The number one priority of every business owner is to stay in business. When you’re just starting out, the pressure to avoid returning to the cubicle farm can be so overwhelming that you put your passion and ideals on the backburner in favor of survival.

In most cases, that means taking on projects you’re not very interested in so you can pay your rent for the next several months. Or it could mean working on retainer with a client you aren’t the least bit excited about, because it’s an easier win than trying to land the kind of client you really want (or maybe you’re not even sure who that would be yet).

It feels like you’re selling-out, because this isn’t the inspired, creative and soul-stirring work-life experience you envisioned you would have as an entrepreneur. But you allow yourself to settle (for now), hoping it will buy you some time to figure out how to make your dream work.

However (and rather unfortunately), most folks never get to that point. More than a few years go by and you discover that things, though not ideal, aren’t so bad. You have a consistent flow of income. You’re no longer hustling for clients. There’s plenty of work to keep you busy and constructive. And, bonus, you’re still your own boss. You’re proud of yourself, of course, but you’re not really satisfied because this not-so-bad reality doesn’t feel like the kind of success you imagined. Instead, it feels like another damn job, meaning:

• Your work is mostly appreciated. But it isn’t creating the kind of meaningful impact you wanted to have.
• Your clients are mostly nice people. But there’s no spark. They have no idea how badass your skills really are (they may not even care) and you can barely muster the enthusiasm to have a conversation with them.
• Your schedule isn’t controlled by anyone else. But you spend much of your time working (on shit you don’t enjoy).
• Your family, friends and colleagues think you’re “doing big things” (much to their surprise). But you’re secretly crumbling and trying to remember how the hell you got here.

Picture this scenario: You've been working for a while with a client who "loves" having you on her team. Then one day she tells you about some consultant/guru/shiny business person she's just met who's offering a service that's strangely similar to what you do—but at 10-times the cost.

Your client is super excited about the idea and wants to know what you think about her signing up to work with this new person. But despite your (very rational) arguments against making this investment, she goes ahead—shelling out thousands more than what she pays you—and assures you of how "awesome" it's going to be for the company (WTF?!).

Hopefully this has never happened to you before (if it has, don’t worry, you’re not alone!). But I bet you’ve had experiences with clients that made you wonder why they even bother paying you if they don’t really value your expertise.

Here’s what you need to understand: