RESEARCH_FILE
Rate Anchoring
The habit of pricing new freelance work off an old number — a past salary, a first low-paying client, a competitor's public rate — instead of what the work is actually worth now, so the old anchor quietly caps every quote that follows.
SEE THE PRACTICE
Turn a thought this research explains into one clear move.
THE THOUGHT
“Raising my rates feels like greed”
YOUR RECORDED RESPONSE
“The rate I hesitate to say is often the rate I actually need.”
ONE PRIVATE MOVE
On a blank note, write your current rate at the top, then underneath write one slightly higher version you have been avoiding and one boundary you have been silently absorbing. Fold the note and put it away for later review.
How it sounds in your head
Someone's first client paid $25 an hour two years ago. Every rate since has been calculated as a small bump off that number, never re-priced from scratch — long after the market, the skill level, and the reputation have all moved on.