There’s a popular message in the entrepreneurial world:
“Know your worth and charge accordingly.”
There’s truth in that. But I also think it can become a trap.
I see two very different approaches—and two very different energies—in business.
The first is sales energy.
You decide you’re worth a premium price, so you charge as much as possible from the beginning.
Maybe in the beginning you can make more on each customer, but because the price is higher, you may work with fewer people.
So now you’re constantly asking: How do I find the next person willing to pay my price? How do I close them?
It can become a cycle of selling, pushing, and pursuing—often churning through people and then starting over looking for the next customer.
The second is service energy.
Instead of asking, “What’s the maximum I can charge?” you make it easier for more people to say yes.
Maybe you charge less initially, but you get to work with more people.
More opportunities to serve, create results, get better at your craft, generate testimonials, and earn referrals.
You’re working your way up through service and value instead of trying to start at the top through price.
And something powerful begins to happen.
Results lead to testimonials. Testimonials lead to referrals. Referrals lead to relationships and repeat business.
Instead of constantly pursuing people, you begin attracting them.
Jim Rohn, my 18-year business partner and mentor, would teach to bring your talents to the marketplace. And my friend Brian Buffini has long taught the power of building a business through relationships and referrals.
I think those ideas go hand in hand.
Over time, your reputation, network, and demand grow.
A few years later, you may have a business largely fueled by referrals while someone else is still chasing the next customer.
Let the Marketplace Decide
That’s exactly what I did when I came out of retirement in 2015 and started my mastermind, collab books and 1-1 coaching.
I had built an eight-figure company, filling large seminar rooms then 18 years working with Jim Rohn, and collaborating with some of the biggest names in the personal development industry.
People told me what I was “worth” and what I should charge.
I went the other direction.
Full transparency, my original coaching offer was only $5,000 for a full day with me PLUS some additional one-hour calls over the next six months. Much lower than I potentially could have commanded.
But I wanted to make it easy for people to say yes. I wanted to fill my calendar, serve people, create results and build advocates.
And my calendar filled up fast. And referrals started to come in. And all three of my offers of my mastermind, books, and coaching all cross pollinated one another, just as I teach in The Wheel.
As my coaching, books, and masterminds filled, that was my signal to then raise my prices.
Not somebody telling me what I was worth.
The marketplace told me.
So I raised my price and adjusted the offers.
It filled again. I raised it again. Not crazy, just enough to keep my calendar, events, and books full.
And let me be clear I also was more than happy to say no to people I didn’t think were a good fit for what I’m doing or who I didn’t feel aligned with.
I’ve been able to stay in service mode not selling mode. Not churning through people. Instead building advocates!
Let your calendar dictate your price.
When the idea came to me to create The Treasury of Quotes by Jim Rohn in 1994, we eventually moved over six million copies. All by design!
We weren’t trying to maximize every transaction. We created something valuable, made it easy for people to get, and empowered our advocates to share it. Selling them for as low as 10 for $10 and 100 for $70! I was told I could sell them for so much higher. I would laugh and say I would rather our advocates buy them in bulk and give them away and create new customers for us. That idea alone was an 8 figure outcome because of the results the backend sales created.
That’s the long game.
Don’t be in such a hurry to maximize the transaction that you minimize the relationship.
Sales energy says: How much can I get?
Service energy says: How much value can I bring?
Serve people incredibly well. Create results. Build advocates.
And as demand grows, then you can raise your price.
Instead of always chasing the marketplace, build something that causes the marketplace to come looking for you.
— Kyle Wilson
Join our upcoming book Living Your Purpose
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Write and Publish Your Own Book
If you’ve been thinking about your own book, this may be the right time.
Takara and I are currently working with a handful of entrepreneurs, professionals and thought leaders, helping them take their ideas and expand them—often 10x in terms of content, reach, and backend opportunities.
I’ve had the privilege of publishing books with Jim Rohn, Denis Waitley, Dr. Tom Burns, Rep Ryan Chamberlin, and many others, and in each case, I’ve been deeply involved in the strategic side of the process. That’s where real value gets created.
If that speaks to you, reply back with some details about yourself and I can send a link to schedule a call.
And as my 18-year friend, mentor, and business partner Jim Rohn told me, Let’s Do Something Remarkable!
Kyle
Kyle Wilson
Founder Jim Rohn International, YourSuccessStore, and KyleWilson.com
What Others Are Saying About Kyle
“Kyle, thank you for our partnership and friendship. Friendship is wealth and you make me a rich man. Love and Respect!” Jim Rohn, Iconic Philosopher and Speaker
“Kyle Wilson is brilliant and so very knowledgeable and an icon in this industry. He was the power behind Jim Rohn. Kyle is my longtime friend and someone I have a great deal of respect for.” Les Brown, Iconic Speaker and Author
“I guard my endorsements carefully. Regarding Kyle, he is simply a marketing genius! No joke. Kyle was the wizard behind the successful business of my mentor Jim Rohn. Every marketing dilemma I have ever had Kyle has given me the brilliant and elegant solution on the spot. Kyle’s consulting has saved and earned me hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.” Darren Hardy, Former Publisher of SUCCESS Magazine
“I have worked closely with Kyle Wilson for 20 years. He is one of the best all-around marketers, promoters, business-builders and entrepreneurs in the business today. We have generated more than a million dollars together.” Brian Tracy, Int Speaker and Author
“Kyle is a valued friend, a marketing superstar and one of the most knowledgeable people in the personal development industry.” Robin Sharma, Author of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari
“I’ve known and worked with Kyle Wilson for over 20 years. Kyle is the ONLY person that ALWAYS under-promised and over-delivered every single time my dad Zig and I worked with him. He is a valued friend and some one I have great admiration and respect for!” Tom Ziglar, President of Zig Ziglar Corp
“Kyle is one of my old and dear friends and one of the smartest marketing guys I have had the opportunity to work with. He is the scrappy marketing guy. What I mean by that is, there are lots of guys who will put out business plans and do all kinds of nonsense and swing for home runs. Kyle is the real deal and finds ways to create product, add value, help people, build community, he’s unbelievable.” Eric Worre, Author of Go Pro
