1️⃣ Helping turn Founder Businesses into Sellable/Freedom Businesses - from "I'm busy in the business" to "I own this brilliant asset", with the option to keep or sell 2️⃣ Investor & Mentor

The Plan To Build 12 Months of Cash Security For 30 Founders (And Why).

As FD, founder, investor, and advisor I’ve seen behind the curtain of hundreds of businesses.

One pattern keeps showing up:
Smart people, making money – but on a treadmill.
Tied to the business. No margin for error.
Bumping up against a ceiling, still pushing for growth.

Not because they lacked skill - 
but because they'd hit capacity.
Too busy spinning plates,
where growth just adds more to juggle.

== I understand that cost. First-hand ==

Several years ago, I lost my wife, and became a solo dad to two young kids.
That situation reshaped everything.

It taught me the real value of time, energy, and presence.
It showed me that health, family, and relationships aren’t a reward for working hard.
They’re the whole point of the game.

Businesses should make personal life better.
And yet for most, work becomes all consuming.
Health, family & relationships get whatever’s left - if anything - after the work is done.

And when you drill down deep enough, there's one cause behind it all:
the work it takes to keep cash coming in.

== Cash is essential. The treadmill isn't ==

The opposite of a treadmill is what I call a Multipliable business.
Multipliable businesses grow cash without relying on force.
As they grow, workload (and life) becomes lighter, not heavier.

Treadmill businesses burn energy.
Multipliable ones build momentum.

== In August 2025 I set a challenge ==

Help 30 business owners become Multipliable, and build 12 months of cash security.

Because when you know your cash is ok for a whole year ahead
You have space to think. To experiment. To invest.

Then, what really matters gets top billing:
Your health gets time again
Your kids get more of you
Your ideas get room to grow

And the business becomes the servant, not the taskmaster.

You become not just more successful – but more alive.

== So here's my simple plan ==

1. Invite people to be one of the 30.
2. Install the elements of the Multipliable Business Model one-by-one.
3. Secure 3 months, then 6, then 12 months of cash safety.
4. Invest that cash security to create personal wealth, and reduce dependence on their business.
5. Share the wins, the misses, the experiences and the lessons on LinkedIn and in my email newsletter.
6. Repeat.

And in so doing, change their lives - financial peace, health & relationships.

My goal is 30 founders with a whole year of cash security as business grows.

That’s what I’m building – with them, and for them.

This is the plan.
All that's left is execution.
I'll keep updating as we go.

Chris Gardener

If you are a service-based small business owner, freelancer or consultant who wants to grow your business without burning out or losing yourself, you are in the right place.You're ambitious and great at what you do. You want more growth but that means more hours, more mental load, and more responsibility you don’t have the space for. You want to work less and make more profit, without your business relying on you for everything.That’s where I come in.I help you step back from the day-to-day, create space to think clearly, and make confident decisions about where you’re taking your business next. Together we build:➡️ Space for strategic thinking instead of constant firefighting➡️ Strategy that fits you, your strengths, and your life (not someone else’s blueprint)➡️ Structure so your business runs more smoothly and doesn’t depend on you for every decision➡️ Support so you don’t have to figure it all out on your ownOver the last 5+ years I’ve supported 200+ small business owners across marketing, copywriting, coaching, design, consulting, events, AI, HR, specialist trades and more. The common thread: they want sustainable growth, more freedom, and a business that finally fits them.Ways we can work together:✨ In-person transformational Strategy Days✨ Ongoing strategic support, challenge and accountability✨ The Strategy Space online membership✨ Quarterly group planning workshopsIf you're ready to build and grow the business you actually want, this is where we start.👉 www.thepocketstrategist.com📩 Join The One Thing newsletter for one focused action each week: https://strategy.thepocketstrategist.com/the-one-thing-9650------------------------------------------A little about me...➡️worked in senior positions for Wrigleys, Debenhams, Screwfix and LV= Insurance➡️experience across sales, strategy, recruitment and operational excellence➡️worked with over 200 small business owners to grow their businesses➡️BSc Psychology➡️certified in NLP➡️certified Business Manager &amp; Director of Operations➡️level 4 wine &amp; spirits certification (yes, I'm a wine snob!)

Katherine Dyer

I get a third of my clients from in-person networking and events...

And in 2026 I'd like to explore some new spaces and communities in the South West.

So I have ask... please can you recommend to me your best networking groups and events in the South West of England for small businesses, consultants and freelances (thats who I help and love to hang out with!). 

And can you tell me why you think it's good?

From Cornwall to Bristol and anywhere in between. (And if its a really great event, I'd be up for travelling further a field to London or 'up North'!)

I'd like to spread my wings a little!

📸 Photo from a pretty cool networking event I ran myself last year.

--------------------
I'm the The Pocket Strategist. I help small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their businesses, without losing themselves in the process.

Follow me for tips on small business growth.

Grow your small business - intentionally & sustainably ⫸ Expert strategy & support for small Service-based Businesses, Freelancers & Consultants ⫸ 200+ businesses helped to grow

One week into 2026, and it has already been a classic small business owner rollercoaster...

The Good
➡️ Being called a market leader in small business strategy. I will take that.
➡️ Delivering a brilliant 2026 planning workshop for 12 business women. So much clarity.
➡️ A client committing to another 12 months, and another booking their third annual Strategy Day.
➡️ Connecting my awesome VA, Rebecca Cullen, with two of my clients.
➡️ Getting much clearer on my market and realigning my marketing to speak to them better.
➡️ Two warm referrals from existing clients.
➡️ Hearing from a client I worked with in 2025 who is thriving from living, and actioning everything we put in place last year (proud as punch)
➡️ A competitive and completely exhausting pickleball game.

The not-so-good
➡️ Making a hard business decision that made me feel slightly sick, but still knowing it was the right call.
➡️ Cancelling my January networking event due to low ticket sales. Never happened before, but it was poor timing.
➡️ Poor calendar management from me, in a busy week, leading to needing to cancel attending an event
➡️ A blocked drain and flooding with loads of gross stuff (thankfully rescued by Leanne and West Country Drainage Services Ltd)

And this is a classic week in the world of running a small business. 

The highs and lows come with the territory, and the key is how you respond and deal with the mindset shifts. Sometimes we can do it better than others.

For me, this week I'm feeling resilient, and it's been a great week!

How's week one gone for you?

------------------------------
The Pocket Strategist helps small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their businesses, without burning out or losing themselves in the process.

Follow me for small business growth advice.

Here is your recipe for creating clarity and focused action in 2026...

✅12 small business owners
✅ 1 pocket strategist 
✅ An inspiring location at THE PIG Hotel | B Corp
✅ 3 hours being guided to reflect and create an actionable plan
✅ Brilliant new connections and conversations
✅ Delicious pastries and biscuits (and for the 6 who stayed on, a delightful lunch!)

You have to create the space for growth to happen, and every single attendee for today's workshop did exactly that.

Thank you to all of you for coming!
Lucy Yank Jennie Blake Geraldine Cross Leanne Jeanes Emma Gray Amy Blythe Kellie Simpson👩🏼‍💻 

------------------------------
The Pocket Strategist helps small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their businesses, without burning out or losing themselves in the process.

Follow me for small business growth advice.

A cracking workshop with some very cool small business owners.

A whole morning, in a beautiful location (with great pastries!), focusing on their plans for 2026.

I know how hard it can be for small business owners to give themselves this space, so I force their hand and help them do it!

They have all come out with:
➡️ long-term vision
➡️ clarified their target market
➡️ committed to some boundaries
➡️ mapped out 12-month goals
➡️ created a focused plan for Q1

Basically, they have direction, focus and a plan.

Not bad for a morning's work in the gorgeous THE PIG Hotel | B Corp at Combe.

Thank you for coming everyone!

Rebecca Cullen Sarah Edwards Sally Wigg Mandy Trunks Laura Campbell MTMI Anastasia Webber Jenny Lynch FCIM Joanne Manville Charlotte Wade
---------------------------
I'm the The Pocket Strategist. I help small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their businesses intentionally, without losing themselves in the process.

Follow me for tips on small business growth.

This is boring advice, but it is the kind that will actually grow your small businesses.

Do not create a plan in January and then forget about it.

Growth does not come from having a plan. It comes from using it.

And coming back to it weekly, monthly, quarterly. 

It takes discipline but it will also give you laser focus and consistency, which is what most small businesses are missing. 

When the plan is clear and rooted in the right strategy, growth stops being accidental and starts being intentional.

Growth happens when you prioritise it and make the space for it.

Told you it was boring advice... but its often the boring stuff that works.

Are you one of those who create a plan in January, full of energy and forget it by Feb?

------------------------------------
The Pocket Strategist helps small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their busineses to build the business they actually want, without burning out or losing themselves in the process.

Follow me for small business growth advice.

Most of my clients are in the messy middle bit of growing a small business.

You’re making money, but you’re working all the time and you’re exhausted and catch yourself thinking, “It shouldn’t still feel this hard.”

And yet, you still want to grow further. 

But to do that, you’ll need to make some changes and hard decisions that, in the short term, can feel even messier and uncomfortable.

➡️ Streamlining services or increasing prices
➡️ Reshaping your team or parting ways with clients who aren’t a good fit
➡️ Introducing new systems that take effort now but make things smoother later
➡️ Setting boundaries that feel hard at first, but make you a stronger leader

If this is you, know this stage won’t last forever. It’s tough, but it’s temporary. Here are a few reminders to help you through it:

✅ Stick with your plan and tune out the shiny distractions
✅ Keep sight of your bigger vision when it feels hard
✅ Get support so you don’t try to hold it all alone
✅ Be patient and focused, the work you’re doing now are laying the foundations for greater ease longer term

Sometimes you have to go through short-term discomfort for long-term gain. But it will be worth it if you stick with the plan... hang in there, you CAN do it!

What’s one small change you’re focusing on right now that feels messy but you know will pay off?

--------------------
The Pocket Strategist helps small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their businesses, without losing themselves in the process.

Follow for tips on small business growth.

2026 is here. And you might be thinking you have to become a 'new you' or make big changes in your business.

You don't. Here's my real focus in 2026 as I build for the long game...

I took a good 90-minutes writing a blog about my lessons from 2025 and what I would be taking into 2026, but when I came to post it this morning, I ch

Open article: No re-invention required for 2026. by Katherine Dyer • 3 min read

"Is it okay to say no to customers?"

That is the question a small business owner asked me in a workshop this week.

The short answer is yes, you can say no to clients.

This keeps coming up in conversations with small business owners who do not want to take on the work, but feel they cannot say no.

Not every customer is the right customer.

You know the ones who:
➡️ Ask for big discounts
➡️ Take up more of your headspace and time than anyone else
➡️ Keep pushing and asking for more

They take up far too much energy, and often you make very little profit working with them, or even lose money.

And then you resent them.

Those are the ones you can say no to.

I say no to potential clients when I do not think we are the right fit. I have learned the hard way that my time and energy are too precious, and I want to work with people I know I can help to get results.

Saying no is not just about how you feel. It is a commercial decision.

When you say no to the wrong clients, you create the space to:
➡️ Do your best work
➡️ Protect your profit
➡️ Focus your time and headspace on the right people

It can feel hard in the moment, but that short discomfort is better than months of underpriced, draining work that pulls your business off course.

If this hits a nerve, take this as your permission to say no to at least one misaligned client this year.

Do you find it hard to say no to customers, or is this something you are already getting better at?

---------------
I'm the The Pocket Strategist. I help small business owners, consultants and freelancers grow their businesses intentionally, without losing themselves in the process.

Follow me for tips on small business growth.

taplio

The Battle

Chris Gardener

Katherine Dyer

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreKatherine Dyer's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Chris Gardener

Katherine Dyer

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Katherine Dyer's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreKatherine Dyer's LinkedIn Performance