Value is imperative.

It’s a concept I’ve written about, spoken about, and trained leaders on. Value is an essential component of the Straight Talk Framework. And now I offer a 300% value guarantee for the Straight Talk Leadership Experience. 

Let me explain why I’m offering it and how it works. Just this brief intro is useful to apply to other pressing issues you are facing. Or join us in the Straight Talk Leadership Experience to learn more.

It’s not a gimmick.

It’s leading by example.

I want to make sure that engaging with me and doing the necessary work to get results has little to no risk. In fact, I want the opposite – a remarkable growth in value. Working with me is a no-brainer.

Consider Branden’s experience from Cohort 1:

The Straight Talk Framework has saved me hours, weeks, potentially years worth of time properly positioning security initiatives inside companies. The biggest value of the system for me was using the framework to open a dialogue with the business to really learn what was important to them. It also provided a vehicle for education and communication, allowing me to find ways to enable the business securely instead of playing a game of security cat and mouse. Dr. Branden Williams , Director (SVP), Security

That’s why we estimate the value. We measure it. And I guarantee it.

I know value is still an elusive concept for many. Learn more with the videos in the Build Your Foundation free resources section. I have three goals for this piece:

• Offer a simple and practical introduction to think about value
• Explain how I offer a 300% value guarantee
• Explore the Straight Talk Leadership Experience market price – and discount for early adopters

This is a basic introduction. Consider it the starting point for a conversation. I’m developing deeper insights on estimating and measuring value. I’ll continue to share as I learn.

The basics on using value to prioritize action

Value is imperative. Just as important is knowing when you’ll realize the benefit. Here is what I share with leaders when it comes to assessing options using value:

• In the first 90 days: provide an even exchange of investment and value created. This means if you invested $10,000, you expect to see $10,000 of value captured/created/returned in the first 90 days
• Within 1 year: deliver a 3-5x multiple — at least 300% — on the investment. This means a $10,000 investment needs to return at least $30,000 – $50,000 in measured value in the first year.
• In 5 years: generate 10x or greater. Expect the $10,000 investment to create $100,000 or more in value in 5 years or less.

This is where folks tend to get tripped up a bit. I’m not suggesting a complex cost-benefit analysis. Don’t waste time on a return on investment or other method. While they have value, place focus on answering a simpler question:

Do we increase value by investing in this approach?

We need to invest in things that create value. Period.

And that’s our approach to explore the value of the Straight Talk Leadership Experience. And how/why I offer a 300% value guarantee.

Let’s dig in.

The Value of the Straight Talk Leadership Experience

What is the Straight Talk Leadership Experience worth?

It’s an offering designed for busy leaders to learn by doing and includes:

• Over 60 videos, documents, workbooks, cheat sheets, and other insights
• 3 designed exercises each week – for 18 exercises in total
• 6 x group coaching sessions
• 6 x individual coaching sessions
• Growing resource library of ways to improve their performance

The current market value for a course like this is around $6,000 per person. Most people agree. Actually, no one disagrees.

On one hand, then, it seems like I’m heading in the right direction. On the other, I want to make sure that anyone who works with me walks away better than when they started.

That means we need to go a step further. We need to include the value of your time.

What is the value of your time?

When I ask, most people don’t know.

Learn how to calculate the value of an hour of your time in the free Value of Your Time video in the resources section. Once you learn, it takes about a minute. For now, I have some basic ranges prepared.

Once we know the value of your time, we can calculate the cost of participation. The Straight Talk Leadership Experience expects an investment of 5 hours per week. Over six weeks, this adds up to 30 hours. Let’s expand that to 40 hours to be safe.

It’s worth noting that half of the weekly hours focus on solving pressing issues. But to make the case more convincing, we’ll just stick with the 40 hours.

The value of an hour of your time defines your participation cost:

• (100k) $50/hour x 40 hours = $2000
• (200k) $100/hour x 40 hours = $4000
• (300k) $150/hour x 40 hours = $6000

The course investment is $6,000. A reasonable participation cost is $4,00. The total investment into the Straight Talk Leadership Experience is $10,000.

Based on my guidance for making value selections, that means:

• The ideal is a demonstrated value of $10,000 in the first 90 days
• At least $30,000 of increased value in a calendar year
• A five year expectation of $100,000 or more in generated value.

How do you measure that?

That’s one of the key steps in the Straight Talk Leadership Experience. Measure What Matters (video) to:

• Gain the insights to make adjustments
• Protect the value we’re creating
• Report on the sucess of the program

Consider measuring both personal impact and the broader multiplicative benefit. The Straight Talk Framework helps reduce the friction eroding value. When you take the friction out, build connections, and solve problems… you increase value.

Some ways to measure immediate personal benefit:

• Especially based on the value of your time —> just freeing time is remarkable
• What happens when you take friction out of projects?
• When you focus on efforts that create more value for you and those around you
• Negotiate for a higher salary by proving your value
• Close the deals and make a difference for your clients and your organization

Note: $30,000 of expected benefit is only 300 hours of time at $100/hour. That works out to a few hours a week and the program paid for itself.

While that might seem like a stretch, it isn’t. We waste a lot of time – sometimes by habit, sometimes by situation. Until we are aware. Then we can reclaim our time. Improve your daily routine. End wasteful programs, focus on solutions that create value.

The real value? Consider the multiplicative effect

Here’s an example from a few years ago. A team of 7 was wasting over $600,000 per year. They were using inefficient processes and chasing false positives. They were enjoying the risk catnip, but falling behind.

Once we calculated the value of the hour – and a loaded average for the team, we put a price to the problem. New technology and better processes paid for themselves in 90 days – with value to spare.

And that’s just looking at time.

Think about the benefit of taking the friction out of:

• Vendor/product selection
• Budgeting
• New projects and compelling solutions

We can work through the 5 Lenses of Value together to come up with the right mix for your situation.

How and why I guarantee 300% in my training, advisory, and coaching practice

Investing in yourself is always a smart play.

If you do the work and engage in the coaching, I want to make sure this pays off – at least 300%. Whether you use your own dollars or your corporate account.

At the start of each experience or engagement:

• We define success
• We estimate value; this helps us understand where to focus
• We determine how to measure it

We keep tabs throughout the course and beyond.

Cohort 1 smashed this. Most reported earning the value back before the end of the course (better than 90 days). It got me fired up!

I want to make sure every cohort gets a remarkable return on value.

But I want to take away any personal risk you have. And help reduce any organizational risk. You have my pledge to make sure you’re better as a result of working with me.

Why I offer a discount for early cohorts of the Straight Talk Leadership Experience

It’s an interesting journey to create something from scratch. More so when you offer it to the marketplace. Something new is novel, but it also introduces risk.

Sometimes it takes an imagination to apply it to your situation. It’s easier to sit back and wait for someone else to jump in – and then learn from their experience.

And I get it.

That’s why the first cohort or two get a lower price. I recognize– and honor–  that they are investing in me as much as I am in them.

Each cohort then offers me insights on how to improve. I capture proof, testimonials, and gain clarity in what matters to other people. Engaging in the early cohorts is valuable to me. I’m meeting that value with a reduction in the market price.

Each time gets better, and a bit closer to the market value of $6,000 per person. Which is still backed with a 300% value guarantee and something I’d spend my own money taking.

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