Deeper Foundations

Set aside the generic, cookie-cutter tactics keeping you overworked, overwhelmed, and underpaid.

Instead - build a deeper foundation.

A six month course, mentorship, and community program for the service-based business owner who wants to reach reliable revenue through a sustainable business foundation and strategy. 

The September 2024 Cohort is full.

“Jessica's business coaching provides a unique blend of the practical and idealistic. Her business operations and systems knowledge are evident in the actionable steps, techniques, and tools she provides. Yet, Jessica also understands that business owners are real people with varying challenges, priorities, and circumstances. She provides encouragement and accountability without any shaming or unrealistic expectations. Within Deeper Foundations Jessica provides enough content that you will never feel stalled, but presents it in a manner that is easily absorbed. Not only has my business grown while working with Jessica, but I am confident that I am taking the steps necessary and useful for continued and efficient growth.”

— Maura Madden, CFP®, Financial Planning

Strengthen your business-making intuition

You’re past the initial launch of your business. You’ve been working with at least a few clients. And you know you’re good at your craft. 

But how can you grow without selling out - or selling your soul?

Most entrepreneurs in this stage of business are getting so much advice from so many different places that they get lost in the sea of comparison-itis.

Everyone else seems to be growing faster. Everyone seems to have different advice, a different playbook for growth.

You’re told all of these things you need to be doing in your business. And you don't know which ones to do first or next. So you're frantically doing things and have no idea which actions are impactful.

It’s time to stop relying on someone else to tell you “what to do.”

Invest—and have confidence—in your business-making intuition.

When I started Deeper Foundations, I knew I wanted to keep my business aligned with my values and grow my revenue without growing my workday. I was ready to end my "throw everything at the wall and see what sticks" era, but one-size-fits-all strategy tips and tricks never seemed to actually fit me (or deliver on their promises). Deeper Foundations cut through the noise and gave me exactly what I needed! Jessica's program took me back to first principles to build in a way that's healthy for my business and my life. 

After my work in Deeper Foundations, I'm seeing consistently higher revenue, and I have a realistic plan for long-term growth. I'm also no longer spending time or money on "business theater" activities that I thought I "should" be doing; my marketing, sales, and content strategies actually fit my business model now! And as a result of all this, I feel so much calmer. 

If you're ready to learn how to create resilient, realistic processes and grow a business that you actually want to be running, Deeper Foundations delivers tremendous value for the investment. It's a surprisingly tailored and intimate experience for a group course, and I'm always amazed by how well Jessica knows each of our unique challenges. Not only has the group format allowed us to learn from each other, but Jessica has created a supportive community that is rooting for each other at every stage. 

Jennifer Bower, Fortuna Money

The promises of a 1-2-3 roadmap seem so appealing.

When you get to this “what’s next” moment in your business… It’s reallllllly tempting to find and follow some ten-step path from the internet.

You’ll recognize the cookie-cutter roadmap from its shiny promises of an easy path to leisure time and financial freedom. Ease and joy. Do the work you love. Live the life you desire…

…and yet they leave you without guidance on the steps that YOU need to take, based on your style and stage of business.

You won’t find formulas That’s not what you’ll find in Deeper Foundations. There’s no “right way.” 

I don’t have all the answers, but I do have the structures, tools, and foundational frameworks to help you find your own. 

Entrepreneurship is filled with a whole lot of failures. And anyone who tells you “this is exactly how to do it”... They’re lying to you. It's easier to sell you an easy answer than it is to say it's going to be hard. 

At this point in your business, you don't quite know what works for you yet, or who you are as an entrepreneur. So trying to find a formula and a templated path—modeled on someone else's success—is a fast way to never knowing your own path and burning out from the grind.

Let’s map out your path and build a stronger foundation.

I’m Jessica Lackey, ex-corporate warrior turned deep business and operations strategist. I spent my career in the trenches of business - like Harvard Business School, McKinsey Consulting, and Nike.

Which means I know business - and I also know exactly what it’s like to be forced into hustle culture and pigeon-holed into judging success by the bottom line. 

I bring that expertise in business strategy, combined with a human-centered perspective, to help entrepreneurs grow and scale sustainable businesses.

Here’s how we build your robust business foundation—without overwhelm.

We’ll plant the seeds and tend the sprouts that will grow into your rooted business. Roots like:

  • Your mission and methodology

  • Your business model, offers, and pricing

  • Your marketing and sales strategy

  • Your business-building priorities 

Over 6 months, you’ll learn the tools, practices, and foundational frameworks of a sustainable business and start implementing your plans.

And we’ll have six months together to watch those roots deepen and seeds bloom.

We’ll tend your sprouts, notice what works, and make adjustments. Not all seeds will bloom, and that’s normal.

At the end of our time together, you’ll have developed deep, foundational roots for your business, you’ll be able to evaluate your strategy for success, and you’ll know how to adjust it if necessary.

You’ll feel good about relying on your business-making intuition.

"When I joined Deeper Foundations, the momentum I'd been riding from my first year of starting my coaching practice had just about fizzled out. Up to then, finding and signing clients had been mostly effortless, and I was at a loss as to why, suddenly, the well I'd been drinking from (cough, earning my living from) was showing scary signs of running dry. The "systems" I had in place mostly consisted of post-it notes stuck all over my desk and neverending checklists that lived only in my head. I'd thrown so many experiments at the wall that my home office looked like a Jackson Pollock painting. In other words, I was tired, and in honest moments I recognized that the thrill of self-employment had actually given way to profound dread. I was so good at my work, but I had no idea how to run a business, let alone where to start.

Within the first few weeks of starting DF, a weight began to lift. Not only did I realize that I was essentially running the equivalent of four different businesses (to say that the lesson on business models was a GAME CHANGER is the biggest understatement of my life), but also—after over a year of haphazard efforts toward business building—I had crystal clarity on the weak spots in my business and could finally formulate a game plan based on facts rather than what I had been doing, which consisted of crossing my fingers and hoping that whatever that day's "strategy" was would work. I began to see a path forward for a sustainable business that worked to support me instead of the other way around.

Not to mention! Jessica is so. damn. smart when it comes to this stuff, and not only is she smart, but she's extraordinarily generous with her smartness, and her tell-it-like-it-is, gentle honesty attracts the most delightful participants. I truly can't recommend DF more highly and I'm planning to sign up forever in perpetuity, as it is a total steal to have this level of access to Jessica and her gifts."

-Dani Cirignano, Integral Coach | Writer | Facilitator

Building your path to sustainable revenue is not fast or linear. That’s why we are together for six months.

We don’t build businesses with stronger, rooted foundations alone. That’s why this is a group experience. 

You’ll witness and celebrate each other. And the other members' questions will spark ideas that you wouldn't have had otherwise.

I’m keeping the group intentionally small—capped at 15, no more than the number of people who’d fit around a campfire —so you won't be lost in a sea of faces. 

There are six months of integration support, so you won’t be left at the end of the course with templates and formulas to figure it out on your own. 

You won’t join only to be handed off to a success coach. I’ll be your coach and mentor.

I’ll stop you from ripping out the sprouts when they don’t seem to be growing.

I’ll witness the roots you're deepening if you're getting frustrated that they're not developing fast enough. 

Most importantly, my job is to provide perspective and to help you design a business that honors and supports you.   

You can build a sustainable, profitable business.

The Deeper Foundations Program

September 26, 2024 - March 6, 2025

12 Course Lessons

Including videos, worksheets, and resources. These lessons are all available when you enroll, so you can jump straight to the lessons that you need.

Deeper Start: The essential information and prompts if you’re short on time

Deeper Foundations: In-depth videos, slides, and guided worksheets on subjects you where want to dive deeper

Tools and Templates: The Deeper Business Dashboard includes all of the spreadsheets I use in my business to plan pricing, revenue and expenses, create sales and audience growth metrics, track connections and sales pipeline, and record the Roots to Fruits success metrics.

Weekly Discussions and Workshops

Alternating between Lesson Review, Implementation Workshops, and Q&A to get real support on the material (with replays posted within 24 hours). Event calendar posted in Circle for easy links.

Thursdays at 1-2pm EST.

Weekly Co-Working

Optional time for group co-working so you have dedicated time to implement what you’re learning.

Mondays at 2-3 pm EST.

Private Circle Community Discussion Forum

Ask questions and receive support or coaching from me in between calls. This space is also for connecting with fellow members to celebrate wins and encourage each other.

Two 30-minute 1:1 calls

Get targeted support and strategy with me at the beginning and mid-point of the program to help you diagnose areas of focus and implement changes.

Monthly 30 minute 1:1 call

Dive even deeper into your business with me each month (limited to Coaching tier only)

Partner Bonuses!

  • Each participant will receive an Essentials Copy Review, provided by Karyn Claflin. Get concise, actionable video feedback from our Copy Coach on two pieces of foundational copy so they speak more clearly to your ideal clients.

Curriculum

  • Month 1: Mission and Vision

    All you see is step-by-step paths for fast growth. But the fastest path really is to align your mission and business model to your true business vision.

    In Month 1, we’ll uncover how you work best, why you’re building this business, and your mission and message so we can develop your business based on your soul's blueprint and the work that lights you up.

    You’ll define the business structure you want to build so you can implement strategies designed for your size and style of business and guide your business decisions.

  • Month 2: Who and How you Serve

    In Month 2, we get to the heart of your unique process and scope of work - and who and how you want to serve in your business.

    You’ll define who you want to work with and where they are on their customer journey - and how to position your work for that target client.

    You’ll outline your methodology - the “secret sauce” to how you do what you do so clients love you. This informs your marketing plan, sales strategy, and your authority-building approach.

  • Month 3: Offers, Pricing, and Profit

    In Month 3, we’ll define your offer structure to match your customer journey.

    You’ll also define your pricing, capacity, and have a clear profit plan - so you know what to charge and how many clients you need for each offer based on your financial and capacity needs.

    We go far beyond spreadsheets, because in this month we work through the steps to bridge your current business to this model.

  • Month 4: Sustainable Marketing and Sales

    In Month 4, you’ll design a marketing and sales process based on YOUR business. You’ll step away from what you’ve been taught that doesn’t apply to your business structure and focus on the activity that's going to generate real results.

    You’ll design a holistic marketing AND sales process, that addresses the entire customer journey, so you feel confident working in your business and know your actions are impactful and aligned.

  • Month 5: Delivery and Time Management

    We’re not machines. We can’t work at the same intensity year-round. In Month 5, with the foundations outlined, we plan for the rhythms of your energy levels.

    You’ll learn how to define your seasonal and monthly priorities. You’ll decide what to do first to make everything else easier. You’ll uncover opportunities to align your energy and time - but also look for operational efficiencies. So you can run your days and weeks with ease.

  • Month 6: Metrics that Matter

    Our businesses ebb and flow, they don’t bear fruit year round. When it looks like nothing’s growing, how do you measure impact?

    In Month 6, reset your definition of success so you’re not bound by conventional rules for what “success” looks like. We embrace and plan for the seasonality of our business by forecasting and managing cash flow, tracking non-revenue victories, and collecting insights at each stage.

Your Tangible Outcomes

Your updated mission, message, and business north star

Your business strategy and near-term priorities

Your next 90-day action plan

A budget that matches your financial needs and energetic capacity

Your numbers: Clients, Sales, Conversations to keep your practice full

Your marketing and sales approach

Your way to stay on track to your tasks

A calendar that fits your capacity and schedule

How to measure success - without comparison

“When I joined Deeper Foundations, I was feeling stuck in my business. Jessica showed me that there were things I was taught were “just part of doing business” that weren’t just unnecessary -- they were holding me back and causing my business to stagnate. Throughout the 6-month program, I gained valuable, meaningful connections with other business owners, created an offer suite that works for me AND my clients love, and went from feeling alone and isolated to knowing that amazing people have my back.”

— Angela

How would it feel to…

Create repeatable processes that lead to consistent sales, so you’re not periodically in a scramble for clients. 

Figure out the marketing methods that feel genuinely doable – and actually bring in sales from them.

Be strategic about your numbers in a way that’s customized to your work, your best ways of working, and your values.

Design highly-saleable offers that bring in your needed revenue while protecting your time and energy.

Identify the support, projects & resources that are worth your time and money, so you nourish your seeds wisely.

Set yourself up for long-term success, because you’re planting deep roots for business sustainability.

A sustainable business where you have agency and autonomy.

Go from overwhelmed to radically focused

You’ll replace an endless to-do list of complicated, scary tasks with fewer, better, do-able tasks that move your business forward. 

See real growth in your business

You’ll know what works (and what doesn’t) to make consistent sales and stay on track to your revenue goals.

Build trust in your business intuition

You’ll stop seeking out silver bullets and experts who tell you what to do and start trusting that you know exactly how to move your business forward.

Build real foundations for growth.

After our six months together, you’ll:

Move from overwhelmed to radically focused.

See real movement in your business. 

Know how to evaluate and adjust your strategy.

Honor your capacity, your gifts, your soul. 

Let’s root down to rise up.

Let’s build a business foundation that supports long-term growth. 

Come for the mentorship. Stay for the community. Six months of support.

You have two options to join us-

  1. Course and Community: I don’t just teach live - I’m active in the community every day providing support, answering questions, and even filming videos about specific member questions. No “posting and ghosting” here. And, each member automatically gets two 30-minute 1:1s - to kickoff our work and to finalize their offer structure and pricing.

  2. Coaching: You can opt for deeper mentorship via an additional 30-minute 1:1 meeting each month, where we can dive deep on each topic - or whatever is happening in your business! The coaching tier is limited to 4 spots.

We start Thursday, September 26, 2024.

Course + Community

$1,800 or 6 payments of $300.

No extra fees for payment plans - pay $300 today and 5 monthly payments of $300.

Limited to 15 total participants.

Course + Community + Coaching

$3000 or 6 payments of $500.

No extra fees for payment plans - pay $500 today and 5 monthly payments of $500.

Limited to 4 spots.

“The business plan work we did early on illuminated the fact that even if my services were booked out, I would not be making enough money to support my life. I have a lot more clarity in regards to what my offers and client load should look like in order for my business to meet my needs. I now understand the steps I need to take to get there, and I know that making slow and steady progress is the only sustainable way forward!”

— Leanne

How a Harvard MBA turned into a soul-centered feminist coach.

I was taught my whole life to follow the good-girl, corporate-ladder path. I trained as a consultant at McKinsey, got my Harvard MBA, and spent a decade working in Fortune 500 strategy and operations.

I was promised that following that path would lead to a fulfilling and financially successful life. And instead, I ended up overworked, burned out, and sacrificing my body and soul for corporate profits.

After making the leap to entrepreneurship, I continued to see the same pattern. The hustle and grind culture never ends - and too many business-building programs are going to capitalize on your search for “the right next move” and take your time, energy, and money without equipping you with the right tools to succeed in the long term.
I’m committed to doing business differently - and committed to helping you thrive.

Is this right for you?

  • During the course, between watching the lessons, attending the live calls, and implementing, I’d recommend about two to four hours per week. But know there is no “getting behind.”

    We’ll have sixty-minute discussion calls weekly and weekly co-working to help you implement what you’re learning.

    One of our goals together is to leave you with fewer, better commitments so you’re no longer spending valuable time working on things that aren’t bringing you results.

  • Deeper Foundations is a six-month program. The investment is $1800 for the course + community, or $3000 for the 1:1 coaching tier. There are two payment options: full payment or a monthly installment plan.

    Full Payment: Make your full payment for the six-month program upfront. One payment then you’re all set.

    Installment Plan: Make your first payment today. Pay the rest of your tuition in 5 monthly installments

    If you need a different payment plan or some other form of financial assistance, or if you’re in a position to and would like to pay it forward and contribute to someone else’s program fee, please email us to discuss your situation.

  • September 26, 2024 through March 7, 2025.

    • Lessons at 1-2 pm ET on Thursdays.

    • Optional co-working is at 2-3 pm ET on Mondays.

    We take winter break between December 15 and January 3.

  • If within the first 30 days of the program, you email me that the program is not right for you, I’ll happily cancel your future payments or refund your payment less your first month’s non-refundable deposit. I don’t want you to spend any time, money, energy on a course that’s not right for you.

  • The course will be hosted in a private Circle community. I’ll be in the community daily answering questions so you’ll never get stuck in between sessions.

  • We’re sold an image that the path to $100K is fast, predictable, and linear. It’s not. I’m not the right coach for you if you want someone to promise fast results.

    You’re building something important. You’re not willing to compromise your values, or your health, or exploit your community for fast growth. That’s not a failure—it’s listening to your inner intuition about what success means to you. That’s why getting to a sustainable revenue level - your way - often takes longer than that image we’re sold.

  • Because of the nature of growing a business, revisiting your foundations is something we do throughout the business lifecycle. You’ll have access to the lessons, templates, and tools while this program is hosted in Circle so you can re-evaluate your foundations and make adjustments as needed.

    At the end of our time together, you’ll have developed deep foundational roots for your business and be on track to your revenue targets —your way. If you find you want to move through the process again with the integration support to level-up your business and build deeper roots, you can continue on with a discounted rate.

    You will retain access to the curriculum while it is hosted in the Circle platform.

  • If you can’t make all of the calls, you’ll still benefit from this program. For the weeks you miss, you can submit your questions ahead of time and watch the replay. It’ll be available within 24 hours.

    If you can’t make most of the calls, but you know this is the support you need, book a discovery call to learn about other options where you’ll still have access to the program materials.

  • We teach from our experiences, and in my work, I stand on the shoulders of my teachers.

    You can learn more about my qualifications, teachers, and influences here.

  • Yes. If you’ve built the foundation, but aren’t seeing the growth you’d like, something is missing in those foundational pieces. And part of my job is to help you figure out what it is.

I don’t want you to spend any more time, money, or energy on solutions not designed for your business style or size.

I used to think the hardest part of building a business was starting. It’s not.

It’s the part that comes after you’ve started. You’ve announced your business on social media, your friends cheer for you, and you’ve gotten your first few clients from your network...

After that fanfare dies down, that’s the hardest part. 

It’s hard to keep your optimism when your business isn’t growing as fast as it’s “supposed” to.

We’ve been sold the dream that growing a business is supposed to be easy and if it’s not, we’re to blame. That lie costs you real time, real money, and real energy.

You don’t have to get stuck in that valley of despair. You don’t have to spend another year or two frustrated from trying activities that aren’t made for your stage or style of business, and wasting money on programs that promise (and fail to deliver) an easy solution.

You get to do good work in a way that honors your capacity, your gifts, your soul. And you don’t have to go it alone. 

If building a sustainable business is your goal, and you’re ready to embrace your pace and stage of business and start developing your business-making intuition, Deeper Foundations was designed for you.

I’ll help you design a business that honors and supports you.
If now is the time for you, I hope you’ll join me for Deeper Foundations.

You get to do good work in a way that honors that you’re human and deserve to have pleasure, joy, and rest.

Together we’ll develop:

  • Security in your roots: Your North Star. Your business model. Your sustainable path to your revenue target, be that five-, six-, or even seven-figures of revenue.   

  • Rhythms and rituals that allow you to grow without the never-ending hustle.

  • Your capacity to show up visibly where it makes sense for you and your future clients.

Grow your business while honoring your capacity, your gifts, your soul, and your community.

*Earnings Disclaimer: Participation in the program does not guarantee specific results, financial or otherwise. By purchasing this course, you take 100% responsibility for doing the work and generating your desired results, and as such Jessica Lackey LLC does not assume liability for actions taken by the course participant. The testimonials listed on this site do not guarantee similar outcomes. Neither this site or the course materials constitute legal, tax, or professional advice.