The FULL story of how I got my first $25k / month consulting client:
Once I quit Uber and took a little bit of time off, I was ready to start working on what was next. I wanted to start a company. But I didn’t know what I wanted to start.
I also wondered how I was going to support myself. I couldn’t just keep going without income. I considered if I could help out companies part-time. So, I did some outreach. Or rather, I responded to some LinkedIn inbound recruiters and hiring managers.
I responded to each of them honestly that I was willing to help them part-time.
Here’s a sample note I sent:
"Thanks for reaching out. I definitely think my 4 years at Uber could be helpful as AutoX rolls out its self-driving marketplace. Do you see an opportunity for me to help as more of an advisor than a full-time role? I'm currently not in the market for a full-time role, but I am open to other arrangements. Let me know your thoughts.
Cheers,
Bradley"
I sent out 12 notes like this. 11 times I got a “no” or just no response.
One of the 12, however, responded positively back that they were down to get on a call and chat.
I had my first lead. I didn’t call them leads at that time. I didn’t know anything.
I jumped on a call with them and talked about my experience at Uber, and inquired about their needs.
They asked me to send over a proposal of what a working arrangement could look like. I didn’t have a template or any kind of idea of what this could look like. So I did what any business-minded person does best. I made a deck that included the following:
1. My background
2. The terms of the agreement including my rate
3. The challenges I understood facing the company
4. The questions I expected to address
5. A sample food delivery marketplace business model
I sent it over.
I guess they liked it because they invited me for an interview. I spoke to a few different members of their team including the CEO and COO.
I got a call a few days later from the recruiter that they’d like to offer me the contract, but that my rate was a bit too high.
I had made up some random number calculating my Uber salary, projected equity, and added in a huge buffer for other contractor costs.
It came out to $267 per hour. This felt high, but what did I have to lose?
So when the phone call came in and told me my rate was too high, I got nervous. I couldn’t really defend that rate. But I did something that in hindsight was smart: I asked them to counter. They countered at $250 / hr (only 7% lower than what I’d asked for). I accepted on the spot. Deal.
While the contract was hourly, if I worked 20 hours per week I’d make $20k per month, and at 25 hours per week, I’d make $25k per month.
Score!
I had my first consulting client. And it changed my life forever.
