Do You Know Your Worth? EP #209 - Shorty

G', day, guys. Dan here with episode 209 of the how to Scale a Video Business Podcast. And today I want to talk about do you know your worth? And by that I mean are you spending time with opportunities that aren't actually a great fit for you, but you're doing it because of a fear of missing out on work, missing out on opportunities? Well, we just came off today's coaching call with the VBA members, and this was a big theme this week where clients were firing, in some cases, jobs that were worth over $100,000. And it was for the very reason I'm going to share with you today about knowing your worth and knowing your value.

It's very easy to get caught up in a big number job. I've done plenty of them myself, you know, where the, the ticket price for the overall project is high and so therefore the margins are good. You know, I mean, it's not that I'm saying you shouldn't go after these projects, but really what we were focusing on today was the fact that when you feel as a red flag.

Is trust your instinct on that. Because what became clear in the, in the virtual room today.

Was that we all agreed that there are sometimes indicators early on in a project, early on in a discussion where something doesn't feel quite right, and if the client's not respecting you, that should be a hard out. Now, the reason that we talk about this so importantly is we're discussing this about the culture of the vba, like a high value of all of the members is genuinely wanting to do a great job for their clients, genuinely and with in great intent wanting to help clients achieve their goals. And for that, we charge appropriately. We charge appropriately. Everyone's at the higher end of the market because, you know, there's no point in dealing anywhere but the higher end of the market.

But with that comes a sense of ownership, and ownership in the sense that if a client is not treating you and your team with respect, then I absolutely applaud anyone who fires a client. Now, obviously there can be some legal implications. You have to run it by your lawyer to make sure you're not breaching your contract. But if you've got a really solid agreement in place, then, excuse me, you can.

Exit. Have an exit clause in a contract if something's not working out, because.

We'Ve all been there. You know, you work with a client who's an absolute pain in the ass, who doesn't respect your time and doesn't respect your experience, doesn't respect your judgment. Demands things to be turned around super quickly and then goes quiet on you and you look for feedback. So it's really important that you know your worth, you know your value. And if you are an authority in your space, if you are someone who is, is preeminent, then, then it's totally okay to say no, this isn't working for me. I think you should find another supplier. And this can freak some people out because you know, and let me be clear, this doesn't happen a lot, okay? It's not something we don't advocate. If a client's no good, fire them. It's about respect and knowing your worth. Because if you don't know your own worth, you end up selling yourself short. And on the topic of pricing, you know, there are three price points in any market. There's cheap, there's expensive, and then there's the middle. I'm going to encourage you to just go and work with the top end of the market, maybe the middle of the market, but definitely not the bottom end of the market. Because you're going to spend 30, 40, 50 hours a week at work. Wouldn't you rather do it with people you like, people you enjoy working with? I mean, I can say that I have the best job in the world. I get to work with amazing filmmakers, amazing video businesses across the planet every single week, every single day. I get to support them, I get to learn with them, I get to share with them. And, and I'm pleased to say, you know, almost everyone is making a lot more money than when they started, which is a great byproduct.

So you gotta remember that, you know, when you run a business, your primary moral obligation to the business is to generate the maximum profit for the least amount of effort. And I think as creatives, that can sometimes be a bit weird. I think we can feel uncomfortable with the idea of making money as a primary goal. But let me put it a different way. If you could choose to create a business that, that has you working 30 to 40 hours a week, maybe less, be 20 to 30 hours a week that you could spend time bringing up your kids, you could spend time taking your kids up from school, going away on trips, camping trips, going on holidays, having quality time to create memories with your family.

And that meant that you charged a bit more and you were more discerning with the kind of clients you worked with, and you were very clear about the rules of engagement, but you also delivered an absolute five star plus service. I want to be clear.

This premium approach to pricing and positioning is Absolutely cemented in you delivering an absolutely five star service. I do not advocate charging a load of money and not delivering an amazing service. I just want to be absolutely clear about that. But if you charge a premium price and you deliver a premium service, you end up working with amazing clients, ones that respect your time, ones that value you and you get to have a great life in the process. So like, where's the downside as opposed to working with cheap clients? Not letting go of things like editing, not letting go of things like parts of production that you feel you don't want to let go of because you enjoy it.

It's about a mindset. Shifting from being a freelancer mindset to a business owner mindset. And the business owner journey is a different journey, no less rewarding. I always remember Pat, one of my clients who's been on this podcast, and Pat Henderson over in Boston, he said, you know, when I first started with you, Dan, I felt like I, I just kind of didn't want to let go of the editing. I just thought I'll go in and do the last 10 or 15%. But now he said, I've grown to love building a business. I love, I don't touch the edits at all now. I love working with my team. I love helping them to become, you know, better leaders. I love systemizing the business and I love focusing on the things I enjoy. He's got a young family.

He'S got more children on the way and he's enjoying his life. He has a beach house, he has a place in Boston and he's building an amazing business and, and he's just building it sequentially and enjoying the process. So you know, if, when, if, if you're ready to shift your mindset away from the freelance mindset into more of a business development mindset, more of a business mindset. Or you've already gotten an established business and you're like stuck at a revenue lumber and that could be 10 grand a month. It would be 20, 30, 40, 50, $60,000 a month. It doesn't matter what the number is. If you're stuck and you've been there for a while, then there's every chance we could help you to unlock something that's holding you back. Be it systems, be it team, be it expansion, be it looking at things from a different perspective. We had an amazing discussion this morning about salespeople and how to hire a great business development person. Anyway guys, I've got an amazing show for you on Thursday, all about the 20 mile march and it's based on a book by Jim Collins called Great by Choice. It is one of the absolute key texts that I recommend every business owner reads, and I'll look forward to seeing you then. But in the meantime, here's a little message from me. Ask yourself this has owning your own video business been everything you dreamed it would be when you first got started? It might be hard to admit, but think about whether you're genuinely achieving everything you set out to when you made that decision to grab the camera and go it alone. Are you really working less? Are you really earning more? And are you really in control? The chances are you're bloody good at what you do, but you're having to work like a dog, 70 plus hours a week. Whether it's filming, editing, marketing, or any of the other jobs that come with being the big boss of your own video company. When you're managing projects, constantly searching out for new clients and worrying about cash flow, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture or make real progress. Let's face it, that stress is the last thing you need when you're trying to run a profitable company that supports you and the people you care about. Truth is, a business that provides financial, professional and personal freedom really is achievable. But maybe you've got that nagging feeling that you're overworked, lacking stability, and struggling to get to where you really want to be right now. It could be that you just don't know how to make a positive change on your own. So I created the Video Business Accelerator Coaching programs to really supercharge your video business. With these unique coaching programs, you'll learn all the tools you need to get complete confidence in the success of your video business. You can take the first step on your journey to a successful business that doesn't control your life. Let me show you how. Head over to Denlany.com and click on Accelerator.