February 2022 was supposed to be a very different month for me.
Last year I was neck deep in negotiating a deal that would see me in a significant role in an exciting company.
But sadly, the negotiations fell apart.
Initially I was gutted, but I began to see the situation for what it was… and it was full of incredible lessons.
An important lesson I learned was that a lot of situations can’t be put into a time for money arrangement.
And we shouldn’t even try to.
Now we all know that trading time for money is no way to build wealth.
But it’s also no way to reward a person for education, expertise, and experience that you will have access to… that you never paid them to get.
If a company has paid for those qualifications or the person got them from working with the company… then sure, pay them with a time for money arrangement.
And most people would be very happy with that scenario.
In fact, they are. That’s exactly what hundreds of millions of employees do every day.
But in the situation I mentioned above… I wasn’t happy about it because all of my education, experience and expertise was self-funded.
I have invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in my education and in gaining the experience I have.
I’m just not a huge fan of time for money arrangements to be honest.
And I have never understood why anyone would be happy to pay more for someone who is slow or inexperienced. But not pay someone who is fast or experienced a better rate.
It just doesn’t make sense.
I remember Carline Anglade-Cole saying on a mentoring call years ago that she wasn’t a fan of time for money arrangements either.
She asked us, “Why should I get less money because I’m fast and experienced?”
And she’s right.
No one should be “punished” financially (or any other way) for the value they bring. Ever!
And that’s why, a time for money exchange often needs to be the last arrangement you consider.
And it probably needs to be the first type of arrangement you reject.
That’s because…
Knowledge Nugget #338:
Time Is Always More Valuable
Than Money
Despite how it may seem at times, our money is frequently replenished.
Think about it… people who work a job have their money replenished each payday.
And when we do any kind of paid work… our money is replenished.
But when we do any kind of paid work… our time is gone!
Time is never replenished.
And that’s why I’m way more protective of it.
Every hour of every day has a money-making potential. And I need to make sure that I am fully utilizing each hour’s full potential.
That’s why when I offered what I thought was a fair fee for access to my extensive education, experience, and expertise… and the company offered a time for money arrangement… we couldn’t move forward.
Sure, I could have yielded… but so could they.
But it’s a moot point because it didn’t happen.
Besides, this not working out has made room for a 12-month copy partnership deal that is freaking awesome! It’s fast moving, exciting and a breath of fresh air. I have already written a promotion (I had such a short deadline that I wrote the VSL in 14 hours. It was crazy!) and it’s in the process of being produced right now.
I can’t wait to see how it goes.
There’s a second lesson here I want to share with you before I finish…
While negotiations were stalling and communication was scarce, I didn’t wait. I kept moving and keeping my momentum going.
I never stop prospecting until there are signed contracts and money in the bank.
Time waits for no one… and I don’t either.
Nor should you.
Until next week, stay awesome and value your time : )
Pauline x x x
Pauline Longdon
a.k.a. “The Copy Alchemist”
P.S. How is your 2022 going so far? Although it hasn’t started the way I thought it would, I’m very happy with the way it’s going. I hope your year is going well too.