In this episode, John talks with John Ray about how our mindset about money, value, and ourselves shapes our business. They also discuss why pricing your expertise is so hard, how to deal with imposter syndrome, and why confidence must come before clarity.

About John Ray:

After a successful career in investment banking, investment management, and strategic advisory, John Ray left the corporate world in 2013 to build his own business. It didn't take long to find the gap nobody had prepared him for: he routinely undervalued his own expertise, struggled to set prices that matched the outcomes he delivered, and watched his clients do the exact same thing.

He spent the next several years figuring out how to fix it for himself first, then for the consultants, coaches, attorneys, CPAs, fractional executives, and other expert practitioners who hire him today to gain clarity, confidence, and profitability through positioning, pricing, and value-based business development.

That work became his first book, The Generosity Mindset: A Journey to Business Success by Raising Your Confidence, Value, and Prices (2023). His second book is set for release in the first quarter of 2027.

Listen to this episode to learn more:

[00:00] - Intro

[01:00] - The story behind starting Relationships & Revenue Podcast

[04:50] - Using beta readers when writing a book

[07:17] - Who John Ray serves and what he does

[10:42] - John's journey from investment banking to coaching entrepreneurs

[13:45] - Pricing your expertise & the "Bad Neighbor" mindset

[15:50] - How imposter syndrome affects pricing and confidence

[17:14] - Why knowing your ideal client changes everything

[20:25] - Helping entrepreneurs who keep waiting for the perfect time to start

[24:18] - Why some entrepreneurs struggle with clarity, confidence, & profitability

[27:36] - Helping someone with a scarcity, cutthroat view of business

[31:04] - Serving vs. giving everything away

[32:06] - The Generosity Mindset book

[33:29] - The challenge of selling expertise in a DIY world

[36:48] - Pricing for outcomes vs.pricing for deliverables

[37:33] - Best barbecue spots across the U.S

NOTABLE QUOTES:

"Everybody has a story to tell, and unfortunately, most people die with their stories inside them."

"Your expertise is up there between your ears, and guess who's right next door, shouting out the window? It's all the mindsets that hold you back."

"Lack of confidence equals lack of clarity."

"You don't want to start a business with no plan. You don't want to start a business with too good of a plan."

"Your playbook changed over time, and that's the way it is for every business."

"If you grew up in a scarcity mindset because of your family of origin, or an abundance mindset, you've got two totally different views of the world."

"Our clients see more value in us than we see ourselves."

"It's not about you, per se. It is about those you serve."

"Clients buy for their own reasons, not for the reasons that we come up with."

"Your personal brand is not what you think it is. It's what others say about you when you're not in the room."

"If you have a mindset that revolves around others and their hopes, wants, needs, desires, anxieties, fears, and serving them, then it changes a lot about your business."

"If you really want to serve people, you've got to be in business by definition. You can't run the business up on the rocks, give everything away, and be sustainable and serve people."

USEFUL LINKS:

https://www.johnray.co/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnray1/

www.amazon.com/author/johnray

The Price and Value Journey - https://tinyurl.com/PriceAndValueJourneyPodcast

North Fulton Business Radio - https://tinyurl.com/NorthFultonBusinessRadio

The Generosity Mindset: A Journey to Business Success By Raising Your Confidence, Value, and Prices - https://a.co/d/09DYp6Gs

CONNECT WITH JOHN

Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen

X - https://x.com/johnhulen

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@iamjohnhulen

EPISODE CREDITS

Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/