Last Updated on February 24, 2020 by Kari
I had someone write into me the other day asking me why I thought Mindvalley charged money for their products if they were all about giving and making the world a better place. This person was pissed off. They wanted Mindvalley’s programs for free. They wanted all personal development products for free. They couldn’t understand why people who want to help other people would charge so much money. My simple answer was because Mindvalley is a business that puts time, energy, and money into creating these courses and they (and the teachers creating these courses) deserve to be paid for what they put out into the world, just like any other business deserves to be paid.
People Should Make Money For Value
As a consumer, you pay for value. This is how I’ve always felt about it. If something doesn’t provide you value, then don’t pay for it. Return it and get your money back. But, if something provides you value, it’s worth paying for.
I’ve worked online in one way or another by writing for over 12 years. Even though buying eBooks was kind of a thing, people didn’t understand why they should pay people online for other writing, ideas, lessons, thoughts, whatever.
But, in the past 12 years, I’ve noticed that resistance starting to dissolve. People know that vloggers are working hard and should earn money. Watchers don’t complain about the ads or sponsorships as much as they used to.
People are also aware that bloggers work hard and also need to earn money. Readers have a better understanding of why they have ads on their site and are affiliates for certain companies.
The bottom line is that when people do something of value – even if it’s what they love – whether it be writing, making videos, creating courses, making bracelets, or baking bread and selling it at the farmer’s market, they deserve to get paid.
Why?
When you put your time, energy, money, and effort into something, you deserve to get something back for it.
Moreover, that’s how the circulation of money works!
I do or create something that benefits you, and you pay me for it.
You do or create something that benefits others, and they pay you for it.
The New Age Of Connectivity
Today while taking my morning Hero, Genius, Legend classes, Robin Sharma said something that made total sense to me. It gave me a new way of explaining why businesses charge money for personal development products.
Robin said that we are in the connectivity age. He didn’t say it in reference to why people charge money for their products. In fact, he said it while he was talking about how we don’t need to be busy in order to be successful.
But I realized that the concept could help answer the question of why people are charging for their writing, videos, and information online, which is what a lot of people seem to be upset about.
Once we mostly made money by creating physical things and selling those creations.
But now businesses like Mindvalley are popping up and they create online courses that are not physical products but are digital products. These courses are focused on helping other people gain new insights and give people a sense of connection. And they can be taken by people anywhere in the world.
These are valuable things right now. We need to make a shift in the way the world thinks, acts and connects, and Mindvalley’s courses can help do this.
Mindvalley creates in-depth courses that help you gain new insights and learn new models of behavior and thinking. They also give you tribes to connect to where you can talk with like-minded people online. You can share, learn, and grow together as a tribe.
I find that when being online is often filled with hate and anger and frustration, this is a huge value! I have a place to go daily (at any time I want) to learn some positive and enlightening concepts, and then meet with other people who are also learning those concepts.
It’s extremely valuable.
It’s worth paying for.
In fact, I would rather pay for this than for another shirt or gadget or physical item that clutters up my home and my mind.
In the end, personal development products have value. They can help soothe the soul, mind, and body, and they can connect us in a way that we need badly right now. Moreover, they were created through time, energy, and money, just like any other product, and the creators deserve to be paid.
