are you a painkiller or a vitamin?

Last week, my client hit me with a line that made my coffee do a tiny backflip.

He said:

“People see me as a vitamin.”

You know… the thing you should take…

…might help someday…

…but mostly sits in your cupboard like a sad little hope capsule.

And he was right.

Because being a vitamin in business means:

→ Nice to have

→ Long-term-ish

→ Soft, fuzzy benefits

→ Helpful… maybe later

It’s like saying:

“Hey, want to pay me lots of money to feel kinda better… eventually… probably?”

Yikes.

So what did we do? Changed his offer.

Broke down phase 1 of his service and tied it to a strong pain point.

We reframed it to:

“We solve THIS problem in 90 days.”

And suddenly?

Boom.

He wasn’t a vitamin anymore.

He became a painkiller.

The kind people sprint to the pharmacy for while ugly-crying and holding their lower back.

Because painkillers have superpowers:

→ Urgent

→ Outcome-based

→ Easy to price high

→ Easier to sell

→ Easier to close

→ And easier for clients to say “shut up and take my money”

See, the shape of your offer is the shape of your power.

When your offer is vague and fluffy?

You become the business version of “maybe I’ll start going to the gym next Monday.”

When your offer removes pain in a clear timeframe?

You become the business version of “I NEED THIS NOW OR I WILL CRUMBLE.”

Same person.

Same skills.

Same brain.

Different offer shape.

Different revenue universe.

This is why most consultants feel underpaid—they’re walking around as deluxe, organic, gluten-free vitamins…

…when their clients are actually begging for painkillers.

So here’s the question that changes everything:

Are you selling what you do… or are you selling the pain you remove?

Because the moment you switch to:

“We fix this problem in this amount of time,”

Your price stops being a debate.

Your value stops being a mystery.

And you stop sounding like a nice-to-have supplement hiding behind the almond milk.

Offer shape drives price.

Offer shape drives power.

And if you get the shape right?

Your business stops being a “hopeful maybe someday”…

…and becomes a “holy crap, is this wizardry?”

Don’t be a vitamin.

Be a painkiller.

See you all next Thursday 👋

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