Cracking the Billable Hour Glass Ceiling

contractors, independents, consultants, and more — what’s your game plan for moving beyond what you can charge per hour of your time? without strategies, you can only go so far. here are a few on my horizon. 1. give a class. a group of people who are willing to learn together will help you to earn more per hour than progressing with each separately. classes can be staged at your office, at a rented facility, over  the phone, or online. in addition to clients, what could you teach your colleagues? 2. record a CD or video series. record your classes or speaking engagements. provide them immediately over the web or by phone. more polished efforts can be produced at a recording studio, or you can learn to do it yourself with the right equipment. 3. write a white paper, workbook, or booklet. a simple 25-page publication might have as few as 4000 words in it. if you’ve self-published four articles to promote your business, then you’ve easily written this much. e-books cost you nothing to print. 4. author a book. might seem like an impossible task at first. however, one page a day for five days a week and you’ll have a full-length book at the end of the year. if writing isn’t a strength, then you can easily find an editor, ghost writer, or a co-author with the prowess you lack. you can even sell excerpts as articles and white papers — while you complete the book. 6. market others’ products. don’t have a product of your own? don’t let it stop you. earn passive income by selling others’ goods, becoming a re-seller, licensing someone else’s process, or joining affiliate programs. 7. elect performance-based pay. you can reduce the cost of services upfront and insist upon earning on the performance of your efforts. many clients will agree to a plan where the earnings are indefinite. this allows you to earn far past what you would have originally netted if you simply charged the average market value or higher for your time. of course, you need to know what you’re doing and have the confidence that you will succeed in a variety of situations. keep in mind that you can mix and match how you charge based upon each new set of circumstances.