Limiting Beliefs

Okay, now that we understand more about money mindset, I'm going to explore something that might be holding you back without you even realizing it. Your limiting beliefs. Now, these are the thoughts and ideas that you hold on to as a truth that actually are just limiting your potential for growth and success. Now, limiting beliefs are like invisible barriers that we have created in our minds. They are those really quiet, but also really, really persistent thoughts that tell us what we can and can't achieve. Now, in the nail industry, they often sound things like I'm not experienced enough to charge more yet or clients in my area won't pay higher prices or I need to keep my prices low that so that clients still come to me. Now the fascinating thing about limiting beliefs is that we often don't even recognize them as beliefs. We just think of them as facts. They feel so true, so real, that we never even think to question them. But most of these truths that we're actually telling ourselves are actually just stories that we've learned to believe over time. Now let me share some more common limit and beliefs that I hear so often from nail technicians. I need to be in business for at least a year before I can increase my prices. Says who? Or clients won't pay more than pound 35 for nails in this area. Have you actually tested this belief? Or even things like, oh, I'm not as good as other nail techs so I can't charge that yet. According to whose standards? Now, these beliefs aren't just affecting your pricing. They are influencing every aspect of your business right now. They're affecting how confidently you present your work, how you interact with your clients, whether you are investing in your development and ultimately the kind of business that you are building. Now think about your own beliefs for just a minute. When you consider raising your prices or making a change to your treatment menu, what thoughts come up for you? When you see other nail technicians charging more than what you do, what do you tell yourself? And if a client questions your prices, what goes on up here? What is your internal dialogue when that happens? Now let's look at these beliefs in how they formed. So for example, maybe you started your business and you set your prices low to attract clients. Well then you attracted clients who are price sensitive, who maybe occasionally mention the price of the nails or complained about costs. This then reinforced your belief that clients won't pay more so you keep your prices low. Can you see how that just becomes a self fulfilling prophecy? Or maybe you even once had a client who says at one time that your prices were too High. Or maybe a family member said it, or maybe a friend said it. Now, instead of recognizing that this is just one person's personal opinion, you took that as confirmation that you were overcharging or that you couldn't charge anymore. That single comment then became a limit and belief that you held onto and that also held you back from charging appropriately. Now, the power of these limit and beliefs lies in how quietly they operate. They masquerade as practical thinking or business sense. I should keep my prices low to stay competitive. It sounds sensible, doesn't it? But dig a little bit deeper. Is competing on price really the best strategy for building the business that you want to build? For building a sustainable business? Let me share a powerful exercise that I do with nail techs on my business retreats. Take any limiting belief that you hold and I want you to ask yourself these questions. Who told me that this was true? When did I decide to believe this? And what evidence do I actually have that this is fact and not just fear? So for example, if you believe something like I can't charge more than other local nail technicians, I want you to ask yourself, have you actually researched what clients in your area are willing to pay for high quality services? Have you considered that different clients have different priorities and budgets? Are you a human? Everyone makes decisions based solely on price. Now often our limit and beliefs come from a place of protecting ourselves. We think if we keep our prices low then we'll never lose clients. If we don't position ourselves as high end, then we can't disappoint anyone. If we don't aim too high, then we can't fail. But this protection comes at a cost. It keeps us playing small. Now let's talk about what actually happens when you start challenging these beliefs. I had a nail tech on one of my retreats and she believed that she couldn't charge more than 35 pounds for a full set because she worked from home. But when we actually explored this belief and also explored the experience that she was providing, she actually realized that what she was offering was a premium private service with absolute attention to detail. She was creating a peaceful, personalized experience that so many clients actually prefer to than a busy salon environment. Now once she truly understood that, she decided to convey that value in her marketing and also in her prices. And guess what? She did not lose any clients because her clients weren't price sensitive. They were actually coming to her all along because of this private exclusive experience that they were getting. Now, your circumstances don't define your worth. Working from home doesn't mean you have to charge less. Being new doesn't mean that you can't create incredible value. Still, being in a certain area doesn't limit what clients will pay for high quality work. And this is a powerful truth. There are clients out there right now looking for exactly what you offer. They're looking for your style, for your attention to detail, your way of making them feel special. But if your limit and beliefs are keeping your prices low and you're like dim, then these clients can't find you. Think about the brands that you admire. Think about the brands that you regularly buy from. They don't apologize for the prices and and they don't try and compete on cost. They know their way, they communicate their value and they attract clients who appreciate what they offer. You deserve that exact same confidence in your business. So I want you from now to start noticing the language that you use about your business. When you say things like I just do nails or I'm just a nail tech, you reinforcing limiting beliefs about your value. You're not just doing nails. You're creating confidence. You're providing self care time. You're helping people feel their best. Your limit and beliefs might feel comfortable because they are familiar, because you have told yourself them things for such a long time. But comfort isn't always your friend. In business, growth happens when we challenge these beliefs, when we dare to imagine bigger possibilities for ourselves. So here's what I want you to do. Every time you catch yourself with a limit and belief, I want you to question it. Is this actually true or is this just a story that you've been telling yourself? What would be possible if you choose to believe something different? And remember, beliefs are just thoughts that we have thought so many times that they have felt like truth that they have become familiar. But you have the power to choose different thoughts. You can choose to believe in your worth instead. In your value. In your ability to build the business that you dream of. So as we move forward in the rest of this module and we start looking at actual price and strategies, I want you to keep noticing your limit and beliefs. They might try and sneak in disguised as practical thinking or sensible caution, but now you know they are just stories and you get to choose whether you keep believing them. You are capable of so much more than your limit and beliefs would have you believe. So it's time to start seeing your true worth, charging accordingly and building that business that you deserve.