Scan the QR code in the image to register Some people work themselves to the bone and earn little in a year; others say a few symbolic words and rake in large sums—don't envy them. If you don't build your worth, you'll likely be stuck in the former group. Earning money is like living off your youth; once youth is gone, so is the money. Building worth means the money may not come immediately, but you'll become more valuable over time. Worth is how much you're valued A salesperson initially has no worth and can only earn a base salary. As their business skills improve and performance increases, their income rises, and they earn more. However, their worth may remain unchanged. In a sales role, your income may change, but your worth may not. For example, if your income mainly comes from commissions, it's determined by performance, not worth. What is worth? It's when others recognize your abilities and are willing to pay a high salary even before you've achieved results. For instance, professional managers or corporate consultants who command high fees—that's worth. If you're dissatisfied with a low salary and ask for a raise, but your boss disagrees, and you resign, it shows your worth hasn't changed in your boss's eyes. If your boss agrees to the raise, it means your worth has increased. If your worth hasn't increased, don't discuss raises with your boss. Otherwise, you'll only embarrass yourself and possibly end up frustrated. Internal Worth vs. External Worth There are two types of worth: internal worth and external worth (market worth). Some people work at one company for years, with rising positions and salaries, seemingly increasing their worth. However, once they leave, they struggle to find a job with comparable income because their original worth was only internal, not recognized by the market. This phenomenon is common. Some people feel they contribute greatly to the company, are dissatisfied with their compensation, and believe they deserve higher income based on their "abilities." However, these people may forget that without the boss's (or supervisor's) promotion, their abilities might not be sufficient to hold such a high position or earn such a high salary. Such people often overestimate themselves, forgetting that without the boss's (or supervisor's) support, they might not have such worth. The outcome for such people is often more frequent job-hopping, lower positions, and lower compensation. If a headhunter contacts you, congratulations—you have market worth. Then you can confidently say, "If this place doesn't appreciate me, others will." One Job, Two Rewards A former general manager at AT&T once said: "Everyone has two rewards from work: one is current income, the other is future income." In my personal understanding, future income is the enhancement of worth. An excellent sales associate promoted to store manager may see their income decrease as a sales associate, but as a store manager, their worth increases. There are roughly two channels for income growth: one is improving performance based on current worth, leading to higher income; the other is increasing worth, leading to higher income. For example, from a salary perspective, a store manager earns more than a sales associate; from a performance commission perspective, a store manager may earn less than an excellent sales associate. Without considering performance, a store manager's base income is far higher than a sales associate's, because the store manager's worth is higher. When I first started, as a graduate student in the 1980s, I had education but no worth. I even offered free services, but people might not accept them, so I needed a "mentor" to guide me, even serving for free. Later, when I gained worth, I could choose whom to serve and say "NO" to some clients' requests. Some people love job-hopping, but their worth doesn't change. As they age, no one wants to hire them, and they become worthless. Even if they had high income, it will decrease. When I worked at a clothing company, several senior store managers went to another well-known company as sales associates because the pay was higher. In the short term, they earned more. Now, some sales associates who worked under those former store managers have quickly been promoted to store managers or even regional managers, and their worth has changed immediately. Because their worth changed, they have more income sources, and their future worth may continue to rise. In employee training, I often emphasize that a good company, appreciated by employees, must be one that brings growth to employees. This growth is not only reflected in income increase but, more importantly, in the enhancement of worth. If a headhunter poaches employees, and internal worth can be converted to external worth, it shows the company is indeed good. Channels to Enhance Worth Enhancing worth is different from improving performance. Improving performance doesn't necessarily enhance worth. Enhancing worth typically involves the following channels: First, promotion in position. A senior executive and a frontline employee have vastly different salaries, determined by worth, not performance. Promotion is determined by two factors: one is promotion due to outstanding personal ability; the other is rapid company growth, creating more new positions, allowing more people to be promoted. In other words, one is promotion when the total number of positions remains unchanged; the other is promotion when the total number of positions increases. Second, changes in responsibilities and authority. Perhaps the position doesn't change, but responsibilities and authority do, thereby enhancing worth. Third, unique contributions. For example, Teacher Jin Huanmin gained different worth because he expanded the small-scale Baixiang brand. Fourth, changes in the influence of the employing company. For instance, I once worked at a well-known company. Perhaps my contribution wasn't significant, but because the company later became successful, my worth changed accordingly. Recently, people working at BAT companies are very popular, for the same reason. Some say people are utilitarian, focusing only on immediate interests. I think that's normal. Focusing on immediate interests is human nature; focusing on long-term interests is the insight of a few. I greatly appreciate a definition of strategy: Strategy is doing things now that have both present value and future value. In other words, strategy is the accumulation of current work. Employees should certainly care about current income—especially frontline workers who live paycheck to paycheck. Can they also do things to enhance their worth while caring about current income? When the work that enhances worth accumulates to a certain point, worth naturally rises—this is said for employees. Employees' thinking may only reach the level of current income, not yet the future. Can managers persuade or remind employees?—This is said for managers. What Does the Company Bring to Employees? As the top leader of a company, you must think: What does the company bring to employees who work there? I believe employees should receive an industry-average or slightly above-average salary, and continuously rising worth. Regarding employee income, I have a viewpoint: Salary may not be high, but income is not low. Salary may not be high: if you have no worth, a starting salary at the upper-middle level is sufficient—this is determined by the market. Income is not low: it should be achieved through changes in worth. If a student becomes a store manager or regional manager within a year of joining, their status differs from ordinary employees, and their income naturally rises. Compared to classmates who started working at the same time, who may still be ordinary employees, their income has undoubtedly increased. Even if this employee leaves the company, because they have worth, they can earn a higher income at other companies. Source: Teacher Liu's Digital New Marketing -END-