Ryan Rouse

Growth advisor to consumer businesses with a focus on every line of the P&L | Previously, Co-Founder at Factor Meals (acquired), CEO at Highkey

Growth-minded CPG leader with deep experience across finance, brand building, and operational leadership.

After more than a decade in finance—culminating in an eight-year tenure at Merrill Lynch—I co-founded Factor_, a ready-to-eat meal delivery company that went on to be acquired by HelloFresh for $277M in 2020.

I joined HighKey Snacks as Chief Marketing Officer and later CEO, guiding the low-sugar snack brand through rapid expansion and an acquisition in 2024.

I'm currently the President of MALK Organics, a fast-growing, near nine-figure brand redefining the plant-based milk category with its commitment to clean, organic ingredients and uncompromising quality.

And I write a newsletter about what it really takes to grow—your company, your mindset, your tolerance for chaos:
​
​• The unfiltered truth about building a brand
• Why “strategy” isn’t always strategic
• What to do when everything feels on fire
• Mindset shifts that keep you sane(ish)​
• Founder mistakes, market moves, and lessons I’m still learning​
​
​Part playbook, part perspective shift.
For anyone trying to grow something—and keep their head on straight.

Sign up using the link here (or below my profile pic above): https://ryanrouse.me/

Vice President | Partner

Data driven investors in early stage consumer brands. 

We just launched a line of coconut-based creamers and they absolutely slap.

(Shout out to my kids who would cringe hard at that.)

No gums, no oils, no natural flavors. 

Just real, recognizable ingredients and a texture so creamy it'll make your coffee blush. 
​
🥥 Available in 3 flavors: Vanilla, Sweet Cream, and Unsweetened (for the purists)​
🥥 USDA Organic, non-GMO, glyphosate residue-free​
🥥 Clean label, full flavor: proof you don’t need additives to taste good ​
​
Hitting refrigerated shelves across the US as we speak. 

You should try them. For real.

Being direct is becoming synonymous with being rude. 

Which affects our ability to move things forward faster in business. 

You can be direct and respectful at the same time. 

And if you create an environment where people practice both, it has a big impact on how quickly you make decisions and get things done. 

Because the message being delivered is how things move forward in business.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you'll love my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

Sign up free here:

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Work-life balance is a lie.

At least the way most people talk about it.

I've done all the "resolutions."

Tried blocking my calendar perfectly. Promised myself I'd be done working at 5:30 every day. Swore I'd never check email after dinner.

All had the same (lack of) success rate that new years resolutions have. 

Because life doesn't care about your color-coded calendar.

Sometimes work demands more. A launch comes up. You're in back-to-back calls, reviewing decks late at night, burning the candle at both ends. 

Other times, family demands more. Gymnastics meet on a Thursday afternoon 4 hours away. Your wife is out of town. The dogs need to go to the vet in the middle of the day. 

The goal isn't equilibrium at all times. 

It's understanding which side needs you more at any given time. And being there when it does.

No guilt. 
No apology. 
No pretending you can split yourself perfectly down the middle.

Entrepreneurs should think in two time frames:

30 years
90 days

I read this in a book by the legendary Dan Sullivan over a decade ago and it hurt my brain.

Because the more common advice is to regularly map out 1/3/5 year plans.

But the older I get and the more time I spend in early stage companies, I've moved more and more towards his away of thinking.

Cast a long term vision.
Execute what's in front of you.

It can be as simple as that.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Social media will have you believe if you haven't made millions by 30, you're late.

It's bullshit.

Warren Buffett made 99% of his wealth after 50.
Ray Kroc was 52 when he started McDonald's.
Vera Wang was 40 when she entered fashion.
The list goes on and on...

Know what those extra decades give you?

Pattern recognition. You've seen enough cycles to know which ones matter.

Scar tissue. You've failed enough to know it won't kill you.

The pressure to achieve young is manufactured. 

By people selling courses. By media celebrating outliers. By your own impatience.

You're not late. The game is longer than they tell you.

Good thing too. 

Because big moves develop over decades.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

I used to think being intense was the problem.

It's not.

Letting other people control that intensity is.

I'm wired hot. Always have been.

It's helped me build things, push through walls, and get results most people won't.

But I also let it burn bridges I didn't need to burn.

The shift came when I stopped waiting for someone else to tell me to dial it down.

I learned to own the dial myself.

Still intense. Still emotional.

But now I decide when to turn it up and when to pull it back (most of the time, not perfect).

It's been the difference between intensity being an advantage vs. a liability.

Self-awareness isn't about changing who you are.

It's about controlling how you show up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Your mood is not private.

It's broadcasting to everyone around you.

Show up to a meeting stressed, and watch what happens.

People tense up. Conversations get shorter. Ideas stop flowing.

Show up calm, and the opposite happens.

People relax. They think clearer. They bring solutions instead of panic.

I used to think emotions were personal.

Something I could feel without affecting anyone else.

I was wrong.

Every time I showed up frustrated, my team got quieter.
Every time I showed up anxious, my team got nervous.
Every time I showed up scattered, my team got confused.

They weren't reading my words.

They were reading my energy.

And matching it.

As a leader, your emotional state isn't just yours.

It spreads.

Like a cold. Like a yawn. Like panic in a crowded room.

The question isn't whether your emotions are contagious.

They are.

The question is: which ones are you spreading?

Because your team is catching whatever you're carrying.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

Most CPG leaders think scale comes from distribution.

It doesn't. 

It comes from obsession with the consumer.

Here's a few things to focus on:

- Own one emotional job
↳ Stop trying to be everything. Find the single moment your product owns in someone's life and dominate it completely.

- Build for the shelf, not the deck
↳ Your brand needs to work in 0.3 seconds at eye level. If it doesn't pop in-store, your strategy deck is worthless.

- Let data inform, not decide
↳ Numbers tell you what happened. Instinct tells you what's next. The best leaders use both but trust their gut on the big bets.

And a few to avoid:

- Chasing every retail door
↳ Bad distribution kills brands faster than no distribution. Be selective. Own where you show up.

- Innovation theater
↳ Line extensions aren't innovation. Stop launching SKUs that confuse your consumer and dilute your shelf presence.

- Forgetting you're selling to humans
↳ Your consumer isn't a demographic. They're someone's mom, someone's kid. Build for real people, not personas.

The brands that win don't follow "category playbooks".

They create their own (that everyone else tries to follow for the next decade, unsuccessfully).

So I'll ask directly: what truth about your consumer are you ignoring because everyone else in your category is ignoring it too?

"The consumer isn't a moron. She's your wife." - David Ogilvy


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you'll love my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

Sign up free here:

https://ryanrouse.me/

5 things founders get wrong about employee motivation:

(From someone who got all 5 wrong)

1. Expecting owner-level commitment from employee-level equity.

You own 40% of the company. They own 0.1%.
You'll make millions if it works. They'll make rent.

Stop acting surprised when they work less hours.

2. Thinking your sacrifice is their baseline.

I worked for no salary for three years. Maxed out credit cards. Emptied my 401k. 

That was my choice. Not theirs.

Your personal bet doesn't become their obligation.

3. Using guilt instead of respect.

I used to send passive-aggressive Slack messages when people left on time. "Must be nice to have work-life balance."

Real asshole moves.

Then one of my best employees quit.

In his exit interview, he said: "Ryan, you chose to mortgage your house for this company. I didn't."

He was right.

4. Believing more equity will change how people work.

I once gave someone more equity expecting it to change their output. It didn't.

That's because everyone has a "work MO." A default gear.

If they're a killer, they'll be a killer.
If they do the bare minimum, they'll do the bare minimum.

Equity won't flip that switch.

(It will help retain the killers, tho.)

5. Confusing presence with productivity.

The person cranking until 9pm isn't always your best performer.

Sometimes they're just slow. Or inefficient. Or avoiding something at home.

Judge output, not hours.


The fix isn't complicated.

Find people who give a shit about doing good work.
Pay them well.
Respect their time.

They won't work until 10pm unless it's truly necessary.

But when it is necessary, they'll be there.

Because you hired people who are wired for it. 

And earned their trust.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

I've never been the smartest person at any company I've been at.

But I'm always the fastest.

At Merrill Lynch, I was 1 of 75,000 employees. Could've been the best analyst on the floor. Still replaceable.

At a startup? Different game.

My superpower wasn't an MBA or some fancy framework.

It was knowing how to find shit fast.

When my co-founder at Factor_ asked "How do other meal delivery companies handle returns?"

Everyone else: "Let me schedule some calls."

Me: Ordered from 3 competitors. Submitted returns. Pulled their policies. Built a framework. Done.

Couple of hours, tops. 

Founders already know how to find answers. That's how they got this far.

They're not asking you because they're lazy. They're drowning.

The employee who says "I researched this, here are three options, I recommend X because Y" - and did it FAST - becomes indispensable.

The one who says "I don't know, what do you think?" becomes overhead.

At early stage companies, resourcefulness and urgency beat credentials every time.

No waiting. No deferring. No "I was waiting for you to give me the go ahead."

Run. It. Down. 

And do it quickly. 

Leaders will notice. 

Trust me.

—

I write emails. Unfiltered takes from 12+ years building brands.

It's free. Subscribe (or don't):

https://ryanrouse.me/

I used to think winning arguments made me smart.

It didn't.

It made me insufferable.

Healthy debate has respect and curiosity.

Ego-driven arguing has neither.

One sharpens you.

The other isolates you.

In healthy debate, you ask questions to understand.
In ego-driven arguing, you ask questions to trap.

In healthy debate, you say "I hadn't thought of that."
In ego-driven arguing, you say "Yeah, but..."

In healthy debate, you admit when you're wrong.
In ego-driven arguing, you double down.

In healthy debate, you want to learn something.
In ego-driven arguing, you want to be right.

Here are some things that helped me:

1. Pause before responding. Ask myself if I'm trying to understand or trying to win.

2. Repeat back what I heard. "So what you're saying is..." Forces me to actually listen.

3. Find one thing I agree with first. Even in disagreement, there's common ground.

4. Ask "What am I missing?" Instead of explaining why I'm right.

5. End conversations with "That gave me something to think about." And mean it.

The shift won't be immediate.

But people will start engaging with you differently.

Conversations get richer.

Ideas get better.

Relationships get stronger.

If you catch yourself needing to have the last word, you're probably arguing from ego.

If you walk away from a conversation thinking differently, you're probably debating with curiosity.

Took me way too long to learn the difference.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

"Ryan - I LOVE your newsletter. 

Thanks for being real and authentic man! I'm sending your recent email on brand marketing to my whole team its spot on!"

Got this message the other day from the CEO and co-founder of a multi-hundred million dollar brand that I have a tremendous amount of respect for. 

I don't have the largest audience or newsletter subscriber base. And it's easy to get caught in the cycle of chasing numbers. 

But that's not the point. Not for me. 

I just wanna to talk about real shit in a way that's relatable and authentic to who I am. 

And hope it's useful and thought provoking to other people. 

So when I get messages like that it helps ground me in that truth. 

Sign up for free below. 

Or don't. 

https://ryanrouse.me/

In consumer, your customers don't care how smart you are.

They care that their order arrives on time.

That you're in stock when they need you.

That your quality doesn't fluctuate batch to batch.

They're not buying your IQ score.

They're buying your ability to deliver on expectations - some general to the market and some specific to your product and promise.

That's all execution.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Learn the rules like a pro so you can break them like an artist.

This Picasso quote gets twisted constantly.

People think it's about tactics. 

But it actually means master the fundamentals so deeply that innovation becomes instinct.

In business, I see this constantly:

The CMO who never ran a P&L trying to "disrupt" pricing strategy.

The founder who skips unit economics to chase viral growth.

The exec who wants to "break the mold" before understanding why the mold exists.

The best leaders I know spent years in the trenches.

Learning why things work before reimagining how they could work better.

They got creative because they got good first.

Master the boring stuff first.

Then go be an artist.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

The most frequent question I get from entrepreneurs is "What advice would you give your former self?"

My answer: Pace myself.

They blow me off.

Not to my face, but I can tell.

I get it though.

I did the same thing when I was in their shoes.

Thought I was different.

That I could outwork the system.

That entrepreneurial fire made me feel invincible.

Until it didn't.

If you're putting in 80 hours a week consistently, it's not a matter of if you're gonna burn out, it's a matter of when.

Because you can't sustain that for the time required to play the long game. 

(Which is the only game in town.) 

Find your sustainable pace now before you're forced to. 

You're running a marathon, not a 100-yard dash.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Hard work is table stakes, not a flex. 

Your competitors work hard. 

It's necessary, but not sufficient. 

You also need to think in ways others don't. 

Most people default to putting in more hours because thinking hurts. 

It's easier to stay busy than to sit with a problem until you crack it.

I wish success in business was just about working harder. That would be simple. 

But the world doesn't give a shit about your hours.

It rewards people who create the most value. 

Value comes from seeing what others miss. 

From connecting dots in ways that seem obvious after but weren't before.

From working hard *and* smart.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails. No BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it's free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

Most people think they're either risk-takers or they're not.

But that's not really how it work.

Risk isn't something you have a fixed capacity for.

It's something you build tolerance to.

Like lifting weights.

You don't walk into a gym and deadlift 400 pounds because you "have it in you."

You start small. 

Then add weight over time. 

Each rep expands what you can handle next time.

Risk works the same way.

The person who quit their corporate job to start a company didn't wake up one day with superhuman courage.

They made a series of smaller bets first.

A side project. A conversation. A decision to stop playing it safe in one area of their life.

Each one stretched the muscle.

So if you think you're not a risk-taker, you're probably right.

But it's not because you can't be.

It's because you haven't trained that muscle yet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you liked this post, you might like my emails - no BS musings from 12+ years in the trenches building brands.

You might not, but it’s free so WGAF:

https://ryanrouse.me/

90% of the dietary ideologies are the same.

• Avoid processed foods 
• Reduce sugar
• High quality protein
• Healthy fats

Yet we still have tribal wars amongst the different groups on which philosophy is "best".

It'd be really cool (and powerful) if they joined forces to get as many people as possible to follow the 90% that they agree on rather than argue (with each other) about the 10% that they don't.

The Standard American Diet is still the most widely followed "diet". 

That's the enemy.

Has “Head of” as a title created more clarity or confusion?

I think the latter.

Because it’s used as an analogue/replacement to another, more commonly used, title.

Director in most cases. But not always. 

Some companies use it to replace VP. 

Which begs the question - why not just use the tried and true titles?

This is about the person in the role for me. 

People can look at their background and understand their trajectory. 

I realize Director or VP is not the same everywhere, but it’s more uniform across companies because they’ve been in existence for so long. 

“Head of” is new, and I’m just not sure what the benefits are that outweigh the added ambiguity. 

But what do I know.

You think everyone knows what you do.

They don't.

When you're deep in your business every day, the solution feels obvious. 

You live it. You breathe it. You can't imagine how anyone wouldn't get it.

But your target audience? 

Assume they're seeing it for the first time.

So you have to be clear, not clever.

Clear about what you do.
Clear about who it's for.
Clear about why it matters.

Assume the first time someone sees your message, they're distracted. 

The second time, they scroll past. 

The third time, maybe they pause. Maybe. 

So repetition is necessary.

Most brands don't say it enough.

Different ways. Different angles. Different stories.

If you're sitting on something great but struggling to get traction, ask yourself:

Am I explaining this clearly enough? 

Am I saying it often enough?

Imagine this… Instead of struggling to find clients, you have high-level decision-makers consistently reaching out, eager to work with you.

Sound appealing? It’s all about having a market-validated, irresistible offer coupled with a reliable outbound system to consistently fill your calendar with qualified leads. 

That’s where our proven, four-phase approach comes in.

Phase 1: Craft Your Offer 
First, we work together to package your expertise into a unique offer that speaks directly to your ideal client, positioning you as the go-to solution.

Phase 2: Validate with the Market 
Once your offer is defined, we use a tailored, soft-sell strategy to test and refine it, ensuring it not only solves a key problem but that clients are ready to pay premium prices for it.

Phase 3: Generate Leads 
Next, we install lead generation systems that help you have meaningful conversations with high-quality leads, reliably and predictably.

Phase 4: Scale for Growth 
Finally, using data-driven insights, we scale the top-performing campaigns, maximizing revenue and expanding your client base.

If you’re a new consultant ready to scale sustainably, let’s connect. 

Book a call with me here: https://calendly.com/carlacherry/call-w-carla-cherry

========================================================================

Prior to helping consultants 👉 I was a producer 🤩 for Larry King & more (see below)


Showrunner credits include: 
- Larry King's digital, celebrity talk show (Collector’s Cafe / Ora TV) 300+ episodes
- Larry King's "8-camera, live audience" TV talk show (Collector's Cafe / BiteSizeTV)
- "Inside Versailles" After-Show (Netflix /Ovation / 2017)

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
* "Inside Versailles" After Show (Creator/Showrunner - 2017) - over 665K views on Facebook 
* “Women of Versailles” Marketing campaign video (Producer/Editor) - garnered major advertising sponsorship from Volkswagen
* Booked celebrities including: Tiffany Haddish, Cheech Marin, Betsey Johnson, Kat Von D, Tom Green, DJ Kaskade, Dick Van Dyke, John Fogerty, Rev Run (Run DMC), Debbie Allen and more on a Larry King hosted talk show.
* Jim Henson's "Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas" pop culture throwback video - (Producer/Editor)  2.2 M views - highest video count in Ovation’s history (2017)

Carla Cherry

I left corporate 8 years ago to become a consultant

And being a consultant is weird because you have to sell yourself in a way

The 14 years of expertise I had at corporate meant nothing until I figured this out:

I did launch after launch, failed, tried again, failed again, sitting in vagueness for way too long wondering if my offers were even good.

The turning point was Dominique, my now good friend.

She came to me wanting to work in publishing but had no clue how to break in. 

We found the gap, high end publishers didn't have time to handhold authors through successful book launches

So we packaged her up, she pitched it, they offered her a JOB and she said NO

She then went back, and negotiated a $120,000 consulting contract instead, the first time she'd ever pitched that offer.

That's when I  knew this wasn't luck, this was a system

The corporate world will use you up and spit you out, but the expertise you built there? That's yours, you just need to know how to package it!

Nobody's coming to hand you credit anymore, time to take it.

Carla Cherry🍒

I help people escape corporate → Build an offer → Sell back to corporate. Helped 100+ people leave corporate. Send me a message to make corporate your client!

“But I’m just getting started…”

I hear this constantly.

Consultants who left corporate 3 months ago…

6 months ago… maybe even a year ago.

And they’re convinced it’s a disadvantage.

Like they need to wait, build a roster of clients first, get more experience “on the other side.”

And you know this but here’s what actually happens when you wait:

→ Savings drain.
→ Confidence tanks.
->Desperation creeps in.

You start taking bad fit clients just to survive, and you end up trading one job for another job, except now without benefits.

Meanwhile, the consultant who just launched is out there closing six-figure deals.

WHY?

Because being new isn’t the problem.

Having the wrong offer is the problem.

Let me show you what I mean.

Tina came to me with a brand new consultancy. 

She'd helped make people MILLIONS in corporate. serious results. 

But she was stuck trying to prove herself to the wrong people, going too small, and burning through savings.

Classic "just getting started" situation.

We didn't wait for her to build credibility. 
We didn't tell her to go get a few small clients first.
We FOUND the gap, packaged up what she'd already done. and positioned her to go big instead of playing small.

Within two months she hit $8,800/month.

Then landed a $50,000 corporate sponsorship.

Brand new consultancy.

You’ve got what it takes I promise.

“But I’m just getting started…”

I hear this constantly.

Consultants who left corporate 3 months ago…

6 months ago… maybe even a year ago.

And they’re convinced it’s a disadvantage.

Like

The 2026 consultancy checklist:

1. One offer that solves one expensive problem (not 5-6 services on your website)
2. Adding an audit to your sales process 
3. Outbound that's specific enough to reply to
4. CRM before you're drowning in sticky notes
5. Case studies with real numbers not "helped a client grow"
6. Sales calls you run, not ones you wing
7. Follow ups tracked and DONE
8. Pricing based on outcomes not hours
9. Contracts & proposals templated so you're not creating new ones
10. Charge what you want not what feels right

Most consultants have 3 of these and wonder why they're stuck…

Not you this year!

The 2026 consultancy checklist:

1. One offer that solves one expensive problem (not 5-6 services on your website)
2. Adding an audit to your sales process 
3. Outbound that's specific enough to r

One of my favorite things to do when I travel?

Find a local café with a long line and figure out why it works.

Not just the menu.
Not just the branding.

I mean really break down how they’ve structured their business.

→ The clear offer on the chalkboard
→ The flow from ordering to pickup
→ The way they guide you without needing to explain anything

There’s a kind of elegance to it.

You can feel that someone thought through every touchpoint.

That nothing is random.

I’m the same way with offers.

When I look at a business, I’m always asking:

- Is the value clear in the first 5 seconds?
- Does this solve a real problem?
- Is there friction in the buying process?

Because when your offer clicks, sales feel easy.

You don’t need to convince.

You just need to show up.

If you're struggling to get traction, it’s rarely because your idea is bad.

It’s usually because something in the structure is off.

Tighten your offer.
Clarify the problem.
And make it stupid simple to say yes.

That’s when business starts to flow.

One of my favorite things to do when I travel?

Find a local café with a long line and figure out why it works.

Not just the menu.
Not just the branding.

I mean really break down how they’ve 

Stop pitching people who need permission.

Start pitching people who GIVE it.

I know how it goes… you send a message to a company page thinking you're being proactive. 

You know who's on the other end?

→ A marketing coordinator
→ An intern
→ Someone who literally cannot say yes to anything

You're pitching to a gatekeeper who's job IS to ignore you, meanwhile the actual decision maker has no idea you exist.

Here's what to do instead:

Google the company, find the CEO or the founder, find whoever actually signs checks.

Go to their personal Linkedin. Connect with them and reach out.

"but that feels weird"

You know what's weirder? Spending 6 months nurturing a lead who was never going to buy.

Company page = I'll pass this along" (they won't)

CEO = "let's talk"

It’s the exact same offer and message, but you now have a chance to book calls.

Go try it!

2019: left corporate to "be my own boss"

2020: realized i'd just given myself a worse boss

I had traded one manager for 10 clients who all think they own me.

The freedom I wanted? Replaced by anxiety about where next month's rent is coming from.

What I didn't understand back then was leaving your job isn't the same as building a business.

Most corporate refugees just recreate the same trap, selling hours saying yes to everything, letting clients dictate scope, timeline, price.

Then I found what actually changes things:

→ One clear offer with a specific outcome. Not "I can help with lots of stuff"
→ Pricing on value not hours
→ Lead gen system that predictably brings in qualified leads
→ Ability to say no (because your pipeline isn't empty)

When you build that way you stop being a pair of hands they rent.

YYou become the person who solves expensive problems  and companies pay a premium for that,

Took me way too long to figure this out, You don't have to let it take that long.

2019: left corporate to "be my own boss"

2020: realized i'd just given myself a worse boss

I had traded one manager for 10 clients who all think they own me.

The freedom I wanted? Replaced by

Every project that falls apart traces back to 3 things.

All of them are PREVENTABLE.

1- Budget chaos

Not that there's no money, but nobody knows where it's actually going until it's gone

2- People dysfunction 

Either the wrong staff or stakeholders making demands because they feel left out of decisions 

3- Timeline death spiral 

"we'll catch up" turns into a death march where exhausted teams cut corners to ship anything

You and I know all three things are preventable.

But preventing them doesn't feel urgent when a project starts. 

Tracking budgets feels bureaucratic. 

Stakeholder updates feel like overhead. 

Building timeline buffer feels pessimistic.

So teams skip it.

Then they're shocked when month 6 is a disaster.

Proactive work isn't fun but it's the only thing that actually works.

I’ve closed 100+ enterprise deals

And watched 100s of consultants blow deals in the first few minutes

It’s the same 5 mistakes every time:

1. You’re in the friend zone

You spend 20 minutes on rapport because you want them to like you…

But now you’re their buddy, not the authority that controls the flow of the call.

Rapport is 2–3 minutes max. “How’s the weather?” Then get into it.

2. You’re not getting tie downs

When they tell you their challenges, you nod and move on.

WRONG, mirror it back.

“So it sounds like the budget is all over the place and you need a system to track it, is that right?”

Get them to say, “Yes, I need that.” Do it for three separate things times.

 Now they can’t say they don’t need you later, because they already told you they do.

3. You give away the whole thing

You listen to their problems and you give them all the answers. 

Then you say, “Hope that helps!” and hang up.

Congrats, you just did free consulting.

The call isn’t for solving, it’s for diagnosing. 

Give them one nugget, then pitch the engagement.

4. You’re pitching to the wrong person

There are five stakeholders on their side, and you’re talking to the one who can’t sign anything. 

Qualify early “Who else is involved in this decision?”

5. You wait to follow up

You leave the call thinking, “I’ll send the proposal Monday.”

By Monday, they’ve forgotten your face.

Send it the same day. Or better get the next call scheduled before you hang up

“Let’s lock in Thursday to walk through this together.”

Most consultants are doing 2/5

You need to do 5/5 (if you want to start signing enterprise clients).

I’ve closed 100+ enterprise deals

And watched 100s of consultants blow deals in the first few minutes

It’s the same 5 mistakes every time:

1. You’re in the friend zone

You spend 20 minutes

AI consultants are the FUTURE of consulting.

A client of mine just came out of a Fortune 500 company.

She helped a personal injury lawyer take their intake process from 1-2 days down to 15-20 minutes using AI.

His caseload doubled from 25 cases a week to 50.

He literally said to her "I am going to quit law if i can't continue doing business with you."

That's what solving a real problem looks like.

Right now about 75% of the people we're helping are experts who figured out how to bring their companies up to speed with automation and AI and are now bringing that capability to others.

Professional services are DESPERATE for this.

Auto mechanics. Salons. Plumbers. HVAC. Construction. Manufacturing.

Everyone wants to get modernized.

If you can help an everyday professional service double their clientele, they're going to hear you out.

AI can take on generic, broad jobs now. but if you're specialized in something specific?

This is the time to cash in on that.

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The Battle

Ryan Rouse

Carla Cherry

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taplio

The Battle

Ryan Rouse

Carla Cherry

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);}Ryan Rouse's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreCarla Cherry's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreRyan Rouse's LinkedIn Performance