Who actually feels the pain of the price?

I think for many of us, the pain of saying the price outweighs the pain of the buyer hearing it.

Which is odd, when you think about it. Because we experience the price twice: once in imagination, once out loud.

They experience it once. Then it’s gone.

The real discomfort isn’t the number. It’s the internal movie that plays right before we say it:

What this says about me….Where I rank…Or what they’ll think about my worth.

That movie is vivid. Emotional. And way too loud.

The buyer’s experience is much quieter. They don’t feel shame. They don’t feel exposure. They feel a choice.

If they say no, you rehearse it for weeks. They forget it by Tuesday.

If they say yes, something stranger happens: The memory of the price fades.

Over time, almost no one remembers what they paid. They remember whether it worked.

Think about it.

Do you know what you paid for the laptop in front of you or phone in your hand?

At the time you knew, but now you just know if it’s good or not.

As if price is a momentary tax and quality a recurring dividend.

We spend enormous energy trying to make the number painless, when the smarter move is to invest in the memory.

Most pricing pain isn’t inflicted by the buyer.

It’s self-harm.

And the good news is: you can simply stop doing it.

Be well. Talk soon.

— Peter

P.S. One practical note: despite how painful it might feel, I usually recommend saying your price out loud before putting it in writing.

It lets you frame the value in real time and prevents the number from carrying meaning it doesn’t deserve.

If you want help figuring out what to charge, how to frame it, and when to say it, that’s exactly what my pricing audit is for. The simplest next step is a short conversation to see if it’s a fit.