met a guy last year who was insanely talented and completely broke
like genuinely better than me at cold email
better copy
better offer
better targeting
but charging $1,200/mo
i asked why
"i don't have enough case studies yet"
"i don't want to be pushy"
"5,000 emails feels spammy"
i told him something that pissed him off
"bro nobody gives a fuck about your emails"
he looked at me confused
"the person who unsubscribes forgets you exist in 4 seconds. you're not important enough to be annoying. you've built this whole identity around not being 'that guy' and it's keeping you broke"
he went quiet
i kept going
"the guy at $40k/mo isn't better than you. he just decided he's the type of person who sends 10,000 emails without flinching. follows up 7 times. charges $5k and doesn't apologise"
"you've decided you're 'not a salesperson' so you act like it and get paid like it"
he was mad for like 2 weeks
then he raised his price to $4k
started sending 5,000/day
followed up until they bought or blocked him
3 days later he got his first yes at $4k and almost shit himself
90 days later: $31k/mo
literally just from killing the identity that was keeping him small
the market rewards people who show up relentlessly without apologising for existing
most people are one identity shift away from everything they want
but they'd rather stay comfortable and broke than risk being seen as "that guy"
that's the real reason you're stuck
not strategy
ego