Why you’re being underpaid (and how to fix it)

Regarding work, payment and perception of value are common misunderstandings between remote work employees and employers. The same disparity of mindset occurs between freelancers, contractors, entrepreneurs, and their clients. It’s common to hear workers complaining about salaries being “too low” or feeling undervalued. But the truth is that your salary only reflects what you are perceived to bring to the table. Note that I didn’t say what you bring to the table but what the employer or client perceives you brought to the table. For instance, offering the same service to a single-member startup and to a multinational company will be perceived completely differently by the employer. But in all, your salary or payment somewhat reflects the value you bring to the organisation’s table.

Hence, employers or clients don’t hire you as an employer, remote worker, or freelancer just to do you a favour. No, they hire you to contribute your skills to help them achieve their own goals. Their goal could be to generate revenue, save time, or improve operations. In return, you get paid a portion of the value you are perceived to have created.

Let’s put this in quantitative terms for clarity. Suppose your work generates a perceived value of 100 for the company. In that case, it is implausible they have $100 on your pay cheque which is logical from an…