The Unfortunate Common Traits of Freelancers Who Are Undervalued

From "production contractor" to "business strategy" in design.
I am Norihiro Takada, a Management Designer® who practices a staff-type business model.
I share thoughts and strategies for freelancers working in delivery-based or contract-based roles
to break free from a "work style chosen by price or tasks"
and increase their own market value.

"Why am I the only one being undervalued?"

You have the skills.
You are doing things properly.
And yet, for some reason, this happens.

You get haggled down.
You get sent to competitive bidding.
In the end, you lose on price.

You've felt this before, haven't you?

And many people think like this:
"I need to get better."
But that's not it.

Being undervalued is not a "skill problem"

This is often misunderstood.

You are not undervalued
because your skills are low.
It is a problem of how you are perceived.

What position are you engaging from?
What kind of value are you recognized for?
This determines it.

In other words,
the way you "convey" things is off.

If you are in a worker position, you will be cheap

This is the biggest factor.
Whether or not you are seen as a worker.

Someone who does what they are told.
Someone who follows instructions.

What happens when you are in this position?
You get compared.
You get replaced.
You are judged by price.
As a result, you become cheap.
This is hard to avoid.

I was also on the "undervalued side"

In the past, I was also
completely seen as a worker.

I was doing things properly,
and I intended to deliver quality.
But the way I was treated didn't change.

At one point, I realized:
"I'm being seen for my tasks, not my value."

From there,
I changed "how I engage."
That was when the tide turned.

What is different about people who are not undervalued?

It's simple.
They are on the "decision-making side."

They propose what to do.
They show the direction.
They take responsibility for the results.

What happens when you take this position?

It becomes harder to compare you.
It becomes harder to judge you by price.
This is the big difference.

Small differences make a big gap

What you are doing
might not change that much.

But,
one difference is huge.
Do you end with "What should I do?"
Or do you say "I think we should do this"?
This difference.
This is where the perception changes.

First, let's change one phrase

You don't have to change everything at once.
Start with just one thing.

In your next interaction,
try adding one phrase of your own opinion.
That's all it takes.
That one phrase
will be the trigger to break out of being just a worker.

Cheapness is not something decided arbitrarily

Whether or not you are undervalued
is not something the other party decides on their own.

It is decided by your own position.
Are you seen for your tasks?
Are you seen for your value?

Just by changing this,
the results will change.
Let's change your position just a little bit.

Norihiro Takada's book
"Graduating from Delivery"
─Reconstructing the Designer's Business Model─