services

5 Reasons Why We Don’t Earn Enough Money

Hi friends! I have a little bit of a surprise coming in a couple of days, but before I can unveil that, I have to cover a topic that I know has been on a lot of minds, and that seems to be discussed more and more in public forums as the economy goes through its ups and downs.

Many of us work hard, do a good job, and yet we still don’t seem to earn enough money. This is a problem that I had personally for years, until I made some crucial changes that helped me to turn this around (more about those changes in a minute). There are at least five common reasons why we don’t earn enough money, and I’d like to discuss these with you, as well as point you in the direction of some support for turning these reasons around.

  1. We didn’t do skill audits when needed. A skill audit is a deep dive into our knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs, for those that are familiar with federal job terminology). Listing our skills then having a deep appreciation for what we’ve mastered is critical to understanding our worth in tangible measurements. Without this knowing, it’s nearly impossible to be adequately compensated for our work. After all, if we aren’t clear about our value, how can we appropriately price our labor when interacting with clients and employers?
  2. We undervalued our skills. Even when we’re crystal clear about what’s in our skill set, we can still under-price ourselves. Many of us believe that timidity, and being the “lowest bidder”, will ensure that we get the clients or the jobs that we want. And it’s true that doing this may get us jobs and clients, however . . . We often find that undervaluing our labor means that we work harder, get burned out faster, and earn less over time. Please don’t let the current conversations about the desperation in the job market discourage you: there are enough positions available at every income level to satisfy your earning desires, and you don’t have to undervalue yourself just to secure employment.
  3. We have outdated money beliefs. Once upon a time, we believed that telecommuting and virtual work environments were only available to the few lucky people that happened to stumble upon progressive employers. Then 2020 happened, and we found out that a lot of employers that previously found telework to be “infeasible” and “unsustainable” could now operate with 100% virtual teams. I mention this example to illustrate that our money beliefs should be constantly shifting because our realities are always transforming. For that reason, we have to ask ourselves honestly whether we believe that we can actually earn more, that employers and clients are willing to pay what we ask, and that there are environments that will support the kind of work we wish to do. Only after considering these things can we remove this block in our earning potential.
  4. We accepted principle over profit. This is probably the only reason that may remain even after going through the other points. Sometimes, we choose work that is underpaid but rewarding (education and farming are two fields that come to mind immediately) because we’ve decided that the emotional rewards outweigh the financial gain. It is possible to have abundant income and deeply purposeful work all wrapped in one, but if our main motivation is principle, we may not seek out more lucrative opportunities. The goal should always be adequate or abundant income, coming from meaningful work. We should never have to choose between the two and, if our financial gain means that we have to compromise our values, then the opportunity isn’t worth it.
  5. We’re paralyzed by fear. This is probably the biggest one, because it’s the only thing that requires constant monitoring and addressing issues as they arise. It’s also the only point that can’t be easily corrected by introducing objective information. Our fears can convince us of monsters in teh shadows and can keep us from taking leaps of faith. However, it’s key to note that we are always larger than our fears, and we can always choose to be brave. Our future selves require us to be courageous and take one step forward, then another, even when we don’t know exactly where it will lead us.

I’ve personally gone through each of these reasons for underearning. I didn’t understand the breadth of my skillset, I did work where I was grossly underpaid, I believed that my dream salary wasn’t possible due to XYZ (insert lots of detrimental thinking here), I engaged in meaningful work that didn’t pay much, and I’ve been so scared that I wouldn’t even apply to certain jobs. I’ve tackled each of them one by one, in order to dismantle my money blocks and earn more money than ever. Now my work is simultaneously interesting, full of purpose, and well paid. I also got to tap into one of my core values – flexibility – since I now have a position where I can choose my work schedule based on my needs.

I’m here for you all if you need help with reason #1 – identifying your current skill set. I am currently offering a skills audit package on my Services page, so you can see my approach to quantifying your KSAs. It includes a telephone/zoom conversation with me, as well as a beautifully formatted document that you can use when seeking new earning opportunities, and you can customize it as you add new skills to your toolkit. It’s perfect for helping you get clear on your depth of expertise and how to position yourself to earn what you want and deserve. The skills audit will also help you overcome any of the five reasons that may be blocking you from earning more money, as well as any skills gaps, and recommend how to address these gaps in the most affordable and efficient way.

Those are my top five reasons why we may not be earning enough money. Look out for more insights in upcoming posts! Take care.

Start Selling Shovels

Has the current economy caused you to start panicking a bit? I know that we’ve all been hearing about recessions, experiencing inflation, and living in a world that is more confusing than ever. It’s easy to see why some of us may be uneasy, or even fearful, when discussing financial security. But preparation is always the best antidote to fear, and this post will (hopefully) give you ideas for how to create more security and stability in your finances.

It is never too late to start creating financial freedom. It’s always never too late to adjust current behaviors in order to be more resilient in times of financial difficulty. That being said, you can do one thing, today, to ensure that you have more financial flexibility in the future.

Start selling shovels.

I don’t mean that literally, of course. I mean that you should look at examples of exemplary people who thrived in the past, and use those examples as models for your business and success. The shovels metaphor refers specifically to the California gold rush of the late 1840s. If you recall from history, you realize many of the gold miners actually never got rich. But there was one group that made lots of money, and had no problem securing their financial futures . . .

It was the shovel salesmen. It actually goes beyond the shovel sales, though: anyone that offered secondary or tertiary goods and services to the gold rush hopefuls thrived during this period. Levi’s jeans can still be found in big box retail stores, despite Levi Strauss being deceased for over 100 years. The first shop opened by Strauss in California was in 1853, two years before the gold rush ended. His shop was under the umbrella of the shop his family owned in New York, but he moved to San Francisco in order to provide goods to the thousands of people that relocated in hopes of finding gold.

Strauss found gold without striking one shovel against dirt nor panning in rivers. The gold was in the shoppers, not in the mines. He provided tents, blue jeans (though this particular invention really didn’t hit its stride until the 1870s, 20 years after the end of the rush), bedding, as well as unlikely luxuries, like handkerchiefs and purses. An under-served but eager group of buyers were women, who, moving to California with husbands or male relatives, missed the comforts of their homes. There were also women who moved to California with the hopes of landing a wealthy husband that could provide the comfort and luxury they desired. So, while the miners may have been men, there were other customers that needed to be served.

Sometimes, you have to sell a purse along with a shovel.

What does all of this mean for you, dear reader? You aren’t living in the 1840s, or 1870s. You can get shovels, purses, and blue jeans from Amazon, or, if you’re feeling adventurous, a local in-person retailer. So, what can you do with this story?

Look for the gold rushes, then serve the hopefuls. Start by looking at the “hottest” ways to make money, and come up with businesses and solutions that serve the people that aspire to be the “Next Great” whatever. Give them the goods and services they need, and they’ll make you rich. I’d also advise to lean more toward services, since goods are often easier to find and harder to price competitively without taking a loss initially. But, if your heart is set on offering goods, then do what you must.

No matter whether you focus on goods, services, or a combination, find the shovels you need to offer, and start making money. You can do it!

That’s it for today. Please let me know if this helped, or if you have any questions or ideas that you’d like to flesh out with me. Take care, and I’ll talk to you all soon!