Attitudes and judgement towards money are one of the greatest limitations you can bring to a business.

One of my earlier businesses was a business importing and selling semi-precious stones from India, particularly the popular rose quartz. I was going straight to the source thereby eliminating the middle man and allowing for an incredible mark-up; I’d buy the stones for $15 each and sell them for $130.

I came to a stage where I wanted to get rid of my stock of jewellery, so I drastically reduced the prices, selling them for $25, expecting that they would sell faster. The discovery I made was that no one wanted to buy them at the reduced rate. People saw the $25 price tag and made the assumption that it was a cheap piece of jewellery. When I priced them saying ‘original price: $130, sale price $80,’ the business came flooding back in.

Knowing the difference between cost and value is key. The cost of your product or service is the amount you spend to produce it, the price is the cost plus the amount you are willing to receive for providing the product or service and this in turn can influence the perceived value to the customer.

Find out what benefits your customers gain from using your product or service, and which behaviour is driving their purchasing decisions. Is your product or service competitive on price, is it convenient enabling you to charge more, is reliability something your customers are willing to pay more for? Look at all the ways your product/service is different and the unique benefits to your customers.

The price tag you attach to your product or service influences people’s perception of your business, so when pricing your product or service offering you should charge what you feel comfortable with, and then charge more! A high price contributes to the perception of your product as being of premium value. Attaching a price to your product or service isn’t about valuing your worth – you are worth infinitely more. It’s just money, have fun with it!

Attitudes and judgement towards money are one of the greatest limitations you can bring to a business. If money were no object, what would you create? I often encounter people who have a business idea, but don’t start because they believe they don’t have enough money. What if you allowed yourself to make the choice to take action and demand that the money showed up?

To start changing your perceptions and attitudes towards money today, start by practising gratitude and asking questions.

Here are four tips to guide you on what to charge for your services:

Be willing to receive money

If you would like to have a sense of ease what you charge for your services, the willingness to receive money is the place to begin. Receiving is not something most of us were taught to do and so we grow up uncomfortable with receiving everything including money. You can ask, “What would it take to change this? What would it take for me to receive the contribution of everyone and everything around me? What if I was willing to have more money than I could ever spend?

Charge more than you are comfortable with

Determine the amount you feel comfortable charging for your product or service—and then charge more. If you are comfortable charging $80, charge $100. This positions your product or service as valuable and desirable. Your customers and clients will be more grateful for you and for your product/service.

Be willing to ask people for money

Many of us do what we do because we enjoy it. Money is not our primary target; something else is. What if you could have the joy of what you do AND the money too? In order for that to occur, you have to be willing to ask for money.

Here’s an exercise you can use. Practice saying, “Can I have the money now please?” Say it 10 times. What do you notice? Do you notice any discomfort? Are you aware of judgments that you have about you and about asking for what you require? Keep saying, “Can I have the money now please?” until there’s a shift and asking for money becomes easy for you.

Ask, “What do I have to charge to make this fun for me?”

There is an amount for your products or services that would be fun for you to charge. Ask, “What would that amount be?” When you ask, you will become aware of what that is. Most of the time, the amount that’s fun for you to charge will push you beyond your comfort zone. Choose it anyway!

When you offer a product or service and what you receive is an amount that is fun for you, an amount that creates a sense of joy, your customers and clients will sense that joy and it creates more for them too. And, as your joy increases, so does your money. Money follows joy.