The Cost of My Consulting Advice

I wish he hadn’t talked me into it. It’s going to be yet another task on my to-do list, and it might kill my multimillion-dollar consulting career…

But Jason Holland, ETR’s managing editor and new associate publisher, has persuaded me to give a select group of ETR readers unrestricted access to all of the resources that I normally reserve for my clients, business associates, family, and close friends.

I’m talking about the thousands of private memos, communiqués, and messages I’ve written over the years that have helped my clients achieve so much success.

Until now, there were only two ways you could get hold of them:

1. Pay my $1million+ consulting fee

2. Be a member of my family, a close friend, or one of my business associates

But Jason — in an effort to start his new job as associate publisher with a bang — got me to agree to give it all away to ETR’s best, most dedicated, and most ambitious subscribers for just $5 a month.

And that’s not all. He’s also convinced me to upgrade your subscription to ETR by including my personal commentary and advice whenever I have something useful to tell you about the topic of the day.

What Jason is doing is creating two editions of ETR:

1. The one you are reading now, which you can continue to get for free

2. An upgraded, premium edition for “client” readers for just $5 a month

There are two questions in your head right now. (I’m sure of it!

• Why would Jason want to do this?
• Why would I agree to it?

The answer to the first question is easy. As an employee of ETR, Jason doesn’t get anything from the millions my clients happily pay me. But if he can get 10% or 20% of ETR’s readers to sign up for this service, it will mean more dollars in his pocket every month.

The answer to the second question is confusing — at least, it was confusing to me. Why would I want to risk jeopardizing my private consulting practice by giving all my best stuff to people who are paying only $5 a month?

I finally figured it out. The answer is my ego. Jason knows I have a compulsive, neurotic need to give advice. When I learn a new way to boost marketing returns, I tell all my clients and associates about it immediately. When I make a new contact or discover some clever money-making technique, I want everyone I know to benefit from it. I can’t help myself.

Jason also knows that there is nothing I like better than to get letters from people thanking me for some insight or suggestion I gave them that allowed them to profit in some way. He knows that the first thing I look at when I read ETR each morning is the testimonial from one of our readers.

I am a slave to gratitude.

And that’s how Jason talked me into it: “Think of how many more letters you’ll get from all the people who become your Premium Edition clients,” he told me. “I’ll bet you’ll get hundreds of them. Just imagine how cool it will be to read three or four of those letters every day.”

Alas, it’s true. I am that easy.

Ten years ago, when I was 50, I wrote an essay telling ETR readers that I had changed my life goals. No longer was wealth accumulation at the top of my list. I had enough money. I was going to focus on other things — writing, traveling with my family, improving my Jiu Jitsu skills, and “giving back.”

Well, Jason thinks this would be another way for me to give back.

And maybe he’s right.

Maybe you’ll decide that my advice, my resources, and my contacts could help you achieve your goals.

To help you make that decision, consider this:

• One of my family members (we’ll call him George) took himself from bankruptcy to millionaire in six short years after following my core wealth-building principles…
• Then there’s Brad Solomon, an accountant who used my “number one rule of business” to amass a $4 million net worth in less than seven years…
• And David Kelly, an overworked doctor who went from working 90 hours a week and making a modest living to making more than a million a year working just 15 hours a week. David said he did it by using my strategy for creating extra “automatic” income streams.

These stories make me feel good about myself.

Can I tell you a few more? Here are a handful of examples that really hit home for me:

 

“Since I began working as a full-time artist four years ago, my income has nearly doubled each year, and I expect it to keep doubling. Belief is everything!

” I do want to thank you… I have gleaned much great advice and tips that have helped me improve my marketing, and for that I deeply thank you.”

Marie M. Vlasic
Denver, CO

“[Thanks to your help] I’ve taken up yoga, lost around 20 pounds, write better articles, and I’ve re-discovered an attitude that remembers that all is not lost, as far as my financial future goes.

“I just want you to know that… and remind folks like me that the fight is worth it.”

Don Pennington
Borger, TX

“Having just re-launched a business at the age of 61, I’ve gained great heart and hope from your wisdom and untiring efforts to elevate your fellow entrepreneurs in any way you can.

“[Your advice]… has been a great blueprint for us, and will certainly be the backbone of our new business strategy and action.”

Ian Jones

“I have been fortunate to enjoy success in my career, but have been drifting lately. The lessons I have learned [from you] are helping me… achieve more. During a recent period of renegotiating my contract, I was able to increase my fees by 30%. Thanks!”

DR

“Thanks to you I netted $198,000 last month!

“Your mentoring changed my life. Today I run my own publishing business that will gross more than $5 million in sales this year and net me close to $1 million. I own a beautiful $2.2 million home in Central London and a property portfolio worth a further $1.3 million.

“I owe much of this to your inspiration, encouragement, and guidance.”

NL

“I sincerely want to thank you for putting me on the right path. You’re advice, suggestions, and inspiration have made major changes in my life in less than 9 months — more than all of those other self-improvement books have done for 10 years.”

Shawn M.

 

Can you blame me?

Who wouldn’t want to get letters like that?

So here’s the deal. If you sign up to be a Premier Edition client, I will provide you with everything Jason’s convinced me to provide… and more. I will have your best interests at heart. I will answer your letters and give you tips and contacts and encouragement. And all you have to do is pay Jason $5 a month.

Well, there is one other thing. You will have to write me a letter when you start seeing results.

After all, results are what matters.

Unless I can help you have a richer life, I haven’t done my job. If you feel that way — even for a moment — you can fire me… and Jason will refund every five dollars you’ve sent him.

You can’t get a better deal than that.

Let’s talk a bit about how I am going to help you. Because then you can decide right now if this truly is as good a deal as I believe it is.

I intend to help you the same exact way that I help my colleagues and associates at ETR. If you worked here, this is what your day would be like…

Sometimes I’d pop into your office and ask you: “Have you seen this promo? I really like the guarantee they’re using. You should try it, but add this one element on our next product launch. Here’s why…”

Other times you’d tell me about something you are working on — maybe a new auto-responder series. I might say, “Sure, you could do that. But I’ve tried it quite a few times in the past and it didn’t get the results I expected. I suggest you try this instead.”

Other times I might pass along a wealth-building tip or secret I got from one of my friends… or an easy way to implement an idea that could revolutionize the way you are doing things.

And still other times I’d simply send you my insights on something I read (sometimes the very essays that appear in ETR) via a short e-mail memo.

I never tell my clients or associates what to do. I’m not their boss. I’m their consultant. So you will never hear me insisting that this or that course of action is a must for you. I prefer to tell you what I know, show you the results of what I’ve seen, expose you to my contacts and resources, and then trust you to do the right thing.

Does that sound like a consulting arrangement that would work for you?

If so, please take a look at the following invitation from Jason.

It goes over everything I’ve just explained, in more detail, along with some additional benefits of being a Premier Edition client that he has thrown in since I agreed to this crazy deal.

• Pay attention to what he has to say about the new “wealth-building roundtable” he’s setting up.
• And the way he’s going to funnel you in on some of the best stuff we cover in our Liberty Street League newsletter and our other paid services.
• And his ideas for getting your personal questions answered.
• And how he’s going to give you exclusive access to my business “Rolodex.”
• Not to mention the members-only discounts on every success and wealth-building program ETR offers.

Anyway, it’s all there in Jason’s invitation. If you are interested, please act immediately – because there is definitely going to be some kind of limit to this. I consider myself to be a very productive guy, but there are only so many Premium Edition clients that I can take on and serve well.

[Ed. Note: Mark Morgan Ford was the creator of Early To Rise. In 2011, Mark retired from ETR and now writes the Palm Beach Letter. His advice, in our opinion, continues to get better and better with every essay, particularly in the controversial ones we have shared today. We encourage you to read everything you can that has been written by Mark.]