I lately decided which may shock you. I had $10,000 to take a position, and I used to be confronted with a alternative. I may put it into the inventory market, the place historic returns hover round 9-10% yearly. I may park it in a high-interest financial savings account incomes a measly 2.5%. Or I may do one thing totally different fully.
In the end, I selected to take a position that $10,000 in hiring a coach to assist me enhance my webinars. However right here’s the twist: I may have gotten comparable coaching without spending a dime. The identical day I spoke with this webinar skilled, I came upon he was providing free coaching to members of a mastermind group I belonged to.
The identical construction, the identical rules — all without charge.
So why did I nonetheless write that $10,000 verify?
As a result of I’ve discovered one thing over the previous 20 years of constructing consulting companies: the quickest strategy to create wealth isn’t via conventional investments.
It’s by investing in your self and your enterprise.
The Nice Investing Lie Most Consultants Consider
Which funding automobile do you assume will generate you the best returns as a advisor? Index funds? Actual property? Cryptocurrency? It’s none of those.
Now, I’m not a monetary advisor and that is by any means meant to be monetary recommendation. However working within the consulting world and with consultants for near 20 years, I’ve discovered some issues to be true time and time once more.
Most funding recommendation doesn’t apply to consultants. Let’s do some fast math: say you have got $5,000 to take a position and also you obtain a spectacular 12% return yearly for 5 years — one thing most traders would bounce for pleasure about. On the finish of yr 5, you’d have $8,811.71. That’s a mean yearly achieve of $762.34.
Does that sound thrilling to you?
When you’re seeking to develop your consulting revenue and create actual wealth for your self and your loved ones, would you select this funding technique as your predominant strategy? I hope not. Since you’re leaving an amazing sum of money on the desk.
Consulting: The place 300%+ Returns Are Regular
What if I advised you there was a strategy to make investments that very same $5,000 and switch it into an additional $15,000, $50,000, or $150,000 in a yr? Returns like these aren’t simply potential — they’re frequent whenever you spend money on your self and your consulting enterprise.
Right here’s how the mathematics truly works for consultants: let’s say you make investments $10,000 into your consulting enterprise inside a 12-month interval. What number of extra shoppers may that funding provide help to land?
- One shopper price $25,000?
- Two shoppers price $50,000 complete?
- Three shoppers price $75,000 mixed?
Even touchdown only one extra $25,000 shopper offers you a 250% return in your $10,000 funding. Land three or extra, and also you’re a minimal 750% return. The place else are you able to make a comparatively small funding and doubtlessly double, triple, and even quadruple your return?
Why Your Enterprise Is Your Finest Funding Automobile
When my monetary advisor and I reviewed my portfolio lately — shares, bonds, mutual funds, actual property, the entire combine — he mentioned one thing that validated what I’d discovered via expertise: “A enterprise is the very best funding you may make.”
Right here’s why your consulting enterprise outperforms conventional investments:
You could have full management. With shares, you’re on the mercy of market forces, financial situations, and choices made by individuals you’ll by no means meet. With your enterprise, each determination that impacts your returns is yours to make.
The upside is limitless. An important yr within the inventory market may web you 15-20% returns. In your consulting enterprise, doubling or tripling your income in a yr isn’t simply potential — I see it occur fairly usually with consultants who make the appropriate investments in themselves.
Outcomes compound sooner. If you spend money on studying new expertise, bettering your positioning, or growing higher programs, these enhancements profit each future shopper interplay. The return isn’t simply speedy — it’s everlasting.
The chance is definitely decrease. This may sound counterintuitive, however hear me out. In conventional investments, you may lose every thing on account of elements fully outdoors your management. In your enterprise, even when one technique doesn’t work, you continue to have the information, expertise, and relationships you’ve constructed. These property don’t disappear.
Actual Outcomes from Actual Consultants
I’m not speaking idea right here. Let me share some particular examples from consultants I’ve labored with: Ken Blankenfeld made an additional $54,000 in lower than three months after investing in teaching. Leonor Urena generated over $40,000. Tiffany Hinton made $15,000 in her first week after implementing what she discovered. Corrie Banks has made properly over $60,000 in lower than 4 months.
Ken Blankenfeld made an additional $54,000 in lower than three months after investing in teaching. Leonor Urena generated over $40,000. Tiffany Hinton made $15,000 in her first week after implementing what she discovered. Corrie Banks has made properly over $60,000 in lower than 4 months.
These aren’t outliers. They’re typical outcomes when consultants make strategic investments in themselves. What’s significantly hanging about these outcomes is that none of those consultants essentially modified what they do. They didn’t pivot to fully new industries or develop fully new ability units.
As a substitute, they invested in readability round their positioning, confidence of their pricing, and programs to draw their ideally suited shoppers extra successfully. Ken refined how he communicated his worth proposition. Leonor restructured her service choices to command increased charges. Tiffany applied a extra strategic strategy to enterprise growth that instantly began producing certified leads.
The sample is constant: when consultants spend money on the appropriate steering and help, they don’t simply see incremental enhancements — they expertise breakthrough outcomes. Extra importantly, these aren’t one-time wins. The positioning readability, pricing confidence, and shopper attraction programs they developed proceed producing returns month after month.
That’s the compound impact of investing in your self relatively than hoping conventional funding autos will slowly construct your wealth over many years.
The Mindset Shift That Modifications The whole lot
Most consultants strategy their funds too conservatively. They assume like workers. Workers get monetary savings by chopping bills. Enterprise homeowners make cash by making sensible investments that generate returns. Due to this fact, constructing wealth via your consulting enterprise requires a mindset shift:
Cease considering like an worker and begin considering like a enterprise proprietor.
In different phrases, cease viewing every thing as an expense and begin seeing investments that may generate income. If you’re investing in your positioning, your expertise, your programs, or your advertising and marketing, you’re not spending cash — you’re shopping for property that may generate income for years to come back.
Right here’s the framework I’ve used to construct a multimillion-dollar portfolio:
Begin with the Basis
Earlier than you may maximize returns out of your consulting enterprise, it’s essential to construct stable monetary habits that may help your wealth-building journey.
Automate your financial savings first. Create a separate funding account and routinely switch 10% of your month-to-month income there. This removes the temptation to spend cash that must be working for you.
Put money into conventional autos too. I’m not suggesting you set every thing into your enterprise. I’ve important investments in shares, actual property, and different property. However my consulting enterprise generates far extra cash than any of those, which I then reinvest into different alternatives.
Put money into Your Enterprise Development
You have to be prepared to spend money on your self as a lot as you’re anticipating your shoppers to spend money on you — it’s about practising what you preach. And the fact is, the best returns come from strategic investments that immediately influence your skill to draw and serve your ideally suited shoppers:
Schooling and ability growth. This might be studying new methodologies, staying present with business developments, or growing experience in rising areas like AI purposes for consultants. By no means cease studying and hold honing your expertise.
Advertising and positioning. Spending on content material creation, thought management growth, or advertising and marketing help pays for itself with only one extra shopper.
Methods and instruments. Investing in the appropriate CRM, challenge administration software program, or automation instruments can unlock hours of your time weekly — time you may spend on revenue-generating actions as an alternative.
Teaching and mentoring. Working with somebody who’s already achieved what you’re making an attempt to perform is the quickest strategy to get outcomes.
“The extra you spend money on your self and your enterprise, the extra development you’ll see. Essentially the most profitable consultants don’t go it alone — they encompass themselves with others who’re extra profitable than they’re.”
The AI Alternative for Consultants
Talking on investing in upskilling and on instruments for your enterprise, one space the place sensible investments are paying large dividends proper now’s synthetic intelligence. Consultants who make investments time and sources in understanding AI purposes are creating important aggressive benefits. Contemplate investing in:
AI productiveness instruments that may provide help to analysis sooner, write proposals extra effectively, or analyze information extra deeply and successfully. The time financial savings alone usually justify the funding.
AI information and coaching to higher serve shoppers who’re scuffling with AI implementation or technique. Many consultants are including $50,000+ to their annual income by growing AI-related service choices.
AI-powered enterprise programs that may deal with routine and repetitive duties, liberating up your time to deal with high-value shopper work.
The consultants who spend money on AI literacy now may have a big benefit over those that wait. We’re at an inflection level the place AI is transferring from experimental instrument to important enterprise functionality. Early adopters are already utilizing AI to ship sooner analysis, create extra complete proposals, and supply data-driven insights that may have taken weeks to develop manually.
Extra importantly, they’re positioning themselves as forward-thinking advisors who can information shoppers via their very own AI transformations — a service providing that’s more and more in demand and instructions premium pricing.
The consultants who develop AI fluency at the moment would be the ones main their industries tomorrow, whereas those that delay will discover themselves taking part in catch-up in an more and more aggressive panorama.
My Private Funding Technique
Let me share how I’ve truly constructed wealth over time: I began by constantly investing within the inventory market — nothing fancy, simply constructing the behavior. Each month, I elevated my funding quantity. Endurance and consistency are key right here.
As I accrued capital, I diversified into actual property. I invested in condominium models, bought a house in Vancouver, and ultimately purchased our firm workplace.
However right here’s the essential half: my consulting enterprise was the engine that generated the capital for all different investments. By repeatedly investing in my enterprise — coaches, education schemes, crew growth, advertising and marketing, instruments, and know-how — I created an asset that generates returns no conventional funding can match.
I observe this straightforward rule: I am going the place my confidence leads. The much less confidence I’ve in an funding, the much less cash I put into it. But when I’ve excessive confidence — particularly in my very own consulting enterprise — I make investments extra closely.
The place to Put money into Your Consulting Enterprise
As talked about earlier, the bottom line is selecting investments that immediately influence your skill to draw ideally suited shoppers and ship distinctive worth to them. Listed below are a few of the classes that usually present the very best returns:
Data and Abilities ($500 – $5,000)
- Books and programs in your space of experience or in enterprise growth expertise. The information compounds over time.
- Convention attendance for networking and studying. Typically, one dialog can result in a six-figure alternative.
- Certification packages that improve your credibility, broaden your service choices, and provide help to command increased charges with better confidence.
Methods and Instruments ($1,000 – $10,000)
- Expertise infrastructure that makes you extra environment friendly {and professional}.
- Advertising automation that helps you keep linked with prospects and shoppers.
- Challenge administration programs that enhance your supply and shopper expertise.
Crew and Assist ($2,000 – $15,000)
- Digital assistants who can deal with admin duties, liberating you for shopper work.
- Advertising specialists who can create and handle thought management efforts.
- Operational help that helps you scale with out burning out.
Teaching and Mentoring ($5,000 – $50,000)
That is, by far, the highest-ROI funding you may make. Working with somebody who’s already achieved what you’re working towards improves your confidence and accelerates your timeline dramatically.
- Enterprise coaches who may help you develop technique and overcome obstacles.
- Trade mentors who perceive your particular market and challenges.
- Peer mastermind teams who’re dealing with and fixing comparable challenges as you.
“Confidence doesn’t come from doing extra; it comes from doing the appropriate issues with the appropriate help.”
The Funding That Modified The whole lot
Going again to my $10,000 webinar teaching funding.
Why did I select teaching over free coaching? The reply comes down to hurry and customization. The free coaching would have given me common rules. Nevertheless, the teaching gave me particular suggestions on my scenario, real-time problem-solving, and accountability to truly implement what I discovered.
Inside three months, that funding had paid for itself via improved webinar efficiency. However extra importantly, the talents and confidence I gained proceed to learn my enterprise years later. That’s the ability of investing in your self. The returns aren’t simply speedy — they compound over time.
Why Teaching Delivers the Highest Returns
If I had to decide on only one sort of funding that constantly delivers the best returns for consultants, it will be teaching. Right here’s why:
- Personalization. Generic recommendation can solely take you to this point. Teaching addresses your particular scenario, challenges, and alternatives.
- Accountability. Having somebody maintain you accountable dramatically will increase your chance of taking motion on what you be taught.
- Expertise. Working with somebody who’s already achieved what you’re making an attempt to perform saves you years of trial and error.
- Perspective. Generally you’re too near your personal enterprise to see the plain options. An outdoor perspective could be invaluable.
- Velocity. Teaching accelerates your timeline. As a substitute of figuring issues out slowly by yourself, you may implement confirmed methods instantly.
I’ve invested tens of 1000’s of {dollars} every year in working with coaches, and I credit score a lot of my success to their steering and help.
Don’t Delay Your Funding
You is perhaps considering, “I’ll spend money on my consulting enterprise as soon as I’ve more cash coming in.” That’s backward considering. The longer you wait to spend money on your self and your enterprise, the longer it is going to take to see important outcomes. Each month you delay is a month of potential development you’re leaving on the desk.
You don’t want to take a position $10,000 to get began. Even a $500 funding in the appropriate course or coaching can present speedy returns should you act on what you be taught. The bottom line is to begin and construct the behavior of repeatedly investing in your development.
I see this delay sample on a regular basis with consultants.
They inform themselves they should wait till they’ve “sufficient” cash, till their present initiatives wrap up, or till they really feel extra assured about their money movement. However right here’s what truly occurs: whereas they’re ready for the “good” time to take a position, their opponents are transferring forward.
The consultants who’re prepared to take a position when it feels barely uncomfortable are those who break via to the following degree. They’re those who land the larger shoppers, command increased charges, and construct the companies they really need to run.
Give it some thought out of your shoppers’ perspective. Once they rent you, they’re not ready (otherwise you’re not anticipating them to attend) till they’ve extra finances sitting round. They’re investing as a result of they see the worth and perceive that the price of not performing is increased than the price of the funding.
The identical precept applies to investing in your personal enterprise. Give it some thought this fashion: the price of staying the place you’re — together with your present positioning, pricing, and shopper acquisition strategies — is nearly all the time increased than the price of the funding wanted to enhance them.
“Being penny sensible and pound silly isn’t any strategy to develop a enterprise.”
The Tax and Insurance coverage Issues
As your consulting revenue grows via sensible investments, don’t overlook about defending your wealth. Success brings new obligations, and having correct safeguards in place means that you can pursue development alternatives with confidence relatively than consistently worrying about what you can lose.
Rent an expert accountant. This is without doubt one of the greatest no-brainer investments you may make in your enterprise. accountant who makes a speciality of consulting companies will prevent excess of they value.
Contemplate applicable insurance coverage. Time period life insurance coverage is cheap however supplies peace of thoughts. As your revenue will increase, there are insurance policies that enable tax-free entry to cash from your enterprise whereas offering protection and property advantages.
These aren’t thrilling investments, however they’re essential for shielding the wealth you’re constructing. Consider them as the inspiration that means that you can take greater dangers and pursue increased returns, figuring out that your draw back is protected.
Taking Motion: Your Subsequent Funding
Right here’s your task: Select one funding you may make in your consulting enterprise this month. It doesn’t must be sophisticated. It might be:
- A e book that teaches you one thing new about your business
- A coaching that improves your enterprise growth efforts
- A course that helps you enhance a particular ability
- A instrument that makes you extra environment friendly or efficient
- A coach who may help you obtain your objectives sooner
The quantity issues lower than constructing the behavior of repeatedly investing in your self and your enterprise for long-term sustainable development.
Keep in mind: these aren’t bills that drain your accounts. They’re investments that create wealth. The consultants who constantly spend money on themselves are those who construct probably the most profitable, worthwhile, and fulfilling companies.
Your Wealth-Constructing Journey Begins Now
I’ve shared how investing in my enterprise has helped me construct a multimillion-dollar portfolio. I’ve proven you the mathematics on why your consulting enterprise can generate returns that make conventional investments look pedestrian.
However information with out motion is nugatory.
The query isn’t whether or not it is best to spend money on your self and your enterprise. The query is: what’s your first funding going to be? When you’re able to make the funding that would rework your consulting enterprise — and your life — I’d like to ask you to be taught extra about our Readability Teaching™ program.
It’s particularly designed for consultants who’re able to cease surviving their enterprise and begin designing it. Who need to construct a consulting apply that displays their experience and supplies the liberty and revenue they deserve.
We’ve helped over 1,000 consultants throughout 75+ international locations enhance their income, enhance their positioning, and construct companies they’re proud to guide. The typical ROI is 130%, with many consumers doubling their income throughout the first yr.
However greater than the cash, our shoppers constantly inform us the most important transformation is one among id — transferring from service supplier to assured enterprise proprietor. Be taught extra about Readability Teaching™ and e book your free session name right here. Your future self — and your checking account — will thanks for making this funding.