Uncommon Mentorship is for solo founders who have launched their businesses and want consistent, ongoing mentorship to scale their businesses.
■What you want help with
You do not need to have it all figured out. Bring the decision in front of you, and your mentor helps you make it.
Pick the right channel, sharpen your positioning and set a launch plan you can run alone, so your offer reaches the people who need it.
Work out why clients stall, churn or never convert, whether it is the offer, the delivery or the price, and decide what to fix first.
Turn what you know into content that brings in work, build referrals, and handle sales conversations without feeling pushy.
When revenue plateaus, find the next lever: a price change, a new offer tier, or a productized version of what you already sell.
■How it works
Ongoing mentorship works because the rhythm does the heavy lifting. Here is what a month looks like.
01
Choose Grow (2 sessions a month) or Scale (4 sessions a month). You can switch at your next billing date.
02
Each session lasts 1 hour and ends with 1 or 2 actions. Your mentor checks them at the next session.
03
Send questions in writing whenever they come up, and your mentor replies within 2 business days.
■Why ongoing mentorship
After launch, you make a steady stream of decisions on your own: what to charge the next client, which offer to cut, when to hire and what to turn down. A mentor gives you a second opinion before those decisions get expensive.
Bring a price change, a new offer or a first hire to a session before you act. A price set too low repeats with every client until you notice it.
Each session ends with 1 or 2 actions, and your mentor checks them at the next one. The work keeps moving when no employer sets the pace.
Every mentor runs a profitable solo business of their own and has faced the same decisions you are facing now.
Your mentor works from the same framework as Plan A, our launch program, and the Uncommon Toolkits, so every session builds on work you have already done.
Still deciding on the model? Read how a solo expertise business works →
Both plans cost the same per session. You can switch plans at your next billing date, and you can cancel any month.
This plan suits an early-stage founder who wants light, regular advice as the business takes shape.
You pay each month until you cancel.
This plan suits a launched business ready to grow faster, with focused time each week to work through more problems.
You pay each month until you cancel.
Every plan also includes
You unlock 1 Toolkit for each month you stay, until you have them all.
You get first booking for Uncommon Salons, Summit and Retreats, before tickets go on sale to the public.
Need more in a busy month? You can add a single 1-hour session for $99 at any time from your account dashboard.
This plan suits an early-stage founder who wants light, regular advice as the business takes shape.
You pay each year until you cancel.
This plan suits a launched business ready to grow faster, with focused time each week to work through more problems.
You pay each year until you cancel.
Every plan also includes
You get all the Toolkits, worth $849, after your first 30 days.
You get first booking for Uncommon Salons, Summit and Retreats, before tickets go on sale to the public.
Need more in a busy month? You can add a single 1-hour session for $99 at any time from your account dashboard.
Every plan includes the Uncommon Toolkits at no extra cost. How you pay decides how fast you get them.
On Grow or Scale paid monthly, you unlock 1 Toolkit for each month you stay, until you have them all.
On Grow or Scale paid yearly, you get all the Toolkits, worth $849, after your first 30 days.
Plan A, our launch program, includes your first month of mentorship. Your first month on the Grow plan (2 sessions) starts the week after you finish Plan A, and nothing renews unless you pick a plan.
My session with Stella was exceptionally informative and truly inspiring. She offered plenty of go-to-market strategies and tactics.
Highly recommend if you’re looking for a no-bullshit, warm, and all-in mentor for your startup.
Working with Stella Guan was eye-opening for our up-skilling platform.
Free networks and paid marketplaces help a lot of people. Here is where each one fits, and what Uncommon Mentorship adds for a solo expertise business.
What you want
Free volunteer networks
Paid mentor marketplaces
One-off expert calls
Uncommon Mentorship
A mentor who runs a solo business now
Volunteers, many retired or employed
Mostly employees at tech companies
Varies by expert
Every mentor runs one
The same mentor every month
SCORE and Micromentor offer ongoing mentors
Most sell monthly plans
Single calls
1 mentor, 2 or 4 sessions a month
A shared method to work from
No set method
Each mentor sets their own
No set method
The same method as Plan A
Messages between sessions, with a reply time
Email, no set reply time
Chat, no set reply time
No messaging
A reply within 2 business days
Built for solo businesses
SCORE and Micromentor serve small businesses
Mostly tech careers and startups
Mixed topics
Solo expertise businesses only
Price
Free
About $50 to $400 a month
About $35 to $2,500 a call
$199 or $399 a month
Platform
What it costs
How sessions work
Who the mentors are
Built for
Uncommon Mentorship
$199 a month for 2 sessions, or $399 a month for 4. Annual plans cost 7% less.
1-hour 1:1 sessions with the same mentor, plus messages answered within 2 business days
Mentors who run solo businesses of their own
Solo expertise businesses after launch
SCORE
Free
Phone, video, email or in person, as often as you need
Trained volunteers, many current or former business owners and executives
US small businesses that want free, ongoing advice
Micromentor
Free
Remote through its platform, one-off or ongoing
Volunteers with 5+ years in business ownership or a related field
Small business owners in any country
ADPList
Free
Mostly 30 to 60 minute video calls, booked with many mentors
Reviewed volunteers, mostly from large tech companies
Design, product and tech careers
MentorCruise
Set by each mentor, typically $100 to $300 a month, plus a platform fee
Chat and calls on a monthly plan, with a 7-day free trial
Reviewed applicants, mostly engineers, product managers and designers
Tech careers
GrowthMentor
$85 a month billed quarterly, or $50 a month billed yearly
Unlimited 15 to 60 minute calls, usually with different mentors
Under 5% of applicants accepted, mostly growth and startup operators
Startup founders and marketers
Strawberry.me
From $70 a week
1:1 video coaching with messaging between sessions
Certified career and personal coaches
Career and personal coaching
Intro
Set by each expert, about $59 to $2,500 a session
One-off video calls, most 15 to 60 minutes
Well-known founders, executives and experts
1 question for a known name
Clarity.fm
Per minute, set by each expert, about $50 for an average 30-minute call
One-off phone calls
Experts reviewed by Clarity
Quick one-off business questions
Prices change, so check each site before you choose.
Mentorship helps most once your business is running. If you are still choosing what to build, start somewhere else.
Uncommon Mentorship is for founders who have launched: you sell an offer or have at least 1 paying client. Before that, the work is choosing and building the business. That is what Plan A does in 8 weeks, with 16 hours of 1:1 coaching, or the Uncommon Toolkits if you prefer to build on your own. Plan A includes your first month of mentorship, so you move straight into it after week 8.
No. You can start a plan right away, or book a free 30-minute trial call first if you want to talk it through.
A marketplace lists thousands of mentors, and each one sets their own method and price. Every mentor here runs a solo business, charges the same plan prices and works from the same framework as Plan A, our launch program.
You tell your mentor where your business is and what you want to change. They tell you whether mentorship fits and which plan suits you. The call is free, takes 30 minutes, and you decide afterward.
Yes. Your new plan starts at your next billing date.
Unused sessions expire at the end of each billing month. If your mentor cancels a session, it is rescheduled.
Give 24 hours’ notice and you can reschedule it within the same month. A session missed without notice counts as used.
Yes. Your plan bills you each month, or each year on an annual plan, until you cancel, even in a month when you book no sessions.
You cancel from your customer dashboard at any time before your next billing date, and you keep access until the end of the period you paid for. Annual plans refund in full within 30 days. After 30 days the year is non-refundable, and you can switch off renewal at any time.
No. Your mentor covers the business side, and will point you to a licensed professional for the rest.
Pick a time that suits you. The call takes 30 minutes, and you leave knowing whether mentorship fits and which plan to start on.
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