Find the Price that’s Right: Charging a livable rate that your customers can live with

"Now that I look back at what I had been paid for my first few projects, I realize I had been severely undercharging myself. Unfortunately, this is pretty common because I feel like pricing is not really talked about [in our industry] or taught in school.” – Anoosha Syed, Advice from a Professional Illustrator

It’s that time, folks. Time to talk 💰💰.

Money is something that most freelancers and creatives struggle with. Not because we’re all bad with finances, but because we often fail to charge what we’re worth.

The stats don’t lie: even in the world of self-employment, the pay gap (by and large) persists. Age factors into it, too (although that most likely correlates with experience).

You’ve got a shot here to be your own biggest advocate. Don’t squander a chance to reach out with both hands and accept way more than scraps.

Take it from our good, ole’ friend “Bad Cop,” a VP of Sales at the local fintech. His main schtick? Walking around the sales floor, looking over shoulder after shoulder at sales deck after sales deck, pointing to the price, and saying one thing: “add a zero.”

What we want to see in each of you is the same unfounded confidence formally reserved for the likes of a cis white dude. At least when it comes to adding your own zeroes.