I spent 20 years in B2B tech before building my own business, and I watched this pattern repeat itself at every single startup:

Smart founder. Brilliant product. Growing fast.

Then one bad hire would set them back six months. Sometimes a year.

Here's what nobody tells you: The cost of a mishire isn't just their salary. It's the momentum you lose during your most critical growth window.

Amy Volas knows this intimately. She's been every version of a hiring disaster as a three-time founder with two exits. That's exactly why her Hiring OS™ framework works—it's battle-tested across hundreds of engagements with venture-backed startups and portfolio companies from leading VC firms.

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Don't let hiring be the bottleneck that costs you your competitive edge.

Register now—it's free and you'll get the recording even if you can't attend live

This week, I had 9 experiences that felt like a punch in the gut. And not in a good way.

9 interactions that made me want to scream.

I conducted five Toast & Roast sessions where I analyzed LinkedIn profiles on video, three one-on-one client calls where we redesigned their entire positioning and offers, and one Collective call working through real prospect conversations.

Different formats. Different contexts.

But the exact same issue came up on every single one.

Their positioning was vague as hell.

Whether I'm looking at someone's LinkedIn profile, or we're mapping out their brand new offer, or we're dissecting why a prospect conversation didn't convert, the problem is ALWAYS the same.

They emphasize what they DO. "I run change management programs." "I do executive coaching." "I'm a marketing consultant."

But there's almost nothing about:

And here's what kills me—when I dig deeper with these consultants? They HAVE those results. They have the case studies. They're delivering tangible, measurable transformation.

They're just not talking about it.

Instead, all their messaging is about THEM. "I have 15 years of experience." "I offer these services." "My methodology includes..."

Zero focus on the buyer. Zero focus on what the buyer cares about.

When I look at these profiles, here's what I think: I don't really get what you do. I get the activities. But I don't get why I should care. And I definitely don't understand who it's for.

So why do incredibly talented consultants make their work sound so generic?

It's not a lack of results. It's not a lack of expertise.

It's three patterns that keep smart people broke:

You spent years learning to hedge. To avoid bold claims. To say "drive operational excellence" instead of "cut costs by 30%." That polish stripped away all differentiation.

You think specificity loses opportunities. So you stay broad. You say "business owners" instead of "SaaS founders with $2M revenue who can't scale past 20 employees." But when you try to serve everyone, you serve no one well enough to pay premium prices.

Describing your process feels provable. Promising transformation feels risky. But premium buyers don't buy processes. They buy results.

When you're unclear about your North Star—the specific transformation you create for a specific type of person—you default to listing EVERYTHING you CAN do.

You give them a menu instead of a carefully curated experience.

And that's where you lose them.

After all, there is a reason why in nearly every fine dining restaurant, the most expensive thing you can order is the chef’s tasting menu. A fixed set of dishes where the chef creates an experience for you.

And nearly every time, the most mind blowing, life changing, experience making dishes will be the ones you never would have ordered for yourself.

After all, you’re not the expert. The chef is.

Let's talk about what vague positioning is actually costing you.

You become a commodity.

When your positioning is all about activities, "I do change management" or "I offer coaching,” you're indistinguishable from everyone else saying the same thing. Commodities compete on price. Period.

The money math is brutal:

While you're explaining what you do and chasing $5K projects, someone with crystal-clear positioning is closing $25K deals with clients who already understand the value before the sales call.

The energy cost alone will kill you. Constantly explaining yourself. Justifying your prices. Working more to earn less.

The point isn’t to work harder. The point is to be known for the RIGHT thing so premium clients come to YOU.

Here's what separates consultants stuck at $5K projects from those commanding $25K+ deals.

It's not more experience. It's not more credentials.

It's four things in their positioning:

Weak: "Business owners" or "Companies"

Strong: "SaaS founders with $1M-$5M revenue who have product-market fit but can't scale past their current team size"

Base it on who you've ACTUALLY helped. Be brave enough to exclude people. Specificity is your competitive advantage.

Weak: "Need better change management" or "Want leadership development"

Strong: "Merger integration is 18 months behind schedule, top talent is leaving, and the board wants answers"

Use their words. Speak to what's keeping them up at night. Would your ideal client read this and think "This person gets me"?

Weak: "Implement change management programs" or "Provide executive coaching"

Strong: "Cut merger integration time by 60% while retaining 95% of key leadership"

Give them numbers they can take to their board. Formula: [Metric] + [Improvement] + [Timeframe].

Before: "I have 15 years of experience in organizational change and I help companies..."

After: "Your merger should give you a competitive advantage, not destroy your culture. Here's how we prevent that..."

Test every sentence: "Does this speak to their world or mine?" Start with their pain, THEN introduce yourself as the solution.

Pull up your LinkedIn profile.

Read your headline and About section.

Ask yourself:

If you can't say yes to all four, you're leaving money on the table.

And honestly, if you had to guess how much revenue you've lost this year because prospects couldn't immediately understand your value, what would that number be?

Your expertise isn't the problem. Your track record isn't the problem.

But your positioning is hiding both.

And every day you don't fix it, you're working harder than you need to while earning less than you deserve.

Being known for ONE transformation you deliver exceptionally well beats being known for everything you CAN do.

Clarity isn't a marketing tactic. It's the foundation of a business that serves your life instead of consuming it.

The consultants commanding premium fees aren't smarter than you. They just got crystal clear on who they serve, what problem they solve, and what transformation they deliver.

Then they built everything around that North Star.

That's what we do in the Collective. We strip away the vagueness, the hedging, the corporate speak. We get to the core of what makes your work valuable and how to communicate it so the right clients immediately see themselves in your message.

(Doors open again soon, so if you’re at all interested, join the waitlist)

Because when your positioning is dialed in, everything else gets easier. Sales. Pricing. Client quality. All of it.

In love and growth,
Kasey

P.S. If you're ready to stop bleeding money and start attracting premium clients who already understand your value, I've got 3 Toast & Roast spots left this month. Apply here.

Fair warning: I won't sugarcoat what I see. But you'll walk away knowing exactly what needs to change.