DEAR CREATIVES, STAND YOUR GROUND!

Dear creatives and business owners that do not know how to place value on what they do, what’s the problem? Is it that you’re unsure or you feel like you’re not worthy to have value?

I ask this because I've heard and I've seen a whole professional graphic designer and a small business Enterprise owner beat themselves up in front of potential clients in order to seem humble.

They stutter, they stammer and most of all, they are not always sure of how good they are.



The phrases ‘I could’ and ‘’maybe’ fell out their mouth so much that I could almost walk up to any of them and give a resounding slap.

The graphic designer had some pretty good jobs to his name but he didn’t value himself enough to see them as ‘good jobs’ and I watched as he was painfully priced from 100k to 30k because he seemed unsure of himself.

It was more painful than seeing a big stone fall on my head.

I’d never stop asking you to value yourself first before any other person values you. This way, nobody can ride you because they’d realize that they need you more than you need them.

Don’t be afraid to put a price on yourself because you want to seem nice and cheap unless nice and cheap can fund your lifestyle because you’ll most definitely be priced to nothingness even when you’re cheap. Price yourself knowing that your piggybank needs to be fed everyday and it cannot be fed with an empty account, know yourself knowing that even your own stomach needs to be fed everyday and you cannot live on an empty stomach. This is my motivation.

Reminds me of the very time someone cut 50% off my budget for an order and told me ‘just accept this one, there will be more jobs in the future and we’ll put you on the list.'
God forbid, dear.

I was broke but I honestly refused to sell myself short and lose on both ends because I wanted to please people with my money in their pockets; because if 50% of the budget could be cut now, what was the guarantee that I’d even get paid at all next time?

What was the assurance that the next time a better job came up, I wouldn’t be called and priced to the level of disorientation simply because they know that I’d settle for just anything?
God forbid bad thing!

So My dear creatives, business owners, and even You personally, who want to make a difference, render a service and get paid while at it, place value on yourself knowing that they need you more than you need them because they’d have learnt it if they didn’t need you.

No matter how good you are, It's always really difficult and a big deal to satisfy humans with your jobs honestly. It's always a lot trying to deliver stuffs to people, once it's past the agreed delivery time and maybe the dispatcher hasn't arrived, my temperature just increases immediately cause there are no two ways about it.

I always want to satisfy my customers so why would I be working for them at a loss, are both benefiting from each other at the end of the day.

I even go days without eating if i got jobs to do for people, i always want to meet up and do all that I can in my power. I'd Stay hungry, call people for assistance,  overstress myself and anything else not to mention! All just deliver what is expected to my customers.

IF I CAN DO ANYTHING OUT OF MY COMFORT TO render my SERVICES to you, value me and have due respect for my services.

You are your marketing brand identity, you are your social personality, career identity,s ACCEPT YOURSELF! so much value..
While you’re at it, ensure that you know how to deliver what is expected of you too because you’ll put yourself in a position of ‘see finish’ and lose your integrity.

YOU ARE YOUR OWN BRAND,NEVER UNDERVALUE YOURSELF AND BE THE KIND OF PERSON YOU WANT TO MEET.
I have tried for you.

By Akinmusere Abimbola
Member of NIMELSSA Editorial Team 19/20