Are you discounting *yourself*? Not your offers, but YOU.
Here’s why I ask:
As you might know, I got married last year 
! Before the wedding, we were buying and getting my now husband’s tux fitted, and the man who helped us at the shop was incredible. I could tell he had a great eye for fashion as he made sure the fit was perfect and helped us pick out accessories.
We were chatting, and he told us he had a background in design and he was from Georgia - the country, not the state. Then, after asking questions (I’m a coach after all), he casually mentioned when he lived there, he was on a show similar to Project Runway (a reality show here in the U.S. where fashion designers compete against one another) and WON the competition.
As you can imagine, upon hearing this, his cache went up markedly for us.
I wanted to take his advice and believed his suggestions that much more, because in my mind, his win was social proof that was a confirmation bias for me saying, “He clearly knows what he’s talking about.” I felt better trusting his measurements, the alterations, and when he co-signed our thoughts for an orchid boutonniere.
BUT, then, he proceeded to discount himself.
“Well, the show isn’t as big as it is in the U.S.”
“I was the youngest one there, so I think that had something to do with it.”
“There were only 30 contestants though, that’s not many.”
He went from owning this amazing, incredible accolade to knocking himself down to basically being a fluke in under five minutes.
It was very fascinating to witness because we were prepared to spend a pretty penny on this tux. We were ready to listen to this man with clear talent and knowledge. All of this put me at ease and made me that much more ready to invest.
And as soon as he shrunk back and tried to be more humble, it was a bit of a turn-off!
While we still bought there, and had a good experience, it changed our level of trust and even the way we interacted. Suddenly, the roles were reversed and we felt a need to boost him up.
I share this because I see through my clients, how many business owners hold this narrative of, “If I brag, if I OWN my work and wins, people will think I'm not nice,” when that couldn't be further from the truth.
What’s nice is being the service provider who stays in your leadership role, takes care of your potential and existing clients, and creates safety for them by trusting and speaking to your expertise.
Buyers want to know that you know what you’re doing, that you have evidence of a background and experience, AND that you care and trust your own work.
What most buyers aren’t looking for someone who’s apologizing or discounting what they’ve accomplished because this only puts the customer in the caretaking role and brings up question marks, “Hmm, maybe they aren’t actually as good at what they do as I originally thought…maybe this isn’t a good decision?”
Discounting yourself isn’t nice and humble when it comes to your work and sales, and it only shortchanges your business income and impact in more ways than one 
, and it’s by owning and COUNTING your experience and wins that you’re able to create trust that leads to confident, all-in, “hell yes” clients and people who feel great about handing you their credit card.
If this is feeling familiar, no shame, most of society teaches the opposite, and I’d invite you to explore:
What are you discounting and why?
What’s the narrative behind that narrative?
Then, practice a pattern interrupt and share a win or your experience you’re proud of with yourself, in your next piece of content, or on your next sales call.
Wishing you your version of success!
P.S. Picking up what I’m putting down but having some of the icks get kicked up when it comes to thinking about OWNING your experience, expertise, and sharing your wins?
Want some support identifying what makes you great and taking up space with your genius so you can get seen and paid by more of your people?
Let’s talk! Book a free coaching consultation here to talk about how I can support you with the clarity, mindset (aka stop discounting yourself and taking up more space), strategy (messaging, marketing, sales, leadership), and action so you can make more money doing what you love.
