A GIRL'S GOTTA GET PAID

Teaching philanthropy and generosity is great, but isn't it just as important to teach our girls to GET PAID!? 

Let me give you a little back story… 

We have been supporting the Walk for Sudan for 14 years. My step-daughter has seen us donate our time and money for most of her life. She has been part of the walk and emptied her piggy bank to make donations on many occasions. She "gets" generosity. 

As we started to ramp up for the walk this year, we had an idea of having her make velvet stuffed pumpkins for the silent auction. We had a plan, I would buy all the materials, and she would assemble the pumpkins, and we would "make a killing" in donations. 

But then I happened to have a little chat with a colleague of mine.  

She told me about how she was doing a presentation and wanted to feature the stories of some successful businesswomen in the industry. She had her assistant reach out and get permission from these ladies.  

More than half of the women asked whether or not "she was getting paid" for her presentation. They were very concerned about whether she would benefit from promoting them.   

Let's be clear. In this case, she was not getting paid to do the presentation. She included the stories to PROMOTE the businesswomen for their benefit, no strings attached. 

My friend and I went on to discuss how women are so trained to volunteer and donate that they are often uncomfortable getting paid. And in this case, want to make sure no one was getting paid.   

My personal opinion is that we, women, are at least partially responsible for the pay gap due to our subconscious attitudes about money, worth, and compensation.  We are slow to recognize our own worth and sometimes hold each other back in the same way.  

Back to the kiddo and her pumpkins… 

So, I went back to Maelynn and renegotiated our arrangement. I told her that she was going to get paid, but she had a choice.   

She could get $1 per pumpkin she produces. Or she could get $1.50 per pumpkin that sells—in essence, letting her choose between salary or commission. 

Much to my surprise, she chose $1 per pumpkin. I couldn't believe it. She didn't believe in the appeal of our product. I kept my mouth shut and agreed.  

Two days later, I showed pictures of her little pumpkin production line to a client, and they wanted to "buy" a set of three on the spot. I brought the $20 bill home to show Maelynn. She got incredibly excited and caught the vision! 

Over dinner that night, she asked if she could renegotiate the deal. She wanted to switch to commission. I agreed, with the caveat that all pumpkins produced under the original agreement would be compensated at $1 per unit, but moving forward, we could do $1.50 per item sold.  

I share this story with you because 1. It's cute 2. I am part of the problem! I realized I was training my daughter to be more comfortable donating free labor than being compensated for her work. 

I want to encourage all of us to look at our own beliefs and habits around payment. Are you incredibly comfortable with your worth and getting compensated? Are you fully supporting women-owned businesses and happy to pay them well for their services? If you have girls in your life, what are you teaching them about getting paid? 

You know that I am a huge proponent of the value of businesses giving back to their community, but it is a balance. I want to help you build a PURPOSE-DRIVEN and PROFITABLE business. Being purpose-driven means that we are looking for ways to serve and leverage our resources to improve the world. But it is not sustainable without profit. We need to learn to be comfortable with both! 

With Purpose and Profit! 

-Lucila 

If you need a pumpkin or three and would like to donate to a good cause, consider ordering from Maelynn.  

Each faux suede pumpkin is approximately six inches across, and they are available in Orange, Red, Teal, and Brown.  

$7.50 per pumpkin or 3 for $20 

100% of the proceeds go to the Walk for Sudan, benefiting the Nuba Water Project. Learn more here: https://secure.qgiv.com/event/202wfs/ 

If you would like to order: 

1. Please email me your mailing address, number of pumpkins, and preferred colors: [email protected] 
2. Donate the appropriate amount or more to Team LOTUS: https://secure.qgiv.com/event/202wfs/team/886203/ 
3. Enjoy your faux suede stuffed pumpkins for years to come! 

Note: the Walk for Sudan is October 10th, 2021. We will be happy to accept orders through October. And I will cover all shipping and labor costs!