About Rita Hovakimian Mentoring high achieving business women to create 6-figure plus incomes while having lives of freedom and joy... Rita Hovakimian is a business and prosperity coach mentoring high achieving businesswomen to create 6-figure plus incomes from a Spirit driven place with grace and ease. Drawing on a wealth of experience working with business professionals for more than 20 years, as well as running her own successful multi-6-figure business, Rita has helped thousands of people to discover their unique talent and power... and turn that into accelerated success. Rita s practical business strategies combined with her keen intuition generate a methodology that is action-oriented and results-focused, while creating from a spirit-driven place. She helps women business owners integrate essential areas of their lives spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental unleashing them to achieve their personal and professional goals with ease. Rita understands that the path that leads us to success involves our relationship with money, and how we charge for our services correlates with our relationship to our self worth. She guides her clients into a relationship with money that is powerful and harmonious, thus creating a fulfilling, inspiring, prosperous income with joy and ease. Her passion and commitment is for each woman s individual passion to lead her to creating a prosperous life. Rita holds a Bachelor s Degree from San Francisco State University. She is a certified Professional Coach through New Ventures West. Rita is extensively trained in the Enneagram system and has completed four years of training in Intuitive Counseling and Healing at the Awakenings School held at Bastyr University. She has completed certifications at the Masters Level in Neurolinguistic Programing (NLP) and Ericksonian Hypnosis through Christopher Howard Training in London, England. Rita lives in San Francisco with her husband, Robert Weinberg. A life-long learner, her personal passions include yoga, dancing and meaningful, rich conversations. www.inspiringsuccess.com 2
I am VERY excited to be sharing this information of How to Stop Undercharging, Confidently Raise Your Rates, Own Your Value and Charge What You Know You are Worth! This topic is a passion of mine because... I know that many talented, gifted, passionate people in business... people whose calling is to serve humanity through the venue of their business, are struggling making a lucrative living in their profession. Honestly, this saddens me because it is my belief that the more we get to deliver our work in the world, the better this world will be. I truly believe that we positively focused entrepreneurs, business owners and leaders are the ones that are going to impact our economy in a prosperous way! And...It is my calling to serve as many people that I can to have their passion in life be very financially profitable so this can happen. So I am very excited to be with you and discuss this topic of How to Stop Undercharging, Confidently Raise Your Rates, Own Your Value and Charge What You Know You are Worth! I would like to begin by sharing part of my story about my own prosperity journey. In 1991 we were in a recession, very much like we are now. I started a new entrepreneurial business. I was passionate about this new business and felt called to bring what I was doing in the world. Initially I was struggling, and my parents (wanting me to be safe and secure) told me to get a real job and to give up my pipe dream. However, I was quite adamant and committed to have a successful business doing what I loved and it somehow didn t feel right to depart from this. It always amazes me how the Universe supports us in our visions (and intentions), because shortly after I declared my commitment, I found out about a Prosperity Program that was being taught by a Unity minister from Chicago named Rev. Sally Taylor. I, of course, signed up! It was from Rev. Taylor that I first learned that having Financial Prosperity was about having a particular Mind Set. And I adopted one particular Mind Set that changed my life forever. What Rev. Taylor said was a statement that I recognized in my being as truth and that I have held firmly to ever since. She said, Your creating and having financial prosperity is independent of what is going on in the economy. You create your own economy regardless of any circumstance. I thought, WOW! The power was given back to me. When I heard this I experienced hope and was empowered to succeed in my business even more. I knew I had to keep this belief alive because I knew it was going to be one of the most important elements in keeping my vision and business alive and successful. So I hired a coach that was aligned with these principles and put myself in environments that further supported these beliefs. www.inspiringsuccess.com 3
Within 2 years I had a multiple 6-figure income doing what I loved to do, all the while adhering to this belief. I had a thriving Coaching Business... coaching entrepreneurs in being successful... and did workshops all over the United States and Canada where thousands of women (and men) participated. Today, I want to share with you some of the key principles I have learned and taught over the years... This audio will cover the following: 1. Why Charging more actually makes your work more powerful for you and your client 2. Find out which Money Type you are and how this shapes your financial mindset and how to break-through to command the fees you deserve 3. Determine how to develop, and capitalize on your personal niche to expand revenues 4. Discover the most effective, proven secrets to attracting your ideal clients www.inspiringsuccess.com 4
Why does charging more make your work more powerful for you and your client? I have been coaching for the past 18 years and I have discovered that the higher my fees, the more committed my clients are to the Coaching Relationship and the more I am committed to serving them in an energizing way. In fact, not only have I raised my fees, but I have leveraged myself, so in my current business there is less trading dollars for hours in a one on one business model (which can be exhausting and limiting) and instead have a more leveraged business model that have my clients experiencing more support and feeling that their investment is one of high value. I know it can be scary when it comes to quoting our fees whether verbally or in a proposal. A lot of fear comes up. We will go into our head, determine what someone can or cannot pay or will or will not pay and determine our fees based on this. To stand behind your pricing, the pricing that you know you should be charging is a courageous act AND it enables your client to step up to the outcomes they say they are committed to accomplishing. AND it is my experience that your clients are more committed when the stakes are higher. Consider this possibility... that Money is energy. And that energy is abundant. Money is an exchange of energy between the provider and the providee. This energy exchange is a sacred act. If you undercharge you are diminishing the sacredness of this energy exchange. You will feel not only resentful, but you will find many times that the client will not value the contribution you are committed to making with them. How many times have you undercharged or given your services away, or over-delivered and were not appreciated or blown off? How many times have you gone over backward for a client, kept jumping through hoops, re-arranged your life for them only to have them treat you disrespectfully or unappreciatively. Some times this shows up by your clients not doing the work or not taking it as seriously. It is my belief that before we can authentically stand for the value of our work and command the fees that we know we deserve, we first have to look at our relationship with money... and have a relationship with it that is one of power and harmony. I think it is important to note that our relationship with money and what we charge for our services correlates with our relationship to our self worth. Most people have a lot of insanity and suffering in their relationship with money. It shows up in experiencing not having enough money, not caring about money, being unconscious about money, www.inspiringsuccess.com 5
overspending money, hoarding money, avoiding the whole topic of money, being greedy and having vagueness with money. What I discovered in my work with people is that, for the most part, they don t have a harmonious and balanced relationship with money. People have all these beliefs -- the belief that money is bad, money is evil, spirituality and money cannot coincide, if you value money it means that you re a superficial person, and on and on. There are some people that will be listening to this call that actually have shame around having a lot of money. They have a lot of prosperity, they re wealthy, and they don t like their family and friends to know about it. If you can have a healthy and harmonious relationship with money and not have the dysfunctional and distorted beliefs around money, you re going to be able to take the transformation that you have in this arena and bring it to everything else that you do in your life! So let s look at your relationship with money by looking at what Money Mirror Type you are. I call it a Money Mirror Type because it is the underlying beliefs we hold about Money and ourselves that are unconscious and shadowed that are driving our behaviors. www.inspiringsuccess.com 6
The First Money Mirror Type is Boundaries Boundaries, other wise known as The Pushover: Frequently caves in when asked for a discount Doesn t hold firm to prices Often backs down after quoting their fee Trades Services Decides in advance how much someone can afford to pay The Money Mirror of Boundaries reflects your desire to help people but often at a great cost to you. From the outside, your habits regarding money look like you re frequently giving up, giving in or being a pushover. But internally, you ve created a complex set of rule prejudging what people will pay for your services. You often decide in advance that your prospective clients won t value your talents at a premium fee, which limits your opportunities to receive increasingly larger amounts of money. Because people intuitively sense that you may not fully believe in the value of your work, and therefore, the amount you charge for services, clients will push to see how much you will give, or whether you will stand firm. Because of this, what you as a Boundaries Type fear most that people will reject you often becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy. The Emotional undercurrent is Rejection. The Shadow Belief is: The other person getting what THEY want is more important than I am. The Shadow Behavior is: Frequently customizes packages, offerings and services, then, in the end, often charges less than original amount. www.inspiringsuccess.com 7
The Second Money Mirror Type is Courage Courage, otherwise known as the Procrastinator Rarely, if ever, raises prices Fears discussing fees Keeps prices at low to medium end of the market Highest level package is still lower than anyone else s Doesn t want their fees or services to stand out The Money Mirror Type of Courage - also known as the Procrastinator - represents a preference to serve rather than stand out. As the Courage Type, you value quality but shy away from being recognized for your work in the form of higher fees. Whenever possible, you avoid discussing fees altogether, and tend to keep prices on the lower end of the scale within your market. The justification here is usually that lower fees make your services available to more people, but in truth, you fear what may happen if you raise your fees. While clients speak highly of you and your work, you may actually get passed over for high level projects because low fees do not necessarily command clients respect. As the Courage Type you are likely to work long hours, making up for the money you could be receiving if you were to simply increase your rates. Much is sacrificed professionally, for you to fulfill your need for security and sense of well-being. Emotional Undercurrent is Fear. The Shadow Belief is: Who I am isn t special or significant. Shadow Behavior: Playing small or being invisible. www.inspiringsuccess.com 8
The Third Money Mirror Type is Deservability Deservability is other wise known as The Pleaser: Overloads packages with too many items Gives away services without charging Faults themselves for not giving or doing more Gives more than what is paid for Makes themselves too available The Money Mirror Type of Deservability reveals a deep-seated need to know one is good enough. It is no wonder you are also referred to as the Pleaser. In an effort to satisfy other peoples every need, you give and give; overloading packages, giving away services and generally being too available. The problem is, no matter what you do to overcompensate, it will never be enough, and you are frequently left feeling exhausted and resentful. While you don t typically under- charge for services, you do tend to over-promise and over-deliver. Clients attracted by you tend to be high maintenance, demanding (even while they are still nice ) or never fully satisfied. They intuitively sense a driving need to please and will often take advantage of your generosity: calling during off hours, expecting short deadlines to be met, or asking for more services than initially agreed upon. On top of this, even when you raise fees you justify the increases by adding more components to packages. This strategy consumes time and negates any bottom line benefit while detracting from your quality of life. Emotional Undercurrent is Guilt. Shadow Belief is I am not good enough as I am. Shadow Behavior is: Binge buying of products and services because what they think they know isn t good enough. www.inspiringsuccess.com 9
The Fourth Money Mirror Type is Love Love is also known as The Pretender: Frequently experiences cycles of feast or famine Charging higher fees but often doesn t have any money Prone to getting taken advantage of with money or being over charged Charges less than they know they could so as to not make waves, then gets resentful with themselves The Money Mirror Type of Love - otherwise known as the Pretender - represents a natural ability to draw money into one s life, even though doing so often causes discomfort. You learned early on that people dislike, judge or even shun those with an abundance of money. You live in fear that those closest to you will withdraw their love if they know how much money you have. Because of the shame you feel with regard to having money, you are prone to being taken advantage of, or being over-charged; thereby making you more susceptible than other types to cycles of feast or famine, despite the fact that you often charge higher fees. The challenge for the Love Type is that you are naturally confident in your skills, products, and ability to create results; making it easier for you to charge the higher fees you deserve. While clients are drawn to this, the more money that flows into your life, the greater your sense of inner conflict, which leads to an unconscious sabotaging of your finances. The Emotional Undercurrent for love is Shame. Shadow Belief People won t accept or love me if I make more and have more than they do. Shadow Behavior is: Secrecy about how much money you make and have, and the tendency to minimize, pointing out how you got things on sale or that they didn t cost much. Keeping people knowing your monetary accomplishments. www.inspiringsuccess.com 10
Was Your Money Mirror Type Boundaries? Courage? Deservability? Love? You may have found yourself in a little in all of them, but there will be one that you will feel the strongest about. Well, let s look and see what are the Breakthrough Beliefs and Breakthrough Actions for each type! Boundaries Money Mirror Type: The Breakthrough Belief is: I don t have the right to decide for someone else. Only THEY can decide for themselves. Examples of Breakthrough Actions: Clients secretly respect people with great boundaries, so if asked for a discount remember that saying No empowers your clients to achieve better results. List your services and programs and fees in writing to refer to when talking with prospective clients. Refer to your sheet to support you in holding firm to your prices. Courage Money Mirror Type: Breakthrough Belief is God created me to stand tall, as a tall poppy in the field. Breakthrough Actions: Commit to raising your fees so they are between the medium and high end of your market. Keeping your fees low actually draws negative attention to you and your business. Let your quality and high standards of service be what makes you special in your market, and let you fees reflect your standards. www.inspiringsuccess.com 11
Deservability Money Mirror Type: Breakthrough Belief is I am perfect, right now, just as I am. Breakthrough Actions: Cut the deliverables in each of your services and programs in half. Your clients will actually feel relieved (instead of overwhelmed, as they secretly feel now) and you ll feel renewed energy, creativity and joy in serving others. Instead of faulting yourself for not giving or doing more, create a list of how you helped the people you served. In addition, make it a priority to frequently collect testimonials. Surrounding yourself with reminders like these will help you know how professional, competent and fabulous you are! Love Money Mirror Type: Breakthrough Belief is I help others by being a leader for wealth, achievement and abundance. Breakthrough Actions: Challenge yourself to speak out publicly about your fees and your success. Be willing to be in the spotlight. Be willing to stand out, charging more than what others do, because playing small with your fees benefits no one. You are a natural leader and, your services are distinct and the more you accept this gift you were given, the more you can empower others to step into their brilliance. As a coach, I always recommend that my clients translate their learning and insights into action, as quickly as possible. I invite you to pick at least ONE of the breakthrough actions that resonated for you and take it - in the next 24 hours! www.inspiringsuccess.com 12
Time to Know Your Niche I find that many entrepreneurs and business owners don t have a defined niche (aka as ideal client or target market). Knowing your niche will transform your business results. People resist narrowing their niche because they want to remain open to everyone, however this kind of mindset typically has diminishing returns in your business. Narrowing your focus will actually expand your reach and attract clients to you in an abundant way. It will tell the Universe exactly who your clients are and tell them where to find you. I define Niche as the following: The thing you do + the people you serve + the results they get. Make sure that the thing you do is very specific, you want to define the people you serve (be very specific) and the results you get really specific and not vague. Also, you want to make your niche succinct. For example my niche is: Mentoring (the thing I do) high achieving business women (the people I serve) to create 6-figure plus incomes while having lives of freedom and joy...(the results they get). Now I also coach, facilitate and train, but that would be too long to put as my niche. I like to think of myself as one who is mentoring high achieving business professionals in having prosperous businesses. Inside of that I am coaching, training and facilitating. Now, once you have your established your niche and your ideal client I would like to share with you the most effective, proven secrets to attracting your ideal clients! The Universe likes clarity so now that the Universe knows what clients to bring you, there are 5 Key Practices that create the condition for you to attract your ideal clients. (Note these Practices are part of the inner game for attracting results in your business and your life. There are also Practices to take on a very practical level for attracting results in your business that include marketing and building the infrastructure for a successful business. www.inspiringsuccess.com 13
The Five Key Practices for Attracting Your Ideal Clients Let s talk about the 5 Key Practices that create the condition for you to attract your ideal clients. They are Meditation, Keeping an Appreciation Journal, Keeping a Celebration Log, Engaging in Activities that Bring You Joy and Being in a community where the network of conversations supports who you are, your desires and your dreams. The First Key Practice is Meditation. Now I know that you may be thinking, Oh I am not a meditator, I just can t sit still, I have tried it and it doesn t work, I don t have the time what does this have to do with attracting clients, business results or money? But I intend to enroll you in why Meditation is fundamental in attracting money and effortless business results. Here is the purpose of Meditation and why it is such an important part of my system of producing results of any kind. Meditation aligns you with Source Energy/Universal Energy/The Eternal/God... use what ever word you feel comfortable to use. Meditation connects you with your inner guidance, wisdom and clarity. It releases resistance and creates an environment that calls forth the results you desire to produce. It allows you to focus on your priorities and (and whatever you focus upon expands), keeps you centered and helps you stay above the fray. In other words Meditation helps you in not getting snagged by the dramas of the day or obstacles or circumstances that occur that can be upsetting and take you out of alignment with who you are. You will find that you will not be taken down so hard by those temporary upsets. Meditation puts you in the zone! The 2nd Key Practice Is: Keeping an Appreciation Journal Whatever you appreciate, appreciates. Appreciation actually energizes those things that you appreciate. And again, whatever you focus upon expands a fundamental principle of the Law of Attraction. The Definition of Appreciation is to increase in value. When you appreciate you are Multiplying energy and more results. It is also a powerful way to change your state to a more positive one. So the action to take here is to appreciate all the clients you currently have, your spouse, partner, family, money that you receive, all the money you have everything. Money in your checkbook, bank accounts, investments, etc. everything. This also reinforces the law of whatever you focus upon expands. Are you focusing upon your lack or your abundance? www.inspiringsuccess.com 14
The 3rd Key Practice Is: Keeping a Celebration log I call it a celebration log because it is a place for you to Record and celebrate the results you are producing as you progress towards your goals. Many people wait to celebrate when they get their goals but the secret here is to celebrate often along the journey, not just at the end. Capturing your successes on a daily basis will train your mind to be a scanner for what is working in your life vs. what is not working or is missing. Celebrating your accomplishments from a Neuro-Linguistic Programming perspective lights up your neurology and your neurology does not know the difference between a little success and a big success. Whatever you focus upon expands-remember- so acknowledging your success has you attract even more successes, more clients, business and opportunities and more money. This practice will quickly shift you from any negative state that you might find yourself in. The 4th Key Practice Is: To do things that connect you with your joy and have you feeling good Engaging in activities that bring you joy and that have you feel good will connect you with who you are! When you are connecting to who you are, you become a magnet and attract results with ease. Working harder and longer has diminishing returns BUT when you connect with what brings you joy you will experience ease and a seamlessness in your life. So find out what brings you joy and has you feeling good...make a list... and start incorporating these things into your life now. The 5th Key Practice Is: Being in a community where the conversations and beliefs supports Who You Are, challenge you to grow and inspire you to achieve your desires and your dreams This last Practice is where a lot of entrepreneurs, leaders and business owners (and people in general) seem to have a blind spot. They think that they can create a successful business or even personal life without being in a community where shared values are inherit in the community. Conversations will disappear unless they are kept alive and they are kept alive through shared language. www.inspiringsuccess.com 15
Being in a community with people that share the belief that they are the creators of their life regardless of the circumstances and have big bold visions puts one in what I call the magical bubble where we are sequestered from disempowering and negative news, beliefs, etc. Instead together we create a powerful, positive force field where results occur effortlessly. Surround yourself with people who have a prosperity mind set AND know that they are the creator of their reality! I want to take a moment here to mention that creating success with ease requires discipline, it just doesn t happen. You have to time block the practices I have talked about in your calendar. You must make it a priority! These practices will put you at the Leading Edge in attracting more business, more money, the right and perfect clients and people that are a resonance with who you are. There is magic a foot when you take the time to invest in yourself in this way. These Practices truly are the Secret behind the scenes of the enormous success that I and hundreds of my clients have had the privilege to experience these past 2 decades! As a coach, I always recommend that my clients take their learning and insights and implement them, as quickly as possible. I invite you to pick at least ONE of the Practices (Meditation, Appreciation Journal, Celebration Log, Connecting with Your Joy or Being Part of a Community of Powerful Creators) that spoke to you and incorporate it in your life now and I promise you that you will begin having a business and a life that will put you at the Leading Edge! www.inspiringsuccess.com 16
A Special Invitation for You I want to make this special invitation to you, as an acknowledgement of your commitment to investing in yourself by taking the time to listen to this recording. I am inviting you to apply for a complimentary strategy/discovery session live with me. If you are accepted I can promise you a breakthrough opportunity from this call alone. To apply: simply email me at Rita@InspiringSuccess.com and answer these 2 questions: 1. Why is it so important to you to take your business/career to the next level? 2. What is the biggest challenge you face right now in making that happen? Thank you for your investment, interest and commitment in listening to this audio. I look forward in having the opportunity to possibly work with you in the future. Blessings to you on your journey to Inspired Success. Rita Hovakimian, CPC Business Coach & Prosperity Mentor Mentoring women to create 6-figure plus incomes from a Spirit driven place Inspiring Success rita@inspiringsuccess.com Phone: 415.661.5037 www.inspiringsuccess.com 17