#258 Reverse engineer your business goal

In this episode, I share my journey toward becoming a public
speaker and how consultancy fits into my long-term strategy. I’m
flying to Armenia to speak at a conference on AI and consulting,
but this gig is part of a bigger plan. I realized that professional
speakers can earn between 10,000 and 20,000 euros per gig, and I’ve
started reverse-engineering the steps to get there. It’s not just
about speaking for free; it’s about building a portfolio and
investing in the long game. I’ve documented all my past speaking
engagements, created a “Speaking” section on my website, and
started positioning myself to charge more for public speaking. The
Armenia gig is an investment in my future, and I’m using it to
build credibility and connections. I discuss how anyone can apply
this mindset, whether you’re trying to scale your consultancy or
grow an agency to 100 employees—it’s all about planning, taking
action, and letting time do its work. Transcription: Good morning
everyone, and welcome to another episode of Sweet Buzz! I'm stuck
in traffic right now and thought, what better time to record a
podcast? As I promised myself and all of you, I’m committed to
recording more episodes. So, today’s topic is consultancy. I’ve
been diving much deeper into the consulting world, and I want to
share why I’m doing it, how I’m doing it, and why you should
consider it too. Tomorrow, I’m flying to Armenia for a week to
speak at the international TMT Consulting Conference in Yerevan.
It’s an exciting opportunity because I’ll be discussing how AI is
transforming industries. But before that, I wanted to give you the
background on why I’m pursuing public speaking alongside my
consulting work. About two months ago, I decided I wanted to become
a public speaker. After doing some research and consulting with
ChatGPT and a few speakers, I realized that in the U.S.,
professional speakers can earn between 10,000 and 20,000 euros per
gig. That was mind-blowing to me! You get your costs covered, speak
for a couple of hours, and you’re done. It really made me think
about what I need to do to reach that level. Instead of doubting
myself, I approached it entrepreneurially. I reverse-engineered the
process: to charge 20,000 euros for speaking, I need someone to pay
me 1,000 euros first, then 2,000, then 5,000, and so on. But to
even get started, I need to speak for free and build up my
portfolio. So, I’ve been documenting my speaking engagements over
the last 20 years—everything from Albania to Finland—and added a
“Speaking” section to my website. Now, when I go to Armenia, I’ll
be speaking for free, but I’m also paying for my own travel and
accommodation. It’s an investment in my long-term strategy. By
building my public speaking portfolio and network, I’m climbing the
value ladder and positioning myself to eventually charge higher
fees. Armenia is not just a speaking gig; it’s a marketing
opportunity for BizzBee Solutions and a chance to connect with
other consultants who could become potential clients. The lesson
here is that no matter what your goal is—whether you want to be a
top consultant or grow your agency to 100 employees—you need to
reverse-engineer the steps and start taking action today. Time is
the main variable, but as long as you keep building, you'll get
there.