Starting an advisory firm on the side can be daunting - but it’s not impossible.

One of the members of The CFO Project did it. Meet Ryan.

Ryan says “Since joining The CFO Project (and offering CFO/Advisory services), it took me only 8 months to leave my day job. And, in 2 and half months since leaving my day job I’ve already doubled what I was making”.

So, if Ryan is living proof that you can get advisory clients with a day job. Here’s four tips on how to do just that:

Tip #1: Put advisory services in perspective

Advisory services are much more lucrative than traditional tax or bookkeeping work, so you need fewer clients than you think. At a minimum you should be charging $1,500 per client per month, but you can (and should) charge more.

Even at the minimum you only need 6 clients to make over $100,000 a year.

You don’t need a ton of clients, rather, you need a small amount of the right clients.

Tip #2: Spend three hours a week finding three clients

Remember, you don’t need a ton of clients, rather, you need a small amount of the right clients.

In fact, we recommend that you set your sights on finding just three advisory clients.

Just three.

If you charge the minimum we recommend ($1,500 monthly per client) then you’ll be earning $4,500 a month ($54,000 per year) with just three clients.

So, the key is to spend three hours a week to find three clients.

Then, once you get your first client, simply spend only two hours a week to get two more clients.

Then, once you get your second client, simply spend one hour a week to get your final client.

Tip #3: Find three hours a month to talk with your clients

Once you get your three advisory clients, you’ll need to meet with them on a regular basis. We recommend you meet once a month for an hour.

Remember, since you have three clients, you only need to find three hours a month to meet with your clients on their time schedule.

For those three hours a month, simply use your lunch break, take PTO or stay at your job an hour later.

The point is, all you need to do is find three hours a month (!) to meet with clients.

By the way, the beauty of advisory services is that the prep time to get ready for your monthly calls with your clients can be done whenever you feel like it. Therefore, it can be done after work hours and on the weekend.

The Bottom Line

Starting an advisory service with a day job is easier than it looks. Why? Because you only need three clients to make real money.

And…once you get three clients, you now have options. You can keep your day job and have a nice side gig…or you can leave your day job and make advisory work your full-time job.