I held my breath. Sharon was calling to share some news. (Sharon is a photographer who had recently raised her rates to more realistically reflect her experience. She had agonized over this decision.) A customer had phoned to contract with her for her services. The client didn’t hesitate as Sharon stated her prices. Credit card numbers exchanged, services paid for on the spot. The next part of the story is what is most interesting. Sharon said this made her feel bad. Unease washed over her. She knew how to lower her prices, cut deals with people. Take less. She didn’t know how to cope with standing in her value. Accepting her worth. (That was what this transaction had been about.) WOW.
How does this relate to you? Maybe you don’t have trouble accepting money. (Issues around money are never about m o n e y, by the way). This story is about valuing YOURSELF. Enough to ask for money, ask for help, ask for a promotion, ask for what you want, ask for more.
Do you want to be different, to feel differently? To move ahead, to flourish? But a part of you tries to hang back? Stay small and stay safe. A self-imposed glass ceiling. There’s a story inside, hidden away, that whispers ‘you can’t do it’, ‘it’s not safe’, ‘this will rock the boat’, ‘this might change everything’. That story is holding you back from being spectacular. That whisper shouts you down. Don’t let it.
For Sharon the shift came as she took the credit card information and noticed her paradoxical feelings. She had been working on her ‘inner game’ with me long enough to understand the conflict she was feeling was about her moving into a larger version of herself. Into becoming a strong, successful and financially solid professional. And that whisper of unease was trying to keep her safe, secure in the ‘old pattern’. But she had committed to a new way of doing things. And she stepped into that. I let out my breath. I had always believed she could do it. Now, she believed it too.If you would like to find out how you can step out of your comfort zone and be spectacular, I would love to work with you. Find out how here.
