I Asked ChatGPT Why Some Clients Hire Me (and Others Don’t) — Here’s What It Found

Carolyn Herfurth, Strategic Thought Partner

Here’s a fun little experiment: I asked ChatGPT to analyze my client wins and losses. Because if robots are going to take over, they might as well be useful.

Here’s what I found:

The people who hire me aren’t wandering around LinkedIn looking for a guru to give them a step-by-step funnel for their “next six-figure launch.”

They already know how to make money. They’ve built something that works. They’ve got receipts.

But now?

Their business doesn’t quite fit anymore.

They’ve evolved, but their business hasn’t caught up.

They’re sitting at that WTF-do-I-do-next? moment, knowing that something bigger, smarter, and more aligned is possible — but they’re either:

  • Too close to it to see what actually needs to change.
  • Overthinking the hell out of it and stuck in decision limbo.
  • Secretly afraid that shaking things up might break what they’ve built.

Who Hires Me?

They don’t need a “coach.”

They need a strategic thought partner — someone who sees what they can’t, challenges their assumptions, and helps them carve out a strategy that aligns with who they are now.

Take Beth. She had the receipts but was grinding too hard for too little in return. We reworked her strategy, tightened up her sales approach, raised her prices — and BAM. Overnight increase in revenue. Since then? She’s 5x’d her sales without adding staff. Because working harder isn’t the answer — working smarter is.

Then there’s Mary. She built a strong reputation helping people generate clients. We restructured her offers, got her closing more than twice her average sales ratio, and put a new lead gen strategy in place. Over the next 12 months, she increased revenues by ~50% without piling more onto her schedule.

And then there’s Pia. She knew she was ready for more, but she needed the right conversations to reconnect with what actually lit her up. We designed a leveraged offer and got precise about attracting the right clients. Within 30 days of our initial innovation session, she booked $180,000 in new business. (And we were just getting started!)

These are outlier entrepreneurs.

They don’t want a formula. They don’t need a checklist. They need someone who sees what they don’t see and isn’t afraid to help them see their blind spots.

Who Doesn’t Hire Me?

Some people don’t move forward. And that’s okay.

They’ve figured out aspects of their business and are doing okay.

I’m as interested in those who don’t hire me as those who do.

All wanted change.

Some weren’t ready to shift their thinking.

Some were looking for a quick fix, not a deeper strategy.

Some weren’t ready to invest — not just financially, but in the mindset, action, and discomfort that real transformation demands.

They preferred certainty, a foolproof roadmap, a guaranteed, predictable, step-by-step path with zero risk.

The ones who areready?

They know risk is baked into re/invention. There’s no perfect time. That playing it safe is a one-way ticket to stagnation.

And they bet on themselves because of this insight. 👆🏽

What This Means for You

When you’re at that crossroads — where you feel the pull toward something bigger, smarter, and more aligned with who you are now — I can help you untangle the complexity, challenge your assumptions, and craft a strategy that doesn’t just work on paper but actually feels right.

Because here’s the thing: The business that got you here isn’t the business that’s going to take you where you want to go next.

That next-level version of your business? The one that actually matches the version of you that you’ve become?

It’s waiting.

Let’s go BEYOND.

Posted In: Mindset & Priorities