The notes that follow are from a webinar conducted by ArunaGopakumar, the founder of Navgati on the ethics of charging. They are based on her work teaching and supervising therapists who are training in the field of Transactional Analysis<\/a><\/strong> and provided coaches with an opportunity to reflect on the psychological impact of how much and how fees are charged.<\/p>\n The idea of having to value oneself can be daunting, especially for coaches who are just getting started. They could undervalue their work or struggle with own sense of worth. Many coaches start by coaching people in their own circles and can find it difficult to even bring up the topic. Coaches could be worried about losing business if they ask for too much.<\/p>\n Whatever the coach\u2019s resistance to charging may be, it gets manifested in how money is talked about or handled with the client (a coach not bringing up the fee until the client asks; feeling discomfort when stating a fee; stepping in to rescue the client when there is even the slightest sign of difficulty about the amount etc).<\/p>\n Perhaps the clearest and most honest argument for charging a fee is simply that, in most instances, the coach needs to earn a living, and that without the exchange of money for services \u2018the whole relationship is removed from the real world\u2019 (Freud, 1913\/1958, p. 132).<\/p>\n There are also deeper reasons why it is important to charge clients for the work we do. When the fee is non-existent or low, there is nothing that holds either party accountable so could result in a lack of seriousness about the process. When people pay, their commitment to work and change is much higher than otherwise.<\/p>\n The final reason: A low fee could imply low value.A coach must decide the fee based on how they would like to be valued.<\/p>\n At the outset,there is no straightforward formula for deciding how much you want to charge because there are many factors including your personal value systems at play.<\/p>\n A very useful thumb rule (again from Freud) is that the fee should represent a sacrifice for the client, thus making it “difficult for the patient to relax into a passively dependent, infantile, help-seeking attitude\u201d. A good fee is one where the client pauses to think about whether they really need this and what they are willing to commit to.<\/p>\n How we charge impacts how the community is perceived. Charging too low can hurt the community of coaches; that we all have a collective responsibility towards ensuring that coaching is valued as a profession, both in terms of the impact we have and in terms of what we communicate through our pricing. Charging too high can make the community elitist and excluding.<\/p>\n Setting one fee for all clients has the advantage of simplicity. It is also open and transparent. However, if fees areset and kept high, relative to the uneven distribution of income amongst different groups in society, then coaching, certainly in the private sector, becomes inaccessible to these groups.<\/p>\n Another way of looking at it is that if you run your business solely on one hourly rate, then many clients wouldn\u2019t be able to afford working with you while a host of others might think you\u2019re too inexpensive to be good at what you do.<\/p>\n Coaches often offer different rates based on the client\u2019s ability to pay. However, it is important to differentiate between the ability to pay and willingness to pay. Several clients say they can\u2019t but actually it is that they won\u2019t. Coaches give discounts and may feel exploited when they see their clientsfreelypaying for other things.<\/p>\n The other downside of offering differential rates is that clients could feel obligated to you and claim success even when they have not achieved what they wanted. Also clients who are paying full price and then hear that you are giving a discounted rate to someone else could feel cheated.<\/p>\n The recommendation here is to fix a price for the target segment that you feel is appropriate (it\u2019s ok to have differential rates for individual versus corporate clients for example) and then communicate your willingness to listen to how clients feel about that price.<\/p>\n The advantage of this is that when paid in advance, the coach can relax and not have to worry about keeping track of and following up on payments. It also helps clients recognize the long-term nature of the work. However, it could have two downsides<\/p>\n The unequivocal answer to this is before you start work. It is important that people don\u2019t share personal material with you till the fee is discussed. Otherwise the client may feel vulnerable\/anxious if she cannot afford the coaching and is left with the feeling that the coach knows something about her that she wouldn\u2019t have otherwise shared.<\/p>\n Fees and conditions around payment must be shared before starting work. Negotiations should be concluded by having reached a client agreement before the client incurs any commitment or liability of any kind.<\/p>\n While not unethical or illegal, offering the first session free may trap some clients into coaching. There is a danger that clients will be “low-balled,” or attracted by the free session, only to be pressured subtly into continuing with the coach. After revealing intimate details to a stranger, they may feel reluctant to accept a transfer to a new coach. If coaches are alert to this potential pitfall and keep the clients’ needs primary, this practice is acceptable.<\/p>\n So overall, while there are no absolute answers, coaches need to pay attention to the psychological impact of pricing contacts on both sides of the equation and price their work such that they meet their needs; am true to the client and the client can afford it.<\/p>\n This section provides a framework that coaches can use to make difficult decision with respect to pricing. The ICF has clear recommendations on ethical practices for all ICF coaches (read here for more information – https:\/\/coachingfederation.org\/ethics\/code-of-ethics<\/a>).<\/p>\n The International Transactional Analysts Association (an international non-profit organisation whose purpose is to help advance the theory, methods and principles of transactional analysis) deepens this awareness of ethics through an ethics grid.<\/p>\n The ethics referred to are a set of values taken from the UN declaration of human rights, converted into principles that we can check our decisions against. The five values are<\/p>\n All of these apply to all the stakeholders involved<\/p>\n Put these two together and you get the ethics grid (see diagram A below). The way to work with it is to first formulate a clear question on a pricing challenge you are facing as a coach. Some examples could be<\/p>\n Once you have your question sharply defined, then ask yourself, for each stakeholder, which value would you be upholding if you made the decision one way? What value would you be letting go of if you made the decision another way?<\/p>\n Remember that everything is with respect to you and your view of the situation, since you can\u2019t speak for the other.Trust your gut, it isn\u2019t so much a thought process as an alignment and congruity in your body. It is an iterative process, layered like peeling anonion.<\/p>\n For more information about our ICF accredited coach training programs, visit http:\/\/projects.rapidmind.in\/navgati\/icf-accredited-coach-training\/<\/a> For more information about our Transactional Analysis training programs, visit http:\/\/projects.rapidmind.in\/navgati\/transactional-analysis-programs\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Money is a touchy subject for many and the source of deep emotions, conflicts, anxieties and shame. It is a measure of status and power and when we speak numbers, judgments follow. The concept of the money taboo is a real one; when we have views about money but have no safe space to talk […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10819,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all","category-coaching"],"yoast_head":"\nWhy should I charge?<\/h4>\n
\nTo continue quoting Freud,\u201cIt is a familiar fact that the value of treatment is not enhanced in the patient’s eyes if a very low fee is asked.\u201d<\/i> Not charging or charging a very low fee could also result in the coach feeling exploited by the client or feeling irritated if the client is non-responsive to the interventions.<\/p>\nHow much should I charge?<\/h4>\n
The factors to be considered when charging<\/h4>\n
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There are factors that are equally important however we don\u2019t always pay enough attention to them when deciding how much to charge:<\/h4>\n
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At the other end of the spectrum, the psychological impact of a very high fee<\/h4>\n
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Should I have a fixed fee or a variable one?<\/h4>\n
Should you collect the payment in advance or post the session?<\/h4>\n
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When should you communicate the fee?<\/h4>\n
Should I offer the first session free?<\/h4>\n
Ethics of charging<\/h4>\n
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Diagram A<\/h4>\n
![](\"http:\/\/projects.rapidmind.in\/navgati\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/blog.jpg\")
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