As the term implies, underearning occurs when someone makes under their potential and has a mental block around deserving or earning more. It can feel like being stuck in a loop—only making enough to get by. It can be caused by an accumulation of bad habits or even a mindset full of limiting beliefs. Either way, anyone suffering from underearning deserves to break the cycle. According to Stanny, underearners “have a high tolerance for low pay.” There are a few ways to self-diagnose:
Constant financial crisis: You’re always in a financial mess, in debt, or feel dead broke.Financial ignorance: You’re clueless about how much money you have, earn, or need. Isolation: You’re not comfortable asking for help, especially about ways to earn more or to do your work in a more efficient or cost-effective way.Procrastination: You generally mismanage your time or drag on work that could be done quickly.Undercharging or accepting low pay: You underprice services for fear that you’ll lose clients or that you don’t deserve that much. This may be justified by market factors, as well as low self-esteem.
Although underearning may show up in a variety of different ways, the process to fixing chronic underearning generally has five solutions. Acknowledging the problem is a form of self-acceptance. No need to blame yourself or others; just admit that you’re an underearner today and you don’t want to continue. You can now begin to think back to why you have these financial challenges and the ways that you may be self-sabotaging. Next, get educated about cost-effective alternatives that could lower the amount of cash flowing out. And plan to open your mind to quick and easy wins that will allow you to bring in more money, easily. This could mean committing to watching free YouTube and TedX videos around your industry to learn how to position yourself for a raise or how to justify a price hike in your business. Being open to learning is important to improving your habits and increasing your earnings. If you realize that you’re constantly de-valuing your work, even after you’ve compared market rates and your successes, then you may need a therapist to help you tackle low self-esteem. Or you may want to hire someone specifically to handle the sales and billing for your company, so that you don’t have to have those difficult conversations about raising prices or increasing rates. Do your research, take classes, join support groups, and put yourself in a position to earn more—regardless of your industry, age, skillset, or background. Be ruthless about helping yourself overcome the barriers that once held you back. It is so much harder to work your way out of debt and underearning than it is to get into it. So be gentle with yourself as you improve your situation, little by little. Take a look back every quarter and congratulate yourself for the things you’re doing a lot better than before. Over time, your bank account will reflect your wins, not your stumbles.
