When Brian Hansen left corporate to start his consulting business, he assumed his network would help him land clients.

It didn’t happen that way.

His expertise was clear. He had more than 15 years of experience. He knew the type of problems he could solve.

But his existing network didn’t include enough of the B2B SaaS CEOs, founders, and investors who were most likely to need his help.

So Brian had to build a new way of creating consulting opportunities.

In Episode 287, Melisa Liberman sits down with Brian to unpack how he’s been building his consulting business since leaving corporate, including what it looks like to serve primarily US-based clients while living abroad in Malaysia.

Brian shares how he landed his first client through a relationship he intentionally developed outside his existing network, why relying heavily on referrals started to feel too reactive, and what he changed when he decided he wanted a more proactive and repeatable approach to business development.

But this episode isn’t about replacing referrals.

It’s about building a consulting business where referrals are one source of opportunities instead of the entire strategy.

How do you expand your network when your current contacts aren’t your ideal buyers?

How do you proactively create demand?

How do you know which business development activities deserve your time?

Brian shares how he thinks about all of these questions, including the mindset he relies on to navigate the uncertainty that comes with building an independent consulting business.

If you’re still relying on referrals and timing to determine where your next engagement comes from, this episode is for you.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:28] Introduction to Brian Hansen and building a business beyond referrals
[04:13] Running a US-based consulting business from Malaysia
[09:40] What happens when your existing network isn’t enough
[27:44] What Brian learned after losing a proposal
[32:38] Managing the mental side of an unpredictable consulting pipeline
[39:31] Brian’s advice for consultants who want more predictable lead generation
[42:01] Mindset, manifestation, and continuing to take action

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: The Consultant's Lead Gen Sprint. Enroll at www.ConsultantSprint.com

Brian Hansen Consulting: www.brianhansenconsulting.com

Connect with Brian on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bhansenconsulting

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-287

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

Crystal Hincks generated more than $250,000 in consulting engagements in a single month.

But that result came after months of experimenting with lead generation strategies that worked... just not well enough.

Listening tours. White papers. Webinars.

She started getting in front of more decision makers.

But those conversations still weren’t consistently turning into paid consulting engagements.

In Episode 286, Melisa Liberman sits down with Crystal to unpack the full journey behind the $250K result: the lead generation strategies she tried, what she learned from each experiment, what was breaking down between conversations and paid work, and what finally changed.

Crystal shares what she discovered about her sales process, how she changed the way she showed up in conversations with prospective clients, and why that shift mattered.

Then she built a lead generation initiative around how her buyers already behave.

That experiment generated more than 100 applications and led to more than $250,000 in paid consulting engagements in one month.

But this episode isn’t about copying Crystal’s tactic.

It’s about the process she used to get there.

How do you know whether to keep going with a lead generation strategy, refine it, or replace it?

How do you stay with an experiment long enough to learn from it without wasting months on something that isn’t working?

And how do you recognize when the problem isn’t your lead generation tactic at all, but something else in the way you’re creating and converting consulting opportunities?

Crystal shares what she learned from the strategies that didn’t work, the ones that worked only partially, and the shifts that ultimately brought the pieces together.

If you’re working on lead generation but still wondering why your effort isn’t translating into enough consulting clients or paid opportunities, this episode will help you see what to evaluate next instead of assuming you simply need to do more.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Introduction to Crystal Hincks and why her story matters
[00:02] Companion resource: Lead Gen Sprint at www.ConsultantSprint.com
[00:20] Getting stuck in the friend zone and the premature proposal problem
[00:29] The mindset shift: from helpful vendor to expert and peer
[00:34] Value Made Visible: the initiative that created $250K in one month
[00:41] What the experiment taught her about lead generation
[00:45] Advice for consultants who are experimenting but not yet seeing results

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: The Consultant's Lead Gen Sprint. Fall cohort starts September 22nd. Enroll at www.ConsultantSprint.com 

Crystal’s website: www.uncommonevaluation.com
Crystal’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-hincks-7217556b/ 

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-286

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

Kymm Martinez was doing the work to land clients.

She had scorecards. She had a tracker. She was having discovery meetings and working her network. She had nearly 20 years of marketing experience at General Mills plus two CMO roles so she understood business development. 

And yet her pipeline wasn't becoming predictable, and she couldn't figure out why.

In Episode 285, Melisa Liberman sits down with Kymm to unpack what was actually happening and what changed when she put a microscope to the activity instead of just doing more of it.

Kymm shares how she discovered she was focused on quantity instead of quality, the corporate habits she didn't realize she'd carried into her consulting business, and how perfectionism was quietly blocking her at every stage of business development.

She also shares what shifted in how she thinks about her goals, from replicating her corporate income to setting a very different vision for what her business could become.

If you've been putting effort into business development and still don't have a pipeline that feels predictable, Kymm's story will help you figure out exactly where to look.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Introduction to Kymm Martinez and why her story matters
[00:02] Companion resource: Lead Gen Sprint at www.ConsultantSprint.com
[00:04] Kymm's background and what surprised her about going independent
[00:07] The corporate habits she didn't realize she'd brought with her
[00:22] Perfectionism as a BD blocker and how she's managing it
[00:29] What surprised Kymm about the Sprint cohort
[00:38] Dreaming bigger: from replicating corporate income to a million-dollar goal
[00:43] Advice for fellow independent consultants

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: The Consultant's Lead Gen Sprint. Fall cohort starts September 22nd. Enroll at www.ConsultantSprint.com

Guest website: www.wildermarketinggroup.com
Guest LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kymmmartinez
The Wilder Brief (newsletter): www.wildermarketinggroup.com/the-wilder-brief

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-285

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

Chelsea Lewis quit her corporate job in October 2025, took three months to rest, and started her independent consulting business in January 2026.

By the time she recorded this episode, she had built a six-figure business in seven months, a current six-figure client engagement, a $20K-per-month advisory retainer proposal on the table, and a pipeline of $1.1 million.

In Episode 284, Melisa Liberman sits down with Chelsea to find out exactly how she got from there to here, what she was doing that wasn't working, what changed, and what she’s been doing doing to build the pipeline to where it stands today.

Chelsea shares how she moved warm network conversations out of the friend zone, the value-first approach she's using to open new client relationships and get hired, the specific mindset shifts that made the biggest difference, and how she changed her relationship with rejection.

She also talks about what it means to run your business development like a scientist — collecting data, running experiments, and not letting outcomes define your worth as a business owner.

If you're an independent consultant who knows you should be doing more with your network and your pipeline but can't seem to make it consistent, Chelsea's story is the one to listen to.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Introduction to Chelsea Lewis and her results
[00:02] Companion resource: Lead Gen Sprint at www.ConsultantSprint.com
[00:03] Chelsea's background 
[00:09] Entrepreneurship as a learnable skill, not a personality trait
[00:16] The scientist mindset: 137 rejections and counting
[00:27] Moving warm network conversations out of the friend zone
[00:28] Adding value tangibly before the engagement starts
[00:34] Chelsea's results: six-figure business, $1.1M pipeline, $20K/month retainer
[00:45] Advice for first-generation business owners

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: The Consultant's Lead Gen Sprint. Fall cohort starts September 22nd. Enroll at www.ConsultantSprint.com

Guest LinkedIn: Chelsea Lewis — linkedin.com/in/chelseamlewis/

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-284

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

You've said it to yourself more than once.

"If I were just more consistent. If I could do a little bit every week, every day, I'd have a healthier pipeline."

Most independent consultants have run that thought through their heads dozens of times.

Here's the thing: consistency isn't the problem. 

And trying to fix consistency is solving the wrong problem.

In Episode 283, Melisa Liberman makes a case that most independent consultants need to hear: the reason your pipeline is unreliable isn't that you lack discipline. 

It's that you've given yourself the wrong job. 

Melisa explains what the right business development focus actually is, and it's not finding clients. 

She also shares the story of Richard, a fully utilized consultant who understands that “being consistent” isn’t the key to a healthy pipeline, and what he specifically does to keep his pipeline full.

If you’ve been trying to solve your pipeline problem by being more consistent, listen to this episode before you create another checklist, routine, or plan that won’t stick. 

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Why consistency isn't the solution to your pipeline problem
[00:03] Agenda overview
[00:04] Companion resource: Lead Gen Sprint at www.ConsultantSprint.com
[00:05] Why the pipeline problem seems like a consistency problem
[00:09] The real root cause
[00:12] The solution
[00:14] "But Melisa, I don't have enough time"
[00:17] Richard's story
[00:20] "But Melisa, I'm not established enough for this yet"
[00:23] The question to stop asking and the one to start asking instead
[00:25] Put this episode into action

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: The Consultant's Lead Gen Sprint. Fall cohort starts September 22nd. Enroll at www.ConsultantSprint.com

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-283

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

You met them at an event. Or through a LinkedIn message. Or an intro you asked for.

However you found them, you thought the conversation you had was good. They showed real interest and said to follow up.

So you did.

And then nothing.

If you're like most independent consultants, you've got a stack of these. People you went out and found, who seemed genuinely interested, and then went silent.

You did the work to create the lead.

You had the conversation.

And it still died on the vine.

They ghost you.

They say they'll circle back, and don't.

They're genuinely interested on Tuesday and unreachable on Wednesday.

Here's the thing. It's not random. And it's not you being bad at sales.

There are five specific reasons outbound leads stall out before they become clients. Most consultants are tripping over three or four of them at once and don't even know it.

In Episode 282, Melisa Liberman walks you through all fiveY, and gives you the root cause and concrete fix for each one. 

You'll spot the ones costing you clients right now.

You'll hear the mindset shift sitting underneath all five.

And you'll know exactly what to do differently in your next outbound conversation.

If you're generating conversations and watching them stall or go nowhere, this is the episode that tells you why, and what to do about it.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Why outbound leads are different and why this episode matters

[00:03] Agenda overview

[00:04] Companion resource: free live training at icworkshop.info

[00:06] Why the source of the lead changes your entire business development process

[00:09] Overview of the five reasons and what they have in common

[00:33] The mindset underneath all five reasons

[00:36] Put this episode into action

Resources Mentioned:

Free live training: How to Always Have Your Next Consulting Client Lined Up Without the Constant Pressure. Register at www.ICworkshop.info

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-282

Want More?

• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

You want to be the consultant ideal clients think of first.

The one who gets invited into conversations rather than always pursuing them. The one whose pipeline doesn't depend on luck or timing. The one who can turn down work that isn't the right fit because they know more will come.

That's a rainmaker. And most independent consultants don't think that word applies to them.

In Episode 281, Melisa Liberman makes the case that it does. A rainmaker isn't someone with natural sales talent or an extroverted personality. It isn't someone selling 24/7. It's a consultant who is known for something, trusted for their perspective, and thought of when an important problem arises. That's a capability you can build.

Melisa walks through three real consultants who became rainmakers in very different ways. 

Elizabeth rebuilt her identity after losing the corporate ecosystem that had always supported her BD work, and now turns away red flag clients with confidence even when she's behind on her revenue goals. 

Rachel built a global speaking and client reputation through deep specialization and selective visibility — posting once a week, speaking four to six times a year, sending a monthly newsletter. 

Sarah became the go-to person in her industry through association involvement and relationships, not posting volume.

None of them were born rainmakers. All of them decided to become one.

Melisa also walks through the identity shift that makes the difference: you don't wait for results to give yourself the title. You decide first. The decision is what speeds up the results.

If you've ever thought "that's for someone else, not me," this episode is the one to listen to before you talk yourself out of it again.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Why becoming the rainmaker changes everything about how you generate business
[00:03] Agenda overview
[00:06] Companion resource: free live training at icworkshop.info
[00:07] Where the term rainmaker came from and why it matters
[00:10] What a consultant rainmaker actually is — and what it isn't
[00:14] The benefits of becoming the rainmaker in your consulting business
[00:16] How to become the rainmaker: the identity shift that starts it
[00:24] Elizabeth's story: rebuilding the rainmaker identity after leaving corporate
[00:28] Rachel's story: becoming sought after through specialization and visibility
[00:31] Sarah's story: becoming the go-to person through industry association
[00:34] Put this episode into action: five questions to answer

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: Free live training — How to Always Have Your Next Consulting Client Lined Up Without the Constant Pressure. Register at icworkshop.info

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-281

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

You left corporate for specific reasons.

You want autonomy. 
Control over your time. 
Work that feels meaningful and is lucrative. 
A business that runs on your terms, not someone else's.

Here's what happens instead for a lot of independent consultants: the business gets built one micro-decision at a time. 
You take the client that isn't quite right because it's in hand. 
You agree to the schedule compromise because the engagement is clear. 
You keep doing the execution work because that's what comes in. 
And then one day you look up and realize the business you've built doesn't look much like the business you intended.

In Episode 280, Melisa Liberman addresses this directly. 

She opens with three real consultant scenarios: one who always wanted a boutique firm but is currently exhausted from solo travel and project work, one who wants to flip her revenue model from mostly self-delivered to mostly team-delivered and doesn't know how to adjust the plane while it's flying, and one who is successful on paper but landing staff augmentation work when what she wanted was strategic advisory.

None of them built the wrong business on purpose. They built it through a series of invisible trade-offs that seemed small at the time.

Melisa walks through two anchor questions every independent consultant should be able to answer, then a five-step process for getting clear on the business you actually want and starting to build toward it deliberately.

If you've ever looked at your calendar and thought, "How did I get here? This business isn’t what I meant to build," this episode is where to start.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] The question behind this episode: are you building the business you actually want?
[00:03] Agenda overview
[00:07] Companion resource: Grow Your Consulting Business book at melisabook.com
[00:09] Two anchor questions: why did you leave corporate, and why haven't you gone back?
[00:13] What actually happens: micro-decisions and invisible trade-offs
[00:18] What does success actually look like for you?
[00:20] Start from everything possible, not what feels realistic
[00:23] The five steps to build the business you actually want
[00:28] Put this episode into action

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: Grow Your Consulting Business Book and Toolkit. Download free at melisabook.com

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-280

Mentioned in this Episode: Episode 267 - https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-267

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

Your booked revenue is below plan. 

Your pipeline can't close the gap fast enough. 

And you're wondering if it's time to go back to corporate. 

Or maybe your numbers are fine right now, but you've lived through a downturn before and you never want to be caught flat-footed again.

Either way, this episode is your plan.

In Episode 279, Melisa Liberman walks through a 90-day turnaround for independent consultants whose revenue has slipped below plan.

From there, Melisa lays out the three steps that pull a consulting business out of a revenue dip and back into booked consulting work, fast. 

She also tells the story of Anna, an operations consultant who lost her primary client with no warning and no pipeline in place. What Anna did over the next 90 days is the clearest proof that you can turnaround from a downturn more quickly than you might think.

If your revenue is down and you're not sure whether to keep pushing or cut your losses, this episode tells you exactly what to do and in what order.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Why revenue downturns happen and who this episode is for
[00:03] Agenda overview
[00:05] Companion resource: Grow Your Consulting Business book and toolkit at melisabook.com
[00:06] What a downturn actually is — the two-condition definition
[00:08] Do the math before assuming you're in one
[00:09] 3 Components of the Turnaround Plan
[00:27] Anna's story: from abrupt client loss to pillar client in 50 days
[00:34] Steps to put this into action

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: Grow Your Consulting Business Book and Toolkit. Download free at melisabook.com

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-279

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.

We’re halfway through the year.

Are you ahead, behind, on track, or honestly not sure?

Most independent consultants answer that question with a feeling.

Behind because the pipeline feels out of their control.
Ahead because they had a few strong months that created relief.
On track because they’ve got a longer-term contract.
Or they avoid the question completely because they never committed to a goal in the first place.

But your feeling is not the same thing as your business reality.

In this episode, Melisa Liberman walks you through how to check your mid-year feeling against the facts, then decide what to do next based on where you actually stand.

You’ll hear how to identify which mid-year position you’re actually in, and how to build the right second-half plan from there if: 

- You have “goal amnesia”.
- You have goal avoidance and never set a goal.
- You’re behind, and tempted to reduce your goal.
- You're ahead, and not sure whether to stay the course, raise the goal, or something else 
- You’re on track, and potentially at risk of sabotaging yourself without realizing it.

This episode will help you stop using pressure, avoidance, or wishful thinking as your mid-year plan. 

You’ll leave with a clearer picture of where your consulting business really stands and what to do next so the second half of the year is not driven by panic, relief, or guessing. 

Timestamps for Key Moments:

[00:00] Why planning for the second half matters more than most consultants realize
[00:03] Agenda overview
[00:04] Companion resource: Quarterly Plan for Consultants at icquarterlyplan.com
[00:05] The five scenarios: where independent consultants land at mid-year
[00:07] Do the math before anything else
[00:11] Scenario 1: You don't know where you stand
[00:15] Scenario 2: You never set a goal
[00:20] Scenario 3: You're behind
[00:26] Scenario 4: You're ahead
[00:29] Scenario 5: You're on track
[00:31] The 5 Steps to put this episode into action

Resources Mentioned:

Companion Resource: Quarterly Plan for Consultants. Download free at icquarterlyplan.com

Full Show Notes: https://shownotes.melisaliberman.com/episode-278

Want More?

• Melisa's Books, Planners & Journals: https://linktr.ee/melisaliberman
• Get Melisa's Book: https://www.melisaliberman.com/book
• Visit Melisa's Website: https://www.melisaliberman.com/
• Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melisa-liberman

Want help achieving your consulting business goals? Melisa can help. Click here for more on coaching tailored to you as an independent consulting business owner.