more than you ever did in a job.  The best way to leverage and double your time is to outsource tasks so that you can focus on bringing in more money. 

My friend Amber McCue calls it “cloning yourself”, because trying to do everything will absolutely cap your income. 

You might have been THINKING about outsourcing for a long time, but maybe you’re scared of spending the money. The truth is that NOW is the time to actually implement outsourcing, and it doesn’t have to be all or nothing.

You can start small, for example:

Book a house cleaner so you can focus less on cleaning and more on bringing in money using your skills and talents.
Hire a Virtual Assistant to take care of your emails or your newsletter. My assistant started just 5 hours a week, and it freed me up to focus on other areas. 
Hire a bookkeeper, again, just a few hours a month will make you feel like you’re really in business
Outsource your graphic design or your website upgrade. It doesn’t have to be hugely expensive, there are designers at all level of budget.  

Start with outsourcing tasks you hate doing and use the time you’re saving to do more profitable work in your business. 

Tip #2 Work ONLY in your Zone of Genius

Gay Hendricks coined this term, the Zone of Genius, which means being in flow with work that only you can do. For me, that’s communicating to my audience over video or in interviews – I can’t outsource that, but I can outsource pretty much everything else.  

When you focus on working in your zone of genius and outsource the rest, you leverage your energy to create more income AND ease in your business. 

BUT! So many entrepreneurs waste time and energy by trying to do EVERYTHING, even if you’re not really good at it OR (and this is key too), you might enjoy it, but it doesn’t make you any money.  

For example - Don’t do your own books if it makes you cry.  Don’t update your website yourself if it takes you forever and you have a breakdown over it every time.  Nobody is paying you to clean your own toilet, vs working on your first book.  

Let those things go to other people, who are actually GOOD at them, and focus on earning money in ways that are unique to you.  Plus, don’t try and implement EVERY idea. Let some of them go, and go deep into your true work.

Tip #3 Increase your prices

The single quickest way to make more money is to increase your prices but it’s also the thing that women resist the most.  

If you haven’t increased your prices for a while, then you’re definitely overdue to, especially if you’ve become even better at your work, or have recently upgraded your services. 

And if you’re hesitating or procrastinating on raising your rates, then you’re dealing with money blocks for sure, and it’s super important to work on your mindset that you’re worth it.  I’ve also got a ton of free resources and scripts

Tip #4 Create some VIP offerings

Every business can add some sort VIP offering for customers who want to work more deeply with you, or want extra perks like faster turnaround or personal attention.  

There are many customers who will happily pay you for a premium service for a variety of reasons, and it’s an awesome way to double your income without working harder.  

You can do this with: 

VIP days or intensives for people who want personalized attention or fast service.
If you teach group classes, consider a VIP private option at a premium price. (For example, I have a private yoga instructor come to my house)
Faster graphic or website design packaged solutions – if people want faster turnaround, that can be a premium service.  

I buy things with VIP options all the time now; I’d rather pay a higher rate to get personalized attention or so I can jump the queue. 

Tip #5 Monitor your time

Get real and honest on where you spend your time.

When you focus on income producing activities FIRST, you’ll find that you ask for the sale more often, and your income will go up without working harder.  

It’s obvious but not always implemented.  I often say that since having kids, my income has gone up because I’ve had to be so brutal with my time.  But anyone can do this, just get real on how much money producing activity you really do. 

Tip #6 Create passive income streams

One of the biggest ways to bring more money into your business without working harder is by creating passive income streams.  When you do this, you only spend the creation time once, and then get paid for it over and over. It’s a no brainer when it comes to business. 

The biggest impediment to creating passive income is your money blocks.  SO many of us women procrastinate creating passive income because it goes against our ingrained beliefs that making money is hard work.

Don’t worry – I have lots of resources to help you with this (it’s actually the most common money block I see).  

Lastly…  Give yourself permission! 

You have to give yourself permission to earn more without working harder.

Give yourself permission to profit from your talents.

Give yourself permission to double your income. 

Your income limitations are purely self-perceived – your stories and beliefs can be changed. 

If you need permission, then here it is:  You are allowed to make money from doing what you love.

You’re allowed to double or triple or even quadruple your income easily. 

And if you need help with your mindset, I’ve got an awesome resource for you. 

As I said before, your money mindset is your biggest asset in making more income.  If you’re experiencing money blocks, then watch my free money blocks workshop, which will help you clear your blockages to making more money, so it can be easy and fun.  It’s available at denisedt.com/blocks.

 

Money blocks don’t have to derail you - you can embrace them and move on to creating a First Class life for you and your family.

It's your time and you're ready for the next step.

Got questions about my money mindset course and community?

>> Click here to message me and let's chat about whether whether Bootcamp is right for you <<

GET REAL ABOUT MAKING MONEY IN YOUR BUSINESS

If you're not making money right now in your business - we need to get real.

Get real about your numbers.

You might have heard that marketing is a numbers game, and every part of you may want to rail against it.

You might say things like: “My customers are special to me Denise, they aren’t just a number!“ or “But I put heart and soul into my marketing.“ 

I’m not saying that’s not true, but you have to be realistic about the amount of marketing needed before potential customers can experience your heart and soul for themselves. 

If you're new to our community, my name is Denise Duffield-Thomas, money mindset mentor, author and founder of the Money Bootcamp. I help entrepreneurs like you to clear your money blocks so you can earn the money you deserve and create your First Class life.

You’re talented and ambitious enough to make a success of your business.

You’re good enough to hit all your goals.

You just don’t have enough eyeballs on your work right now. Simple as that. 

I have a prescription for you, and it’s called marketing.  Marketing is about connecting with your peeps, so you can love them and help them solve challenges in their lives through your life-changing products. 

Marketing is not about:

Making money through people's misery or problems
Bothering or annoying people until they say yes
Using neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) in an evil way
Conning people out of their money 

Some of the most beautiful, big-hearted people worry that marketing is some evil form of trickery, but it’s not. 

I often hear entrepreneurs say that they don’t want or need to learn marketing; they’ll “manifest“ the clients instead.

Let’s reframe marketing right now: Marketing is manifesting!

Manifesting means “to make real,“ and marketing is a pretty quick way of bringing in real clients who will pay you real, spendable money in return. Win-win.

Marketing doesn’t have to be scary.

Chillpreneur marketing is just: 

Sharing what you know, and
Making offers.

Did you know that I have an actual marketing degree? Yes, I do: I nailed all my marketing subjects and failed everything else because, instead of going to economics and accounting classes, I was president of my campus business club and performing as a professional sports mascot on the side.

But even though I have legit marketing credentials, they didn’t help in my business until I embraced these two things: sharing and making offers. It’s that simple.

Share your knowledge, expertise, advice, tips, experience, horror stories, mistakes, successes, and other learnings with people. And then, offer a solution. 

This straightforward two-step marketing strategy has made me millions of dollars. It’s empowered me to live a life of freedom, adventure, abundance and joy (our family values). I’ve been able to financially support family members, donate to important charities, and fund causes dear to my heart. It’s helped me build my dream house, buy new cars, and supported my crystal, candle, and book addictions.

Money is awesome. Making money by helping people is even awesomer.  

Those two steps are honestly all you need to do, whether your goal is to make millions or just make a few extra hundred bucks on the side to help pay the mortgage. It’s the same process either way. 

That’s how I started my Lucky Bee “empire,“ and that’s what I continue to do these days. If you follow me on social media, you’ll see that I regularly share what I know about success, money blocks, and other topics, and then I suggest that you either buy my book or sign up for one of my courses.

My marketing strategy hasn’t changed in years, and it works incredibly well because I don’t overthink it.  Of course, there are nuances, but not as many as you think.

You could get caught up in finding the “perfect“ marketing channel or stress about creating the “perfect“ offer, but my advice is just to get started and tweak as you go. Most women are actually great at sharing but terrible at making offers. They have no problem helping people for free. They write great blog posts, give tons of free advice, and will gladly respond to email inquiries that never lead to a sale. But they forget (or are too scared) to tell people they have a solution. 

The truth is that people will take and take and take if you let them. Some will be thankful and praise you for your generosity, but that’s not going to pay your bills. Lots of people will accept your free support and never even say thank you.  

Applause is great, helping people for free is noble, but you know what’s also awesome? Money in the bank. You can give the best, most life-changing advice in the world but, without an offer, your potential customers will think, “that’s nice“ and move on with their lives. 

There’s no silver-bullet solution to growing your business. Just share what you know and make offers. 

I know you’re scared to put yourself out there. Everyone is. That’s not a good enough excuse. The world doesn’t owe you a successful business (or life). It’s up to you to decide that you’re good enough exactly as you are and to show up and be counted.

In my books I share with you chill marketing techniques that will make your life easier and your bank account happier. But not one of them will be “build it, and they will come.“

I’m going to get straight with you: This is a skill you need to get moderately good at. Not perfect, just good enough. In most cases, you can even half-ass it and still get great results (honestly).

I almost called my book Chillpreneur “Lucky B Slap” because we as women, have to get real about the role that marketing has in our businesses.  

In Oprah-style, here’s “what I know for sure“ about your business:   You’ll:

Sabotage yourself (and it will cost you sales).
Feel scared when you ask people for money.
Resist doing the work.

Fear costs you money, time, and freedom—and it’s keeping your dreams out of reach.

Hoping your potential will be fulfilled won’t make it happen. Hoping for clients to (physically or metaphorically) walk through the door won’t make them come.

Blaming yourself for not being perfect isn’t the answer. You have to show up and make yourself known to your potential customers.

I’m not going to slap you – this is just a gentle reminder that you don’t have to overcomplicate it. Share what you know, and make offers.

You can honestly create whatever size business with those two skills (however imperfect), and you can change your world for the better. You can make the money you need to fulfill your dreams, and you can help more people than you thought was possible!

And the blocks and fears you have about helping people, being visible and actually receiving money are keeping you stuck!

But don't worry, I can help. I’ve helped over 100,000 women work on their relationship with money at all stages of business and the first step is figuring out YOUR particular money block.

Jump over to DeniseDT.com/BLOCKS and you’ll find out the EXACT problem you’re facing with money right now and what you can do to overcome it.

It’s your time! You’re ready for the next step!