Stop Being Such an Amateur

It was 2001 and we wanted to sell our house.

Being in sales my entire life, I saw no reason why I should have to pay a Realtor 6% commission when I was a qualified sales person.

You may be able to relate. Why pay that big fee when you think it’s easy and you are pretty certain you can do it yourself?

So, up on Grapevine or some other for-sale-by-owner service it went.

The house was nicely decorated, exceptionally clean, and the open house was planned.

This was going to be a slam-dunk.

Then, the neighbours started calling and wanting to see our house.

Next, it was the no show appointments followed by the offer that was coming…The one that never materialized.

There was even one special woman. She LOVED how our home was decorated. She visited three times and was certain she was going to buy. She even wanted to know prices that would include some of the furnishings.

Then she started calling with questions….“Where did you buy those chairs? What is the name of that paint you used?”

At one point irritation took over. I asked her if she wanted to buy our house or hire us to help decorate her home…

She never called back. We never sold that house.

Until we hired a professional who knew what they were doing.

Looking back, it’s kind of funny. But at the time, it was a frustrating process that took my time with nothing to show for it.

Today, it shows up in the social media world. Because people know how to post photos on Facebook they think that they are equipped to create a social media marketing strategy for a business owner.

You don’t know what you don’t know until you know.

Want to sell your house? Hire a Realtor.

Want professional photos for your website? Hire a real photographer, not your neighbour’s kid.

Want to scale your business? Hire a coach or consultant who has scaled their own.

These are the people with 10,000+ hours of expertise. You are paying for their cumulative knowledge, experience, wins, and losses.

What costs more? Investing in your own 10,000 hours or investing in yourself through them?

Don’t be an amateur. Invest in the knowledge of a professional so YOU become the pro. <— TWEET THIS!

This is also an important lesson to keep in mind when pricing your own services in your business.

When someone is paying for your time they are also paying for the time it took you to learn what you know, the experience you have and your expertise on the subject.

They aren’t simply paying for “just an hour of your time”. That’s what they would pay an amateur.

You must understand the value your client receives from your time and price accordingly. <—TWEET THIS

Need more help moving from being an amateur in your business to a pro? Join The Profit Primer Group for free today and get free training plus access to a community of like-minded professionals.

Sign up here —> www.lisalarter.com/ppg

Want to learn more about being a pro? Watch this week’s video where I reveal 3 principles to finding success in your business.