Recently, I drove across town to meet with a company we’ve worked with before. They had reached out about potentially putting several people through instructor training. I’d never met the owner in person. Within the first few minutes of sitting down, the first question I was asked was: “What kind of financial position are you in?”
The conversation quickly moved toward growth, cash constraints, and the idea of moving forward now and sorting out payment later. Two years ago, I probably would have said yes. I would have adjusted terms. Deferred payment. Tried to prove value harder. Convinced myself that long-term potential justified short-term compromise. This time, I didn’t.
Because the structure of the interaction told me everything I needed to know.
- We build formal, standards-aligned, defensible training systems.
- We require prepayment for instructor training. Period.
- We don’t treat training as informal or optional.
A few years ago, I provided free instructor training to one of their employees. They were happy to receive it. They’ve barely used it. That experience taught me something difficult: When you give away something that took years to build, it often anchors how it’s perceived going forward.
Almost every time I’ve offered training for free, it has quietly reduced how that training is viewed. During the meeting, pricing comparisons to competitors came up.
- We don’t aim to be the cheapest option in the industry.
- We also don’t deliver the cheapest level of service.
But the deeper lesson wasn’t about payment terms. It was about self-worth. There was a time when a conversation like that would have reinforced an old belief — that maybe what I built wasn’t worth holding firm on. That maybe I needed to bend to earn legitimacy. I don’t believe that anymore.
- I value what we’ve built.
- I value the systems.
- And I value myself.
So instead of molding myself to someone else’s expectations, I chose alignment over accommodation. No blow-up. No conflict. Just clarity. Not every meeting is meant to become a new business relationship or a contract. Sometimes it’s just there to show you how much you’ve grown.