‘The Authentic Advisor’ interviews are packed with practical ideas, insights, and frank observations on what works (and what does not) when delivering high performance business advisory. Mindshop’s Managing Director, James Mason interviews senior independent and professional service firm business advisors from across the world. Exploring important advisory topics from creating leverage and building capability to marketing advisory services and how to be the best problem solver in the room, this podcast series is a ‘must listen’ for those who want to set themselves apart in a cluttered market.
Is The Two-Day Strategic Planning Retreat Dead? If so, What Replaces it? With Russell Cummings, SHIFFT, Australia
If you run (or are thinking of running) strategy days, this episode's for you. Listen in to Mindshop Expert Russell Cummings, SHIFFT. He has 30 years’ experience running strategic planning retreats for clients.
Russell explains why the two-day retreat isn't dead, but it has significantly evolved. Sharing how his pre-work system works, so he walks in with a ‘straw man' plan that's already 80-90% done, so the people in the room can focus on what actually matters.
What else is covered in the episode?
AI, done right. Russ is candid about where he thinks AI genuinely helps (diagnostics, competitor analysis, pulling interviews into a first draft) and where it backfires, eroding into 'AI slop' that erodes trust.
Bespoke over cookie-cutter. How pre-interviews and surveys let him meet each client exactly where they're at, instead of forcing a one-size-fits-all process.
Making it stick. Russell shares his cascading cadence model: a 3-year plan > annual > quarterly > 90-day cycles and the killer line 'Don't pay me for the plan, pay me for the implementation.'
Don't miss this episode, it's a practical, field-tested playbook for sharper, more impactful strategy days.
31 Aug 2026
The Silent Ceilings Capping Advisory Success with Angela Grogan, Best Business Results, Australia
What if the biggest barriers to your growth as an advisor aren’t external at all?
In this episode of The Authentic Advisor, James Mason is joined by Angela Grogan from Best Business Results to explore the internal barriers that can quietly cap advisory success.
They unpack:
Imposter syndrome: How self-doubt can stop advisors from pursuing opportunities and developing their capability.
The personal brand trap: Why copying gurus and chasing visibility can undermine authenticity.
Volume vs depth: Whether chasing more clients is really the right growth strategy, or whether deeper relationships with the right clients create greater value.
Ego and blind spots: Why advisors need to be as willing to examine themselves as they are to challenge their clients.
Trust through consistency: How reliability, responsiveness and being easy to work with can become genuine differentiators.
The next shiny thing: Why constantly collecting frameworks, courses and tools can distract from mastering what already works.
The human advantage: Why listening, connection and having difficult conversations remain central to effective advisory.
The conversation ultimately comes back to self-awareness and continuous improvement. Identify your blind spots, seek honest feedback and focus on doing the work that creates meaningful outcomes for clients.
31 Jul 2026
Why Advisors Struggle to Sell High Value Advisory Work with Mike Boyle, Strategy Shift, Australia
Winning higher value advisory work isn't about sending more proposals or increasing activity. It's about demonstrating better judgment.
In this episode of The Authentic Advisor, James Mason speaks with Mike Boyle from Strategy Shift about why so many advisors struggle to move beyond transactional work and secure larger, more strategic engagements. Their message is clear: too many advisors are pursuing high value clients with outdated sales tactics.
Mike explains why today's buyers have become increasingly resistant to AI-generated outreach, generic proposals and capability-led selling. Instead, premium clients are looking for advisors who understand their challenges, ask better questions and bring fresh thinking to complex problems.
The conversation explores why advisors need to stop leading with credentials and start leading with insight. Mike shares practical questions that uncover what clients have already tried, what success really looks like and what happens if key issues remain unresolved. These conversations build trust long before a proposal is needed.
James and Mike also discuss:
the importance of targeted referrals,
creating scarcity around your expertise
using smaller pilot engagements to build confidence before expanding into larger advisory relationships
four practical actions advisors can implement immediately to sharpen their positioning, improve conversion rates and win more premium advisory work.
If you're looking to attract better clients, command higher fees and move further up the advisory value chain, this episode is packed with practical strategies you can apply immediately.
Takeaways
Move from shotgun proposals to precise, strategic conversations.
Build trust through early qualification and understanding messy problems.
Use storytelling and social proof to demonstrate credibility.
Focus on referrals and reputation to access high-value clients.
Always be closing by testing early and controlling next steps.
Mastering high-value advisory sales in a noisy market
Chapters
00:00 High-Value Advisory Work
03:30 The Great Mix-Up of 2026
08:28 Finding Quality Opportunities in a Noisy Market
13:29 Building Trust and Demonstrating Capability
18:23 Closing High-Value Deals
25:14 Key Actions for Winning High-Value Work
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