011 Getting Highly Paid for What You Know

Hey there, real quick before we jump into the episode, listen, if your earnings treadmill hasn't set you free yet, running faster won't either. Listen, hustle without principles just going to burn you out. So here's what I want for you. I want you to join me for my money machine experience live. It is three free trainings. Deep dive into how to escape the treadmill and build a money machine that actually works for you. All right, grab your spot here by going to moneymachinelive.com and I'll see you in the free training. What does it take to get paid a premium for what you know? Let's take a look.

This is the Affluent Entrepreneur show for entrepreneurs that want to operate at a high level and achieve financial liberation. I'm your host, Mel Abraham, and I'll be sharing with you what it takes to create success beyond wealth so you can have a richer, more fulfilling lifestyle. In this show, you'll learn how business and money intersect so you can scale your business, scale your money, and scale your life while creating a deeper impact and living with complete freedom, because that's what it really means to be an affluent entrepreneur.

Hey there. Welcome back to this episode of the Affluent Entrepreneur Show. I'm your host, Mel Abraham. And in this episode, we're going to go deeper. We're going to continue on from the last episode when we talked about the idea of what does it take to generate? What's the best way or the fastest way to maybe generate or scale additional income? Because if we do it right, not only do we make more, we get back more time and we have more. And so in that last episode, we talked a bit about the affluence blueprint and the three pillars of the affluence blueprint and the generate pillar being one of the main pillars is that how do we go from a. A drip of cash flow to a flood. Now, in this episode, I actually want to talk a bit more about what does it take to increase your prices, increase what you charge people, what you. For what you know, whether it's in. In, in the idea of digital products, training, teaching, speaking, all those things, because there's some really key elements that you need to have in place. I talked about this idea of a unique methodology. We're going to talk, we're going to go deeper on that topic in this episode. But let's just really take a step back for a moment. Here's the thing. I have the ability to increase my income from a couple of different ways. One, I can just try to get more sales. In other words, I could run on the treadmill faster and longer and just get more volume through. But at some point, you might hit burnout or breakdown because you just can't go any faster. You can't go any longer, you can't run any harder. And remember, the treadmill can turn into treadmill if we're not careful. So when we look at that may not be the way to do it. The other way to do it, one of the other ways to do it is to charge more for what you're offering. Now, here's the thing. Just like I said in the last episode, this isn't a pricing conversation. This is a value conversation. In other words, what value are you providing? When we look at this idea, what our job is, especially if we're creating a digital product, especially if we're creating online training programs, offerings like that, is to solve a pervasive need or problem for our client or customer. And so when we do that, the client or customer, we get their attention, they're willing to buy, they're sitting back saying, I got this pain, I got this pain, I got this problem. I need a solution. You know, you've got an excruciating headache, you want a solution. You're having a problem in your relationship and you want to try and figure it out. You've got a baby that won't sleep at night, and you just need the solution. You're looking for the solution and you're trying to figure it out, okay? And so one of the things that, that we do is that there's plenty of people out there. They're teaching everything from needlepoint to, you know, sleeping babies to relationship advice to health and wellness, all kinds of things. So how do you stand out? Because if we don't stand out, we. We're seen as a commodity. And if we're seen as a commodity, it's really, really difficult to increase your prices because the market isn't seeing the distinction or the value in what you do. That's different than everyone else. Here's the thing. I was having a conversation. I was sitting at lunch with a client and a good friend who does online marketing, but he does mostly E commerce consulting, e commerce agencies type of stuff. And I said, I asked him and he wanted to grow. And he says, I want to grow. I want to leverage, I want to get more profitability. I don't know how to get. Get that. And I said, let me ask you something, okay? And I want you to think about this question for yourself. What makes you different than everyone else in the market, doing the things that you're doing, solving the same problems that you're solving. Now, let me be clear. In all likelihood, if you say, well, I have more degrees, I have more certifications, yeah, not a distinction. It's not a huge distinction. It's not something that's going to really command fees. Well, I get results. Well, so do they. Maybe not the same results, but does the market discern that? And so I said to him, he said to me, he goes, I actually don't think that there's. I don't know what it is. I said, well, until you know what your distinction is, the market won't know what that distinction is, and therefore they put you on the same level field as everyone else in the market. Here's another example, and this is an example of me. As you know, I've done a lot of valuations over the years. I'm a CPA by education. I do a lot of valuations where I would get hired. I would get hired to value a business that might be in litigation, value a business that might be on a tax issue, value a business for transaction, buying and selling a business. I spent a lot of time making sure that I spoke about valuations differently, that I had the education, great. But that was just getting them to open their eyes. But how I spoke about it, how I positioned myself, the results I got the way I did it. And I had a distinction. I had a unique methodology that allowed me to bring it forward. And, and what happens is that you end up with premium conversations because you brought premium thinking, which allows you to get premium fees. And I'll tell you what happened. I got a call one time from an attorney that wanted to refer me a client, and he said, listen, I know that this is a big case, it's a complicated case, and you're the only one we've been told to go to, so you're the only one we're talking to. Okay, well, now, price was no issue because of the positioning and the distinction and all of that. That's what I want for you. That's what I want for you. So if you're going to create a course, if you're going to create something, let's figure out how do we make it in a way that you're talking about it differently, that you're having a different conversation around the topic than anyone else. And that's how the unique methodology comes into play. Because when we get that in place, things can shift, things can change for you. It's really about you doing much deeper thinking about what it is you do. Because until you do that, you can't have a different conversation than what everyone else is doing in the marketplace. And it's not about what they're doing. I don't care what the competition is doing. I'm not going to allow the competition to define what I should be doing. I'm going to do what I do and I'm going to do it in my unique way. And that's where the unique methodology comes in. So let's talk about this whole idea of a unique methodology. And now there is a graphic for this. And if you're listening, do me a favor. When you're safe place, I want you to go to the Show Notes so you can download the graphic so you can see it, but I'll describe it for you to walk you through it. Because there's effectively four elements to a unique methodology. The purpose behind the unique methodology is, is for the world, your customers, the market, to sit back and say, oh my gosh, they're talking about this differently than anyone else that I've talked to. And when they see the difference, then they see the distinction. You are in a better place, in a better position to be selected as the premium provider because you're doing things differently than anyone else. So if we look at this and build from there, the bottom line is this. Remember I said we're trying to serve a pervasive need, pain or problem that your customer has. We need to take them from point A to point B. One of the biggest mistakes with people make when they're trying to generate revenue by using, creating an online program or online course is they actually try to give them everything they want to take them from point A to point C. The only thing that we accomplish when we do that is to put them into overwhelm. See, right now, your customers don't even know about C through Z. They just know that they need to get out of their current pain. So let's solve that. Let's move them from point A to point B. And the way we do this, and this is the way I design our unique methodologies. And when I've worked with my clients on this to help them create revenue streams and do that, this is the way we've done it. So in order to do that, you need a couple things. Like I said, there's four things you need. 20 thoughts. And this is. That's an arbitrary number. Bottom line is what I'm getting at is that, that I want you to have 20 concepts you can teach that are necessary to get the results that you want, you're going to need two frameworks. Okay, we'll talk a little bit about the frameworks. You're going to want to have a process that gets them from A to B and then you have the ability to deliver it through multiple channels. That's the key. Okay, so let's just look at this idea of 20 thoughts. Okay? Everyone can come up with 20 thoughts. If I asked you today to give me the 20 key elements to create a wonderful relationship with your spouse, your significant other, your partner, I bet you could come up with it. You could build something around that. And so when we do this, the first thing is to capture them the insights. What do you want them to know? What do they need to know that will move them forward? That'll move them from point A to point B. And capture this is about the information that you want to convey. Here's the key element to it is that there's a process to capturing the information. And we teach a process called the communication pathways template. But the bottom line is this. Realize that not everyone in your audience communicates the same. There are those that love abstract thinking, there are those that love the details. My wife is a detail in the weeds kind of thinker. Nothing wrong with that. Okay, I work in the weeds and I work above the weeds. I can go from abstract to detail. Then there's those folks that are more heart based thinkers, and then there's those that are more logic based thinkers. And so when you create your insights, when you come up with your concepts, it's important to be able to communicate them in a way that appeals to all four communication pathways. And each communication pathway, whether it's abstract, detailed, right brain, left brain, there's a different way to convey it. And so those that actually start to command premium fees, they actually understand that. And when they communicate their point, they communicate it in a variety of different ways. Where we are speaking to the broad spectrum, full spectrum teaching and doing that. So what we need to do is capture our thinking. The 20 concepts, the 20 insights, the 20 things they need to know that will drive them from point A to point B. Catalog those in a journal or something. If you've been through my thoughtpreneur academy, you know, the CPT process, you use the CPT process to do that in the affluence blueprint, where we're really looking at how we can use this to get higher fees to generate more income so we can use it to accumulate that Leads us to the second piece. Now, the second piece is all about frameworks. And I think you need two frameworks. The first framework that you have is a framework. That is what we call a process framework. It's the framework, it's a diagram. Now let me get clear, and I'm known for creating frameworks. I'm known and I've had my hands on a lot of frameworks in the industry and around. But I'm talking about a diagrammatic framework. I'm not talking about acronym. I'm talking about a diagram that depicts a picture that allows them to see point A and point B and how to get there. It's a process framework. It can be a quadrant model, it can be a Venn diagram, it can be a triangle, it can be you'll. If you watch how I teach, I teach through frameworks. It's the thing that makes things memorable. It's the thing that makes things valuable things that. It's the thing that starts to develop. The distinction that we need in the marketplace to allow people to say he or she is talking about this differently, okay? And we can build things off of frameworks. If you don't think so, watch what happens. Stephen Covey built a multi hundred million dollar business on four boxes. The urgent versus important framework. So what we need to do is build a framework, a diagrammatic framework that allows them to see how they go from point A to point B. Now remember, I said there's two frameworks. So the second framework that we need is what I call a value visual. This is a framework that allows them to see.

Why they want to work with you. In other words, it's a framework that allows them to see where their current reality is and where their aspirational desire is. It's a framework that allows them to see what their current pain is and where they want to be as an alternative. And the gap in between where they are and where they want to be is filled by your process framework. It's filled by the process framework because that's how you move them to there. And now what happens with this is that if you do this framework correctly, and it's typically a ladder of sorts, what ends up happening is they look at you and they say, oh my God, they get me. They're in my head. They understand my pain, they understand what I'm going through, they understand what I'm feeling, they understand all of those things and they understand what I want instead. So if we create a framework that gets them to see how they can move from point A to point B, a framework that gets them to understand that we know where they are and where they want to be. Now we move into the third piece of a unique methodology. And the third piece of a unique methodology is about creating your very own proprietary process. Now, proprietary process is not just steps. There's more to it, but it is the process you're going to take them through, the process that gets them from point A to point B, the process that moves them from problem to promise. And there's a couple of aspects to a proprietary process. One is that there's milestones, the big rocks, the big steps that they need to take to make that happen. And each milestone, each milestone has a specific outcome. So if I'm trying to build a process associated with building, let's just say, a course, one of the things that we need to do is build a list. The outcome of that step of building a list is to create a captive audience that you can market to. Okay, if the next piece or the next step might be to create a course. And the reason that we need to create the course is so we have a deliverable that we can sell. So there's an outcome for every milestone that we're going through. There might be a milestone in there to say, I got to decide who I'm serving, how I'm serving, in other words, what's my niche? Because the reason to make sure the outcome of that step in the process is to make sure that you are able to speak directly to the people you want to serve, because it's an easier sell when they relate to you. So every process will have a set of milestones. Every milestone will have a set of, of outcomes. And then below those outcomes, that's where this action steps, the key steps will be three to five steps in each, three to five steps to create the list or something like that. So now it becomes manual. Now they see, oh my gosh, I see the big chunks, the milestones, I see why I'm doing the big chunks, the outcome. And I see the steps under the big chunks. And then the magic happens. And the magic happens when you can create tools, templates, or worksheets that make it easier for them to implement. That's what I call magic bullets. And so we would have a magic bullet for each milestone that makes it easier for them to implement. For instance, in the Affluence blueprint, we have worksheets or templates that are fill in the blank. I have processes to interview financial advisors. So you make sure you're getting the right Financial advisor. I have scorecards. They get scorecards to focus on tracking their income, tracking their wealth, tracking, tracking their investments so they know they're on point and that they're moving towards their affluence vision. And so these are scorecards and templates that make it easy for them to implement and execute the things that we're having them do. That's the key. So you can create the proprietary process. So now you've got your insights, you've got two frameworks, you've got a process that you're going to deliver and then the rest is up to you. Because when you do it this way, you get a chance to deliver it any way you want. You can do it in group coaching, one on one coaching. You can speak, you can do a membership site, you can do an online program, you can create online teaching, you can do live events, all of those things. In fact, I do all of them. I deliver a lot of my stuff in a lot of different formats. And what that allows me to do is have multiple income streams using the same knowledge, expertise and information to make a difference. That's the key, is we want to make sure that you make a difference. It's about your story, your style, your delivery to make that happen. Okay, so if we look at this, the insights, the insights are about what you want to teach. The process framework is how you're going to teach it. The value visual is why they should work with you. The proprietary process is, is what if they use it, they'll get the results. And the delivery mechanism is their way to solve the pain or the problem or the pervasive need that they have. So, so that's the unique methodology. And when you are successful, when you really get this dialed in, you start to understand how to do this. What happens in the marketplace is they say, you know that guy Mel? I've seen financial people talk, but he comes, he's got this thing called the affluence blueprint and he talks about this or the affluence triad, and he's got these frameworks and he talks about it different than anyone else. And what that does is it elevates you, it separates you. And when you're elevated and separated, you have the opportunity to charge higher fees. The perceived value in the marketplace is much higher. And that's the thing that I think you need to realize. So if truly, like we talked about in the last episode, one of the fastest ways and easiest ways to generate additional income or scale your cash flow so you can build wealth is through Digital products, digital programs, or on online offering like that, then the other way to leverage it even more is to make sure that it's built on a unique methodology like we've walked through here. So I hope this serves you. I hope this helps. Because this is the key is it's, I think it's really important for, for us to start looking at how we can scale our income or generate income. If you're just starting out, use this to start generating income. Start to put stuff out there and do it. It's high. Listen, an online program, online delivery is low cost, high profit over time. When you get it built right and you get the profit pathway right, it's highly leveraged on your time. So it doesn't require you all the time to do it. And it's a great way to build profits, to build cash flow. Because remember, if we just put 400 or 800 or $1200 away on a regular basis over years, it could be millions to you. And let's just do it, do this, let's find a way to do it. There's plenty of other ways. And we'll talk about things like real estate and other things on some other episodes. But when someone asks me, and this is all because of questions that came in from you, from the audience. So when someone asked me, what, what's the best way? Well, this is one of the highest margin, highest profit, easiest ways to make money and build wealth as an affluent entrepreneur. Now, I'm not saying that it's not going to have its challenges. I'm not saying that it's money overnight. And I never, ever will say that there's anything that's get rich quick. If it's get rich quick, you're going to get poor quick, too. So this is about doing the right thing the right way and putting the work in to be seen as a premium provider, to get paid the premium fees that you're entitled to and do the deeper thinking, do the distinction, make sure it happens. But when we do that, things can shift for you. So I hope you found this of value. Do me a favor. Here's the deal. So many of you have been leaving amazing reviews on the show. Still do it, keep doing it. Do me a favor. If you have not subscribed, subscribe. All right. Second, if you haven't left a rating or review, do me a favor, leave a rating and review. Because I am going to be pulling some of those, reading them on the episodes. And if yours is chosen, there's a gift coming your way. And you Know what? Share this out. This whole show is for you. This whole show is about the intersection of business and your money and how do we scale your business to scale your money so you can scale your life. It's about living as an affluent entrepreneur where you've got a richer lifestyle, where you have deeper impact and you have complete freedom. Remember I said that financial independence is a birthright. It's just a matter of of us using the right strategies and tactics to go out and claim it. And so we're on this journey together. If you have any questions whatsoever, send them to me. Maybe we'll make an episode out of it or I'll do a live about it. The point is, is that I'm on this journey with you because I am one of you. And let's have some fun. Let's have some real talk about money and let's change your financial destiny. I look forward to seeing you or talking to you or hearing you on an upcoming episode of the Affluent Entrepreneur Show. Until then, keep rocking, keep crushing, keep growing. We'll talk soon. Cheers. Bye. Thank you for listening to the Affluent Entrepreneur show with me, your host, Mel Abraham. If you want to achieve financial liberation to create an affluent lifestyle, join me in the affluent Entrepreneur Facebook group now by going to melabraham.com group and I'll see you there. Foreign.

And that's it for this episode of Building your money Machine where we help you learn how to master your money, eliminate financial stress, and live a life of choice. If you found this valuable or helpful to you, here's what I'd love for you to do. If you do me a favor, go to Apple, Apple Podcast or wherever you're listening to this podcast and rate and review you the show. It helps us tremendously to keep us at the top of the list so we can continue to get this information and this message out to people. Because I truly believe that financial freedom is your birthright and I want to help each and every one of you claim it. Thanks so much.