A walk around Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, Minnesota, led to today’s mentoring conversation. All consultants have a similar journey to build a profitable consultancy. Here is a startling statistic from Mickey Mikeworth of Mikeworth Consulting, today’s regular guest: less than ½ of 1% who start solopreneur consultancies generate $1M in annual gross revenues. Mickey has a hardball approach you need to hear. You need to do the math to grow your consultancy. Download

What type of consultancy? You might be thinking. Mickey says, “any consultancy.” They all need to generate money based on an hourly rate or billable hours. Her tactical approach will help you get clear on your numbers and use the energy of prosperity to work toward your greatest good. She knows. She has dedicated her life to the principles of prosperity in building wealth and is known as “The Resource Guru.” Why? Tune in to get her fresh and practical approach to wealth creation. 

Tip #1: Make all the money you need in one day each week.

• First ticket to success. Lining up the work. Generate all the income you need in one day each week. Do the work to earn your keep. Build the relationships that bring you money.
• “Loving the game and not the paycheck can be a real problem,” says Mickey. Marrying the two is how you stay in the game of building wealth through business ownership. This means learning the pace at which you must go to be in the game. Figure out how to be in the game! You want you and your clients to win.
• Do only things that make you money. Money has one purpose: gives you choices. Mickey’s tactical approach will help you do the math to get better results.

Tip #2: Set realistic time lines based on real goals.

• Manage your timeline. Consider the building phase. All businesses have the same growth pattern. There is a 7-Year Cycle both in your business and in the marketplace. It usually takes longer to build than planned for. For a new consultancy, it takes five years to build a business or 10,000 hours of work, however you carve out the time. You may need more than five years to grow your business if you have less time invested in the building phase. Thereafter, you need to keep innovating every few years.
• Get good at making money and failing quickly. Give it enough actual fuel, no shortcuts. Move your money maker. It is easier to cashflow if you have the bread and butter income in place.

#3 Bread and Butter Clients: steady, regular clients.

• Hair Salon example: learn to see your clients more often. Your clients will do better when you see them more often. Cashflow is King but charisma and cashflow are the master!

#4 Evaluate how much time you actually have. Include your natural rhythm of when you shine.

• Life is complex. Families are complicated. Formulate a real-life equation based on your life-force energy. Know your bio-rhythms and the energy needed to do each task.
• What are your MAGIC HOURS?

#5 Allocate a percentage of time for each task. We discuss marketing as an example.

• Invest at least 35% of your time (14-hours/week) getting new clients.
• How does Social Media factor into the equation? Social Media allows you to have a conversation and contribute your voice into a more global conversation. What are you getting back from your investment of time on social media?

What is Social Media?

• Rule of thumb: MEASURE THE RESULTS! Most consultants generate money from people they know. This could be through collaborations, partnerships, friends, a network of relationships you nurture, etc. What are you getting back from your social media efforts? Hand shake to hand shake is usually what will bring you the most money.
• Money allows you to take risks.

We end with Mickey describing the Prosperity Mindset. Prosperity is the natural order. What you focus on expands. Train yourself to work with expansive energy. Mickey uses herself as an example. She sold out 1,500 appointment slots on her calendar in 20-minutes.

Mentoring Tips for Listeners

Answer the following questions after you listen:

Tip #1: Make all the money you need in one day each week.

• How many clients can you work with in a day?
• How can you marry passion with generating more money? What relationships do you need to nurture where you can both create more wealth?
• What activities will generate the most money?

Tip #2: Set realistic time lines based on real goals.

• Determine your time line for reaching real goals, no foo foo pie in the sky kind of goals. Set small goals to reach the bigger goals. What are your income and client goals for the remainder of this year?
• Decide what is working and what isn’t working right now. Focus on what is working. Expand it.

#3 Bread and Butter Clients: steady, regular clients.

• Create a list of your bread and butter clients. Build a list of at least 125 people.

#4 Evaluate how much time you actually have. Include your natural rhythm of when you shine.

• How much time can you invest each week to meet your goals?
• What are your MAGIC HOURS for generating income?

#5 Allocate a percentage of time for each task. We discuss marketing as an example.

• Invest at least 35% of your time (14-hours/week) getting new clients. How does that work out for you? What activities?
• How does Social Media factor into the equation? What are you getting back from your investment of time in social media?
• Rule of thumb: MEASURE THE RESULTS! Do the math. What are the social media outlets where you can build creditability and connect with others in-person?
• Money allows you to take risks. What amount of money do you need to generate to enjoy your business and life more?

Let me know the results and the answers to the questions above by leaving a comment at Give Feedback.

Math for Consultants: 5 of 10 Tips, Episode 126   Mikeworth Consulting   Rick Chicks