Megan O'Neill

Mindset Mentor

money mindset

Triggered? What to do when asked, “Do you offer a discount?”

What Can You Do if You are asked for a discountA few weeks ago, I had a conversation with someone who asked me to discount my service. This is the first time in a long time this has happened to me. It’s not surprising and I was not insulted, but I know some people may have felt that way. So, I wanted to ask you: how do you feel when someone asks you for a discounted rate or price? And what can you do if you are asked for a discount?

In the “old days” when someone asked me for a discount, I thought it was something I had to do. This was a learning lesson for me in the beginning stages of my business, but as I went along I began to feel insulted when someone would ask for a discount. I was beginning to gain confidence and getting busier and felt insulted when someone would ask for a cheaper rate.

Now, when someone asks for a discount, I feel ambivalent. When this particular person asked me for a discount, I simply told them I do not offer discounts, but that I do offer different payment plans and options.

When someone asks you for a discount it tells you something about them and what they believe. They may believe your services or products are too expensive. This means they may not be your ideal client.

Take, for example, my fourteen-year old daughter. She recently went back to school shopping and upon looking at hundred-dollar jeans said the store was too expensive. Well, for a teen making babysitting money – yes, that is expensive. So, she is not that store’s ideal client. And if she were to ask for a discount, they certainly would not give it to her.

If you are being triggered by someone who is asking for a discount then there is a part of you feeling insecure about how much you are worth and how much you are charging. This speaks to your money blocks and this is an opportunity to look closer at that.

If you feel called to give someone a discount, for whatever the reason, know that there are no rules. If it comes from a place of good versus fear they cannot afford you – that is okay. But if you do not want to discount, then don’t. Instead, try keeping someone on hand who is cheaper than you. This way you have someone you can refer people to. Remember: not everyone is right for you and you don’t have to work with everyone.

The other thing to keep in mind is cultural beliefs. In Canada, we are sticker price people – generally, what is on the sticker is what we pay. But when I used to travel to Southeast Asia it was all about haggling and negotiating the price. So, remember that when someone asks for a discount that it is not about you, but could be about their beliefs.

And as much as it could be about them – don’t forget to look within yourself as well. What do you believe about your products or service? Remember, you are sending out an energy. You can look at your prices if you want to, but you should also look within yourself. If you don’t value what you do or what you are offering people than that is a beacon you are sending out to people.

If this feels familiar to you, then you more than likely have money beliefs that need to be worked on. Book a free 45-minute clarity call and let’s see how we can work together.

Stop fearing what will happen if you raise your prices!

Time and time again I hear from people who feel they are over-delivering and under paid. When they look at their numbers at the end of the month they are not seeing the money they wish they had for the work they were doing.

I understand that feeling. For many years, I undercharged for services and before that I negotiated contracts for myself. I sucked at it. And I didn’t have anyone to guide me, until someone I worked with, guided me. When it came to asking people to pay me, I was too concerned with what other people felt and what their money fears and baggage were – instead of focussing on my own. I abdicated my responsibility for my own money mindset. When I realized what I was doing, I decided to start focussing on my money mindset.

By working on my money mindset, I was able to overcome the fears I have about raising my prices. I stopped leaving money on the table!

If you have reached your income ceiling and want to raise that ceiling then you need to work on your money mindset. Whether you are self-employed or working at a career where you know you should be earning more – don’t leave money on the table! Too often entrepreneurs are not charging their worth.

I am running a free webinar specifically on this topic. It’s Wednesday, April 25th at 4 p.m. and if you can’t make it live, still sign up – a replay will be sent to everyone who enrols. Many of us have beliefs about where we ‘should’ be financially, and those beliefs can limit us from really making the money we can make. Join me on the 25th and stop fearing what will happen if you raise your prices or ask your boss for more money!

Pricing webinar

Entrepreneurs: Do you ignore the red flags?

Do you ignore the red flags that tell you a client may be awful or that a project is not right for you and take on that client or project anyway? A lot Entrepreneurs-Do you ignore the red flags-of time entrepreneurs take on work even though there are clear signs that it is not going to work well.

They do so because of fear – fear they will not make enough money or that they will not find any more work. This plays into a scarcity mentality – entrepreneurs who say yes to the wrong kinds of people and work are afraid they will never have enough.

Do you have a scarcity mentality?

If this sounds familiar, this could lead to the death of your business. If you have a scarcity mentality you could end up working with the wrong clients who may not honour your contract or timelines, will be very demanding or will not give appropriate feedback or testimonials. These clients may be a big headache and will hinder the success of your business because you will be unhappy.

Do you fear you are not good enough?

Another issue entrepreneurs often have is the fear that they are not good enough. If you fear you are not good enough to attract the right kind of clients or projects then you will end up attracting the wrong ones and will be unhappy.

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Be clear on what it is you want

When you are looking at the clients and work you would like to take on, be clear on what it is you want: Who is your ideal client? What is your genius work?

What are your non-negotiables? Do you need someone to respond within a certain timeline or do they need to earn a certain amount in order to pay your rates?

Pay attention to how you value yourself.

How much do you think you are worth? Be clear on this – in personal relationships and in business relationships. Take the time to figure out your answers to these questions. By sacrificing your answers you are jeopardizing the success of your business.

If you find yourself suffering from a scarcity mentality or not valuing yourself, set up a time to chat. I also invite you to join my free Facebook community: Core Beliefs for Business where I constantly engage with business owners on what is preventing their business from moving forward.

3 Money Mindset Practices Learned From Rich Money Mentors

3 Money Mindset Practices Learned From Rich Money MentorsMoney Mindset is a topic I am talking a lot about this week, especially as I start to lead my mindset group program.

In the past, I worked with my own money mindset because I was constantly making financial decisions based on fear. I made some pretty bad decisions in the past based on my money mindset, so eventually I recognized that I needed to do some work on it.

Why you need to work on your money mindset

Money mindset can cause you problems in taking your business to the next level, as well as cause problems in your personal life.

Money Mindset in business

In business, this could mean not charging your worth or not charging at all for your time. Also, you may not want to take risks or invest in something that may actually help grow your business. This could mean having fear around hiring a virtual assistant, outsourcing or even hiring a business coach—even if your know you should be doing these things, you won’t because of your money mindset. So, instead of growing you will stay at a certain level of income and never grow—even though you want to.

I overcame this by working on my money mindset by taking a course on it, then hiring a business coach and then starting to outsource some of my business tasks. This was a big mindset shift for me surrounding my business.

Money Mindset in your personal life

In personal life, your relationship with money can demonstrate how you treat yourself. For example, I had the same pair of inexpensive jeans from the time my daughter was born until just a few days ago–my daughter is now 13. That’s 13 years wearing the same pair of inexpensive jeans. I never wanted to spend the money on my own clothes. I would spend it on my kids, but not on myself—even though I could have used a new pair.

So, how can you start to shift your money mindset? A part of shifting my mindset was investing in the knowledge of money mentors such as Denise Suffield-Thomas and Barbara Stanny. Here is what I learned:

Track all incoming money, whatever form it comes in

From Denise Suffield-Thomas I learned to track all my incoming money, whatever form it comes in–every single cent is on a spreadsheet. The philosophy behind this is the sense of abundance you can get by realizing you have more than you think.

Educate yourself about money

Barbara Stanny believes that anyone intimidated by money should start educating himself or herself on it, whether that be by reading the Wall Street Journal or reading an investment book. Learning about money can make you feel more powerful around money.

Look at your money beliefs

Lastly, I believe you need to look at your money beliefs. If you don’t buy something because you believe you cannot afford it – why is that? Think about what prevents you from investing in your business or buying those new pair of jeans even though you could use them.

Look at your money mindset practices and work on what you need to do to take your business (and your personal life) to the next level. For more information on breaking through your money blocking beliefs, let’s set up a free time to chat and see if I can help.

And if you haven’t done so already, make sure to join my private, Core Beliefs for Business, Facebook Group. A group solely focused on mindset for entrepreneurs and business owners.

Join the Money Mindset Challenge

money mindset challengeThe topic of money is often accompanied by feelings of discomfort, angst or avoidance. Does this sound familiar? Have you ever wondered why you feel awkward around money? For many people, earning money and spending money is a difficult subject to talk about and many times this is because our relationship with money is not a healthy one.

What is your relationship with money? Do you know your numbers and feel comfortable around money? If you are like many people, you may feel uncomfortable at the idea of spending money—especially if you are spending money on yourself or on something you may consider unnecessary.

Money Mindset and the Entrepreneur

If you are an entrepreneur, you may feel uncomfortable when it comes to asking for more money— you may feel anxious about charging what you’re really worth. This especially comes to light when it comes time to send customers their invoices. Do you find yourself hesitating to hit send because you are worried they won’t see the value in your product or service?

You shouldn’t hesitate to charge your worth. You should also feel good about spending money on yourself. The truth is, it’s not always easy to do, but with a little work everyone can have a healthy relationship with money.

They key to uncovering your struggles with money is to question your relationship with money and look at where you are weak and also look at areas where you are strong. This is one of the goals of the Money Mindset Challenge.

This challenge will have you break down your relationship with money so you can determine why you feel discomfort with it and how you can improve your relationship. It’s your opportunity to nurture your relationship with money and challenge yourself to break through your money blocks and earn more money!

Although this challenge will dig deep, it should only take about 20 minutes, once a week to complete. You will have plenty of time to ask questions, engage with like-minded people through my Facebook Group and find the answers you need to end self-sabotaging money beliefs and instead attract abundance!
For more information and to sign up for this thought-provoking challenge, visit the Money Mindset Challenge page.

Shifting the Paradigm: A discussion with Angela Blaha

Money Beliefs with Angela BlahaI recently sat down to speak with Angela Blaha as a part of her online summit: Shifting the Paradigm: Creating the New Earth. We started by talking about how beliefs can block people from breaking out of a routine or pattern that may be harming their business or relationships, and then related this to the relationship people have with money.

After discussing what core belief engineering is and how I got into Core Belief Engineering 14 years ago we dug into people’s money beliefs and how the beliefs of our parents and/or grandparents can affect our beliefs about money as adults.

The legacy of your beliefs around something follows you into adulthood and sometimes the affect on us is not a good one. Women in particular struggle with worthiness and accepting money. I work with many female entrepreneurs to make sure they are charging what they are worth – a conversation that some women might find difficult if they were raised to not discuss money.

Many times people don’t see their beliefs around money as blocks. They may just feel exhausted from the work they do or feel discomfort at the thought of charging more or fear they will lose clients or care too much about what other people think.

On another level, some women struggle with success. They fear too much success because they feel they would be judged because they wouldn’t have the same amount of time to attend family events, etc. They worry they will be looked upon as if they are evil and cold.

In contrast, some people may have expectations that they should always be paid for their work and strive to be successful – especially men who may have grown up learning that men work and get paid, regardless of what that work is.

How can we break through our money beliefs?

Your conscious mind represents what you presently know, but there might be this part of you (your subconscious self) that is hesitant to accept money for various reasons i.e., you are supposed to be content just helping people, etc. You need to feel your consciousness. How do we do this?

Recognize your relationship with money and where you feel discomfort with it. Where is money affecting you? Are you comfortable spending money? What is it about money that makes you feel anxious?

When you start to feel this anxiety ask yourself, what are feeling? What is it about money that is making you feel afraid?

Asking yourself these questions will help you be more aware about what your beliefs are around money. What is it that you need to work on in terms of your relationships with money – is it that your parents grew up in the depression and scarcity is all you know? Or is it that your parents had money, but were always saving for a rainy day and never spent it on luxury items, so you hesitate to do the same. What is going on inside you and around you?

Awareness is a huge part of learning to move forward. Once you are aware of your fear then you can take action to break through your blocking beliefs. Helping people break through their negative beliefs is what I do on a daily basis.

I would like to thank Angela for the enlightened discussion around money beliefs. If we are to shift they way we view the world, we must start with what we believe and work towards changing what makes us feel uncomfortable into something good.