⭕️ How to Get Paid for Your Work

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Hey friend,

I was giving a keynote at Huron University yesterday, and a student came up to me after and asked:

And honestly? I hear that question all the time. Especially during our 15-minute Friday chats with community members.

It’s one of the biggest shifts I made in my journey. From 15 to 20 years old, I was doing so much—press features, top global stages, helping 25,000+ people through my nonprofit…

But I was broke.

$0 in my account. Burnt out. Frustrated.

Until I realized: You don’t have to be a broke person changing the world.

You can create impact and income.

So today’s newsletter? I’m giving you the exact things I wish someone told me earlier. Here are 10 tools, tactics, and mindset shifts to help you start getting paid for your work:

read time: 3 mins

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10 Ways to Start Getting Paid for Your Work

1. Set Your Value: Know Your Hourly Rate
Start with a simple formula: how much do you want to earn this year? Divide it by the number of working hours you're willing to put in. If your goal is $50,000/year and you want to work 20 hours a week = ~$48/hour. Don’t forget prep time, follow-ups, etc. Know your rate, and honor it.

2. From Cost to Investment
Shift your language. Don’t say “I cost $500.” Say: “This is an investment of $500, and here’s what you get.” You’re not a line item. You’re bringing value, transformation, and outcomes.

3. Solve a Pain Point
What makes you unique? Is it your lived experience? Your Gen Z insights? Your social media skills? Think about the problems you can solve better than anyone. That’s what people pay for.

4. Build Beautiful Proposals & Packages
Create professional-looking decks or PDFs that explain what you offer—whether it’s speaking, consulting, design, content, or anything else. Make it visual. Make it clear. Make it sellable.

5. Have a Personal Website or Portfolio
You need a digital home. A place where people can find you, see your past work, and understand what you offer. Use platforms like Notion, Squarespace, or Carrd to start simple.

6. Ask the Magic Question: “Is there a budget for this?”
When someone invites you to do something, don’t be afraid to ask: “Is there a budget for this?” You’d be shocked how often the answer is yes—they just assumed you wouldn’t ask.

7. Do Outbound Sales
Don’t just wait around. Identify organizations, schools, or brands you want to work with. Record short personalized videos (Loom, Vidyard) and send them out. Do 10–20 a day. Follow up.

8. Know the Different Ways to Monetize
Speaking, workshops, social media partnerships, consulting, facilitation, creating toolkits, writing—there are multiple ways to turn your skills into income. Test and learn what works for you.

9. Build in Public
Share your journey online—what you’re building, learning, and doing. It attracts opportunities. People won’t know how amazing you are if you’re hiding.

10. Start Saying No to Free (Sometimes)
Exposure doesn’t pay the bills. Be intentional. Ask yourself: Will this lead to more paid work, meaningful connections, or growth? If not, it’s okay to say no—or to say yes, but on your terms.

11.Bonus: For free work, ask for value in return
If you decide to do something for free, ask for value in return. A testimonial, referral for a paid engagement, a media feature. Make sure you directly communicate and for something tangible you can leverage in your journey.

Friend, everything I share on the newsletter is stuff I wish someone taught me when I was just getting started as a 15 year old in Tanzania. As a young person, it’s so easy to do things for free but not get compensated (directly or indirectly) for it. I am hoping that you can at least use one of the above tools to help navigate this for the future.

I am curious to learn: which one did you find most valuable? Anything that I am missing on the list?

Reply to the email: I make sure I reply to every single one :)

Time to get paid for our work,

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