While you’re reading this, I’m most likely at school so please don’t expect me to approve your comments immediately (If you’re very near to thinking that I’m a stat-freak, I’m not!). 
The Sad and Bitter Truth
“I’m in need of money, will work for cheap!”
How often do you see those lines? As a frequent lurker on some webmaster and freelancing forums, bumping into a post with a similar title is normal for me. More often than not, those guys who are looking for some “quick work” to do don’t really get the amount that they deserve! In contrast to my other post, there are people who, shall we say, undervalue their time. Instead of charging a fair rate per hour, they charge pennies just to attract more customers/clients.
Since some of you might not be aware of this (yet), let me give a very common example. A freelance designer with an extensive portfolio looking for work offers custom designs for $30. He promises unlimited revisions until the client is satisfied. A lot of people are lured to this because of the quality and yet the cheap price. This freelancer guy now gets 5 clients, and he earns $150. Wow, $150 sure sounds like quite a nice sum. But wait! Let’s dig deeper into the situation…
Let’s say the following things happened:
- The designer had to make three major revisions for each client - a total of twenty outputs and fifteen revisions.
- Each revision took him 2 hours to finish - a total of 30 hours.
- All the clients were very happy, but decided not to give him some tips.
Now, does that $150 still sound like a nice amount? I don’t think so. Basically he charged $5 per hour (most probably less, depending on how long it took him to create the initial draft)! If only he charged more, then he could be hundreds of dollars richer. I am sure the clients wouldn’t mind because he’s got the skills.
Your Time Is Valuable
Even though you’re not a first-class, cream of the crop, or whatever-word-that-means-the-best professional, your time is still valuable — unless of course if you’re a good-for-nothing problem maker. Never doubt that fact! Don’t let bargainers pull you down. Don’t let nasty (potential) clients manipulate you. Always make your prices reasonable for your clients and FOR YOURSELF. Once you do this (and of course, coupled with time management), you’ll definitely be rich!
You know why some a lot of people struggle to make some serious money online? It’s because they undervalue their time and their skills. It’s okay for them to make $10 a day by writing articles for some random guy on the net. They have this manner of thinking that as long as they make money, everything would be fine. If you believe that you can do a job well, then by all means don’t degrade yourself!
Still not convinced that your time really is valuable? What if I say that instead of being with your friends and family out in the mall, you’re stuck at home doing stressful client work that takes 6-8 hours to finish, and for only $50? Do you understand now? You’re exchanging VALUABLE time to spend with friends for a measly amount of $50! You should DEFINITELY charge higher than that.
Summary
Your time is valuable, believe it or not. You can get rich by valuing your time and not giving in to very cheap offers like $5 an hour or so. If you believe that you’re really good at doing a certain task, then don’t be shy to give a pretty high quote.
Readers have left 9 comments on "Learn to Value Your Time and You’ll Be Rich".
Yes. And quoting a cheap price will make you look like the cheap kid not like a professional.
Ganesh’s latest blog post… Sunday Link Roundup - 17.08.2008
Hehe, nice reference to my other post. Thanks man.
This is insightful. Though I don’t value my time as money, I cherish every moment of it as time is such a precious commodity.
Yan
Blog for Beginners’s latest blog post… 20 Possible Ways to Optimize Your Blog
Hey, what’s up? I can’t be on MSN/Yahoo! that much since we’re quite busy touring around the city. We’ll be back by 26th August so get ready for some serious a**-kickin’ in school.
Nuff of this unrelated talk; otherwise you might not approve my comment. This post is prolly one of your best yet. It triggers the readers to get to thinking that their time really is something important.
Just one thing to note, it’s better to have more pictures in long posts like this.
See ya around.
Nice article! I know I just recently upped my prices. I think it’s a psychological thing. Like, “I used to love doing this for free, I feel bad about charging.” Then I remembered I have only $20 in my checking account, and I thought, “I’m going to be spending hours on this, I want $200!”
I think you have to stop and think about your time, your needs, and your abilities when pricing.
I’m glad you liked the article.
Pictures, yes, but I wanted the readers to think about the content of this particular post instead of having their thoughts veered away by pictures.
hehhe, you have the point… but well if people don’;t have much friends then maybe they can sell themself cheap..
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Hi Melvin, thanks for visiting! First off, I don’t see why people should sell themselves for cheap if they don’t have much friends. If they have the right skill level, they’ll be able to find clients — regardless if they’ve got lots of contacts or not. Promoting your product wisely can do the job most of the time.
I totally agree with this article, Lucas.
I think a lot of freelancers out there often lower their prices because it’s a tough World. When I’m desperate for money, I offer my services for around $60, but only when I’m desperate and need to pay bills.
There’s so many designers out there offering web design for say $40 that it’s difficult to get a client who’ll even pay $200. It seems like people will settle for the cheapest price they can get, whether the design is top notch or not. I remember the days when I could get clients paying $500+ for a design, but it seems that only happens once in a blue moon these days.
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