What if working for someone else isn’t your cup of tea? Whether it’s a full-scale business you want, or just a side gig to bring in extra income, you’ll need strategies to get you started. And yes, we know – there are entire degree programs for people starting businesses. But before you invest in a large-scale training or planning process, why not start with a strategy conversation at Prototype? Since owning a business is a career decision like any other, a counseling conversation can help ensure your career and life goals are included in the planning for a new enterprise. Our business development conversations cover a broad range, including

 

-Articulating why you want a business

-Looking ahead to “how much business” you want to build and how it will fit into your family and life

-Choosing a business to start or buy

-Creating a startup timeline, including startup and maintenance budgets

-Setting rates and prices

-Developing initial processes and forms

-Strategizing for sales and growth, especially in the first year

-Building out lines of service / product iterations

-Identifying / filling staffing needs, including virtual, contract and partnership options

-Deciding location: home-based, virtual, office-sharing, storefront, online, other?

-Reviewing messaging, marketing, social media and branding steps

-Planning to exit your business strategically and profitably

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Process

 

Each session is developed around your needs, and lasts for approximately 1-2 hours – although we strongly recommend two hours for the first session, to ensure enough time to develop an action plan and other strategies that will move you closer to your goals. Some of our clients are satisfied with one meeting and others choose to work closely with their counselor for the duration of their transition. We’re located in St. Paul, MN and enjoy meeting in-person whenever that’s convenient for our clients. But if distance is an issue, we’ll gladly conduct your sessions over the phone.

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Fees

 

A Prototype counseling session costs $180 an hour (billed in 15-minute increments for only the time used). Although we recommend two hours for the first session, there are no pre-packaged or pre-paid requirements – you simply decide as you go along whether and when to meet with your counselor again. Payment is made at the time of each meeting, using check, cash, Visa, Discover or MasterCard.

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Scheduling

 

To schedule a meeting, contact us by phone or email. We will work to find the most convenient time for your schedule, including evenings if you are not available during the day. We understand that your job search may be confidential; when leaving a message please provide a “safe” phone number or email address (typically not your employer’s phone or email!).