Hip Hop Wisdom Lesson #13: Know Your Worth

Is anyone or anything truly priceless? Everyday, millions of able bodied and able minded people get up and do some type of work for some type of compensation. From investment bankers to hunters/gatherers to the common man on the street, nearly everyone is hustling.

As professional wrestling started reaching mainstream audiences in the mid to late 1980’s a character by the name of The Million Dollar Man started to appear. One of his main goals was to prove everyone had a price. He relished in the fact that he could use his money to get people to do anything. Or almost anything. Some wrestling stars didn’t think they had a price in the fictional world of professional wrestling, however, in the real life business side of it they all had a price.

Professional wrestlers have frequently participated in questionable story lines for more popularity. From racist skits to pop culture satire, professional wrestlers know how to push the boundaries of censorship. In the case of The Million Dollar Man, he wanted to push the boundaries of morality in direct reference to how people work for money. He had so much money he could make up things for people to do.

In every walk of life there are pay scales varying by skill, tenure, or a combination of both. References and word of mouth also weigh significantly on how someone is compensated. So, with all that being said, how do you truly know your worth? Knowing your worth requires you to know yourself first.

Having a clear vision of what it is you want to do and a plan to execute that is a great start. From there, improving your skills and gaining qualifications is next. Sometimes a person can have the skills and qualifications but don’t have a plan. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. So, no matter how skilled and qualified you are, you must have a plan.

Your plan must include quantifiable goals and achievement points. Everyone starts somewhere, so what’s your benchmark? The complexity of your plan determines how many goals and objectives you have to reach. However, in the early stages of executing your gameplan, get started on the right track by achieving the goals that are the least difficult to accomplish. Every win counts, work your way up to sustained success. If you are an experienced planner, move at a pace that is comfortable for you versus the difficulty of your plan.

External factors like barriers to entry or available market share will play an important role as to how you carry out your plan and gauge your worth. Therefore, knowing as much about the external landscape as possible will make you better prepared for the future.

Investing in yourself is a direct indicator that you care about yourself. What you reap is what you sow. The more time and resources you put into developing yourself and your craft will show in the quality of your works. And just like when giving to others, you should give unto yourself freely and happily. Never look at bettering yourself as a chore. Stay active in seeking ways to improve yourself. Join associations or groups, get the necessary certifications, be aware of technological advancements, know your competition, etc.

Protect your worth by being careful of the people around you. Who are you spending your time with on a regular basis? Hopefully it’s with people that have an interest in seeing you succeed professionally, and want to see you grow as a person.

One can write a whole book on the subject of knowing your worth, and we’ll cover the topic more in the coming pages. For now, here are some more suggestions that’ll help you put your worth in perspective:

• Always seek to contribute more than is required of you

• Teach others and lift them up

• Strive to constantly improve yourself

• Reward yourself when you reach important milestones

• Collaborate with other like minded individuals

• Take pride in the quality of your works

• Keep your word when you give your word

• Know how you want society to remember you