What Is “Authentic Income”?
Originally coined in 2020, here’s what I meant—and still mean—by it today.
Is Your Income Authentic?
Almost five years ago—on a quiet Covid-Era Labor Day weekend in 2020—I wrote a blog post titled Is Your Income Authentic?
It wasn’t a popular headline. It wasn’t SEO-optimized. And I figured it might upset people for whom their job was wrapped up in their identity.
But the question came from a place I couldn’t ignore. I was trying to put language something that too many creatives, service providers, and entrepreneurs felt but didn’t yet know how to name:
What if the money you earn actually came from work you love and believe in?
That weekend, the phrase “Authentic Income” popped into my head. It sounded strange at first—even to me. Income and authenticity weren’t words I’d seen together before. But the more I worked with clients as a business coach, the more I realized it was the exact distinction people needed.
And it still is.
Why I Invented the Phrase
At the time, I was deep in the paradox so many artists and entrepreneurs wrestle with:
They wanted to earn more, but not at the cost of their values.
They wanted financial growth, but not through roles that felt fake, misaligned, or extractive.
They wanted to build a business, but feared they had to “sell out” or compromise who they are to do it.
The old models didn’t give us language for this—most still don’t.
Almost all of the popular money books either ignore authenticity entirely or treat it like a luxury for after you’ve “made it.” And the career advice most of us get still comes from Depression-era and postwar mindsets that told us income was something you earned by being useful—even if the work drained your spirit—and it’s only legit if you earn it in an office or a factory.
I needed a term that could reframe the whole equation.
So I coined one.
Authentic Income is what happens when your money and your mission finally match.
It’s the kind of income that flows from congruence, not compliance.
From self-trust, not just strategy.
From value, not validation.
And yes—it's real, and it’s scalable. But it takes structure.
What Authentic Income Is NOT…
Let’s be clear about what I don’t mean.
Authentic income doesn’t mean:
You only do activities that feel good to do all the time.
You’re only earning from barely working—and you’re definitely not just showing off a “perfect” lifestyle on IG.
You never charge high rates or negotiate like a leader—and you never charge inflated rates like it’s an entitlement.
You get to avoid marketing, systems, or structure because “alignment” or “abundance” is supposed to be enough.
Authenticity is not avoidance.
And economic congruence is not an excuse to stay economically insolvable.
Too many people claim they’re being true to themselves when they’re really just avoiding the next level of discomfort that would actually grow their capacity to earn.
That’s not authentic income.
That’s accidental martyrdom—something artists in particular are vulnerable to.
Why It Matters Now More Than Ever
I stand by what I wrote five years ago, but today I’d go even further:
In this current economic and cultural climate, there is no neutral income.
Either the money you’re earning is structurally supporting the life, business, and values you actually want to live…
Or it’s not.
And if it’s not, you will feel it. In your nervous system. In your schedule. In your sleep.
You will find yourself procrastinating not just on work—but on becoming the person who can hold the life you’re trying to build.
Authentic Income is not a luxury—it’s a prerequisite for sustainable growth.
And as long as the value you are giving is appropriately greater than the value you’re receiving, that sustainable growth is more than possible.
It’s not “niche”—it’s what separates those who scale with integrity from those who burn out while performing someone else’s version of success.
What It Actually Looks Like in Practice
Here’s how I define it today:
Authentic Income = Earnings that are congruent with your values, your voice, your strengths, and the people you’re most meant to serve.
It’s structurally earned, not emotionally indulged.
It requires both pricing integrity and personal responsibility.
And it will challenge you—because becoming the integrity-laden person who can earn at a higher level will likely confront every belief you’ve inherited about work, worth, and wealth.
And that’s a good thing.
So… Are You Earning Authentically?
If not—whether it’s in your business or a job you’d rather not have—don’t shame yourself. Just ask yourself:
What percent of my current income feels fully aligned with who I actually am?
Where am I earning out of fear instead of purpose?
What conversations or offers am I avoiding because they would reveal what I really want to be doing?
Whose potential judgment might be holding me back the most?
Most people don’t need to burn it all down.
They just need to restructure their business so their income finally reflects the truth of their value—not the residue of their past.
That’s exactly what I help clients do—it’s also what the people I refer help do. And it’s what my new Lucrativity System™ helps decode.
And that’s why the phrase I first coined in 2020 still forms the backbone of my work today.
Because there’s no such thing as financial freedom if you’re earning in a way that drains you.
So want to earn more without selling out who you are?
You’re not crazy. You’re not wrong. And you’re not alone.
This is your invitation to step into a business that pays you—and honors you.
It’s not just possible. It’s necessary.
Let’s build your Authentic Income.
—Brian
PS, if you haven’t yet, check out The Referral List I Wish School Had Given You
On my other Substack page, The Lucrative Artist, this list includes high-level mentors who can most definitely help artists, creatives and other related service providers realize more authentic income from their work.
Back when I was in academia, I used to vent about how the curriculum wasn’t preparing us for the real world. But now I say school doesn’t need to overhaul the curriculum as much as it just needs to point people toward the mentors who can actually support their next step after graduating. Somehow that may make me sound “radical,” but it’s the most practical shift—and it doesn’t require a years of curriculum committee meetings.
This article also outlines five key standards to evaluate before hiring a business mentor—plus five who meet them. These are people I know well and trust to offer something that’s often missing in this space: structural clarity, sovereign behavior, actual income architecture, no emotional choreography, ethical referrals, and non-exploitative marketing and sales practices.
They might not always be among the most popular names, but they’re some of the most solid. Each one in particular supports a distinct phase or aspect of the entrepreneurial path for artists, creatives, and adjacent service providers.
Read the full article—and please share with anyone who may need an alternative resource to all the bro-marketing or otherwise manipulative ads crowding our newsfeeds.
Double PS - It’s still not too late to work with me this summer.
In addition to a couple private client openings, it's not too late to jump into the current cohort of Grow Your Money Voice.
If your authentic income still doesn’t reflect your authentic voice, value, or power—you’re exactly who this was built for. You won't be behind, and the calibration work is cumulative.
So if you’re ready to stop selling from emotional labor, shift into offers that match your true value, and finally earn in a way that feels clean, then this is the structure that holds.
(And you can use the coupon code LUCRATIVITY2025 to get $500 off the investment.)
Prefer a 1:1 à la carte option?
I’m now offering a brand-new, one-time 90-minute intensive built around The Lucrativity System™, my new diagnostic framework I’ve quietly been developing over the years.
This isn’t about typical mindset work or surface-level strategies. It’s a structural recalibration—designed to quickly assess where your income model may be breaking down and what to do next.
Thanks again for reading. If you have any questions, or you’d like to set a time to talk about how I could help you in your business, please don’t hesitate to reach out.