“A bar of iron costs $5, made into horseshoes its worth is $12, made into needles its worth is $3500, made into balance springs for watches, its worth is $300,000. Your own value is determined also by what you are able to make of yourself.” – Dr. Wayne Dyer
How much do you think you are you worth? How much success do you think you deserve? Are you worth a $5 bar of iron or a $300,000 balance spring for a fine watch? You are what you make of yourself. Herein lies the problem. We allow others to determine our self worth and how much success we should or should not have. If we don’t put a high value on our own self worth, do you think anyone else will?
One of my first coaches and mentors used to tell me that everything I wanted to know about success and finding my way home (finding myself), could be learned from the movie, “The Wizard of Oz.” At the time I didn’t get it. Oh sure, I knew the story of Dorothy and The Wizard of Oz, but not in the sense that he was talking about. You have to realize I was pretty clueless and unconscious in those days. So clueless in fact that when my coach asked me to stop and check in with myself, I thought he meant the hotel we were staying at for the seminar he was giving. Like Dorothy, it took me a while to get the big “IT.”
The “Big IT” for me was finally waking up and realizing that I had everything I needed to be successful right inside of me. I just needed to learn what the right tools were that would allow me to unlock my inner answers.
The second “Big IT” was realizing that I had choices. I did not have to settle for making horseshoes, I could be a spring for a very expensive watch.
Your self worth and your success is defined and determined by YOU. It is an extension of who you are. You have to own it before you can sell it to someone else.
Here are three examples of what happens when you value yourself as a $5 bar of iron.
1. When I first hung out my coaching shingle, I agonized over how much to charge. I was so worried about attracting clients that I only charged $25 an hour. I shudder every time I think about how little I thought of myself. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot.
2. When I first started my business I treated it as a hobby, not a bonafide business. I would put someone else’s needs ahead of my own in a heartbeat. It wasn’t until I started treating my business like a business that my business became a business.
3. Again, when I started my coaching business, it was suggested that I use my given name, Beverly, because it sounded more professional than Cookie. And of course, believing others knew more than I did, I acquiesced. After about a year, I was having a major identity crisis with the name thing. I had been nicknamed “Cookie” since birth and that’s all anyone had ever called me and I liked it. I decided to risk not being liked. Hence, Success Source was born, featuring yours truly, Cookie Tuminello, Success Coach.
Are you beginning to see how easily we can sell ourselves short.
Now, here are three examples of what it means to value yourself as a finely tuned watch.
1. I now value myself and the value of the service I provide for my clients. The service I provide makes a difference in their lives. I now set my fees and stand proudly when I present them. No more shuddering for me.
2. I now choose the clients I work with, and the hours that I am available to serve them. My clients respect the fact that I am a professional which in turn teaches them to value themselves.
3. I now experience more productivity, more profitability, and more power in my business than ever before. Not to mention I now have more success with a lot less stress.
Are you beginning to see the difference?
This week, ask yourself this question: Are you a $5 bar of iron or a $300,000 balance spring for a fine watch? And if you have trouble figuring it out, take out a pen and paper and make a list of what’s working and what’s not working in your life and/or business. Take action to eliminate that which is making you feel like a bar of iron. Remember your ultimate success starts and ends with you.