Ready to stop competing for attention?

The world today is a crowded place. If you’re not smart about it, you’ll find yourself competing with a lot of other people in your field, making it hard to win clients and charge what you’re really worth.

The conventional business gurus’ solution to these challenges is to encourage you to become a world expert in marketing and to win by brute force of effort; marketing harder than anyone else.

But there is another way: The Crazy Successful Formula.

I want to lead you through a completely new and unconventional process to take the work you love and position it in such a way that you carve out a little piece of the world that is entirely yours, with zero competition.

Which makes you #1.

That means you easily attract attention and leads, you can charge a lot more, and you become a little bit famous for what you do.

Defy conformity, create the extraordinary!

Innovate: Make your business stand out

First we dive into your unique passions, strengths, and personality to uncover a unique viewpoint on your work which we can use throughout your marketing. Then we create one offer that is unique to you and that you love and we make it the revenue engine of your business - a course, one-to-one package, group programme, workshop, retreat, corporate consulting offer, etc - something that makes you hundreds, and ideally thousands, for each sale.

Your point of difference: You'll find a brand and message that makes you one of a kind with zero competition (even if you think what you do is not that different from others in your field)
Your unique positioning: Finally nail down a niche that feels exciting instead of restrictive
Your signature offer: This will change your life! We will help you create a signature offer that is unique to you and makes you hundreds or thousands of £/$/€ every time you sell it, making it the revenue engine of your business to take you to 6 figures and beyond

I'll be teaching this part of the Crazy Successful Formula live over 4 weeks so you can ask questions as we go. However, everything will be recorded for you to watch in your own time if you prefer.

Validate: Make rapid sales

Next, we go prove it all works by conducting market research in a simple but very powerful way. Then we get the ultimate validation: I walk you through the exact process to make your first few sales of this new offer. Don’t be surprised if by this point you’ve doubled your effective hourly rate (or even more) and made more than the cost of the programme back!

Your simple pitch: We'll craft an elevator pitch for you that stops people in their tracks. Want a second opinion? Run it by me in our group calls and I'll fix it on the fly for you.
Your offer validated: A simple market research process in which you'll create a document telling you exactly what will make your favourite clients buy from you. Then you can refer to that document for all your sales and marketing.
Your first sales: The best validation is people paying you cold, hard cash! I will train you how to reach out to those first people and close them without being pushy or hypey. No spammy DM's required :)
Your simple funnel: I'm going to help you create something I call a generosity offer that is a reliable way to turn your social media followers (even if there are currently very few of them) into buyers ASAP without heavy sales pitches.

Accelerate: Massively boost your revenue

Finally, we use the unique viewpoint and unique offer we've found for you to build the social media, email marketing, and lead generation strategies that will bring you repeated sales while staying true to who you are. And you’ll see 10 times the effect of these marketing tactics as a result of the work we have done earlier to differentiate you.

Your social media strategy: You’ll follow my process to create a whole month of content in one afternoon and if you ever get stuck for which platform to use or what to post, come ask me in the group calls
Your leverage marketing strategy: I will guide you through using other people’s established, large audiences to send you a rush of leads in one go. Anyone can do this!
Your ad strategy: You’ll understand when and how to use advertising on Facebook and other platforms to bring you a reliable flow of leads including a breakdown of one of my own Facebook ad campaigns
Your copy & sales page: Follow my 12-step formula to write words that will make people eager to buy your signature offer
Your email marketing strategy: We will show you how to get your newsletter/autoresponder set up (if you don’t have one yet), and help you create the right lead magnet and opt-in page that really grows your list. We'll even help you work out what to email your subscribers every week. PLUS: My simple launch strategy you can use if you have even a small following to make tens of thousands in sales in just 7 days.

You'll get exact instruction for each one of these steps but you're not on your own. Pretty much every week you'll have a chance to come and ask me your questions. Want to run your idea for a signature offer or lead magnet past me? Want to see what I think of the headline on your sales page once you've created it? Just come along and ask!

The result of all this: a business completely unlike any other, that fits you like a glove, and that pays you fabulously.

What's included

The syllabus: The core syllabus of The Crazy Successful Formula consists of 12 modules that you can work through in 12 weeks. I will be teaching the 3 "Innovate" modules live for 4 weeks (with recordings to refer to afterwards). After that the modules will be released as prerecorded content for you watch anytime.
Weekly business clinics: Each week (except when on holiday etc), I will hold a group Q&A on zoom to answer whatever questions you have about the part of the Crazy Successful Formula you're currently working on. Imagine having my 18 years of experience on tap every single week. Get my guidance on your signature offer, elevator pitch, social media strategy, what price to charge, how to close someone who's interested in working with you, and anything else that comes up.
Regular "What's stopping you?" calls: At least every 2 weeks, I will hold a group zoom purely focussed on helping you get over any obstacles to implementing the Crazy Successful Formula, whether practical or emotional. Got a block about posting to social media? Completely lost your mojo one week? Had a setback or someone criticised you online? Come and talk about it and I'll help you out because entrepreneurship is a mindset game as much as a strategy one.
Monthly accountability call with Julia: Each month, expert facilitator, Julia Elmore, will hold a group call for you to simply talk about how you're getting on, set goals for the next month, support you to keep making progress, and network with your fellow CSF participants. And then Julia will check on you next month to help hold you accountable. Knowing someone else cares whether you do something makes all the difference!
Guest expert sessions: Each month we'll have a teaching session from a phenomenal guest expert. We already have confirmed experts on how to sell your services to corporate HR leaders (with a leading HR consultant), how to be productive & successful with ADHD, how to get into the press (with a journalist and magazine editor), learn how to draw in one hour (yes really), and how to create a social enterprise that has a national or international impact. All sessions are live but recorded for watching later.
Monthly hotseat coaching: Watch me coach 2 CSF members on a particular issue that others can learn from - finding the right niche, how to use LinkedIn etc - or volunteer to be one of the 2!
Tech clinics: Every couple of months, my own tech VA will hold a group session to answer your tech questions like "Why isn't my email opt-in box on my website working?" and "How do I make my newsletter system send people a PDF?"
Live meetups: Twice a year I'm going to organise in-person meetups that are free to attend and give us a chance to get know each other in the real world. Most will be in London but I will try to fit in meet-ups elsewhere in the world where we have members if I'm travelling there. (These are social & networking meetups so you won’t be missing any critical lessons if you can’t make it to London.)
Private community: We will be together for the entire programme in our own private community with a dedicated app. Share your wins, get people’s opinions, and shout when you get stuck. Any time, day or night.

Yes, the Crazy Successful Formula syllabus will give you the exact strategies you need to make your business stand out and win but strategy alone is not enough.

I have seen with thousands of participants in my courses that the real blocks to business success are not out there in the market or economy but in our own minds.

So the Crazy Successful Formula includes a bonus course called Crazy Successful Self-Management (based on my upcoming 4th book, ‘Crazy Successful’) about knowing, managing, and using your ‘crazy’. Combine this with our regular "Getting unstuck" calls to help when you hit a block of some sort and you will never get stuck on your own as you might have done with other courses.

Use what makes you different: I'll show you how to identify your natural strengths, quirks, obsessions, neurodiversity, and unique personality (including the 'crazy bits') and use them as a competitive advantage!
Unpick your patterns: Learn what’s held you back in the past and get deep insights & powerful tools to ensure that this time things go differently
Beat procrastination and perfectionism: get shit done without the pain
Productivity for creative people: F**k the 5 am crowd who shame you for not getting up at dawn and discover the productivity strategies that work for right-brained entrepreneurs
Understand your relating patterns: discover how to relate more effectively to those around us and be more proactive in your business using the Karpman drama triangle
Get the confidence to be visible in the world: One of the greatest blocks to success is the uneasiness we have about becoming more visible. Uncomfortable about posting or emailing more or do you fear making a mistake or getting criticised? I will teach you strategies for dismantling the fears about becoming more visible in the world and show you a way to get more reach that feels achievable rather than completely overwhelming for you (and won’t attract unintended criticism / controversy)

Aside from this, you also get access to regular "What's stopping you?" group calls with me to get help when you're stuck or lost motivation, and monthly accountability calls with coach Julia.

You’ll finish with a dramatically different level of confidence in promoting your work and with personal insights & tools that you will carry with you for the rest of your life about how you work, your greatest strengths, what makes you different, and how to remove the blocks that have held you back in the past.

“In order to change the world, you have to get your head together first” - Jimi Hendrix

The Crazy Successful Formula is for you if...

You’re selling your coaching, courses, consulting, therapy, expertise, services, freelancing, training - for the general public, entrepreneurs, or organisations
You’re good at what you do but you’re ready to double your revenue, get in the press, get invited onto podcasts, and be looked up to by others in your field
You want to launch a course, mastermind, 1:1 coaching / advice package, consulting offer for companies, podcast, a live workshop / retreat and you want to be sure it will stand out and take off
OR... Your business is going well but you want to change it to suit your goals & interests now - moving from 1:1 to group work, or from corporate contracting to shorter, more lucrative consulting, or you want to evolve your overall brand.
You’re currently making under 100k in your business
You are ready to go for it and put in the effort to create a business that really pays off for you while satisfying your creative drive and having some fun along the way
You’re ready to think out of the box, try some new ideas, have some fun, and get radically different results

It's not for you...

You want help selling a physical product with no services attached, your paintings or other finished artistic works, or running an ecommerce store or a tech startup (there are exceptions to this so ask if you’re in doubt)
You’re looking for a magic answer that requires no effort or never leaving your comfort zone
You don’t have any idea what you want to do for your business (buy my book F**k Work Let’s Play if you’re still looking for an idea)
You have not yet developed the skills or expertise you will be using with clients
You have a severe allergy to marketing, making money or you want to smash capitalism (we will work with capitalism to create solutions for problems we care about), or you would rather argue about politics than get on with creating a business
You’re already making 6 figures and are not looking to launch any new offers (such as an online course) or change your business model in the next 12 months

Meet John

I am author of 3 bestselling books translated into 10 languages including WHSmith business book of the month F**k Work Let’s Play.

I have been helping people turn their ideas into #1 businesses, books and brands for 18 years, after a career in innovation, creating software and solutions for Disney, BBC, Deloitte, Accenture and others.

I was a Senior Managing Consultant at Deloitte before quitting and declaring I never wanted another job for the rest of my life. Since then, I’ve been a freelancer, contractor, consultant, and finally founder of The Ideas Lab which has helped thousands of people to make a living from the work they enjoy.

My books, courses, and ideas have been featured in The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The FT, Daily Mail, The Guardian, Psychologies, Elle, Marketing Week, and on BBC Radio & Australian TV.

I’ve spoken internationally, run online courses with hundreds of participants at a time, sold high ticket one-to-one coaching and currently run an AI event in London. I often work remotely from beautiful locations all over the world.

My training in, and passion for, psychotherapy & psychology gives a depth to my thinking which is exceedingly rare among business strategists.

Want to go faster and further with my personal mentoring?

The Crazy Successful Formula is a powerful experience that gives you a generous 6 months of access to me in the group calls. But if you want to work privately with me to make even faster progress there are 2 options.

VIP membership

Crazy Successful Formula VIPs get to be in my inner circle. We will have a private consultation over zoom every month where we will make rapid progress on the things that most matter in your business - nailing your niche, defining your signature offer, creating your social media strategy and refining your lead generation strategy. Even a few minutes of my personal input can radically change the direction of your business so imagine what 40 minutes every month will do!

I will set you specific tasks to complete between sessions and pre-read the relevant worksheets in advance of our sessions so I am already up to speed. You’ll also get a recording to review afterwards which is great given that I will often reel off an entire strategy or piece of marketing copy for you.

In between our sessions I will place you in the VIP circle within our Crazy Successful community giving us a more intimate space for discussion.

The price of being a Crazy Successful VIP is just £495 per month including VAT in addition to membership of the Crazy Successful Formula. The minimum VIP commitment is 3 months. This gives us enough time to make real progress on your business. Note that this pricing will rise in 2024.

To join VIP, buy your place on Crazy Successful Formula using the links above and then look for the option to upgrade or click the link below:

Private Client Mentoring

The Private Client Mentoring option is for people who want to work with me closely on their business so that we co-create the strategies to make your business really fly.

We will have two 50-minute one-to-ones per month to cover anything and everything that comes up in your business - from designing an online course, to launch strategy, to writing your sales page, to breaking into corporate consulting.

In between our sessions I will place you in the VIP circle within our private community app so that you can network with other VIP and Private Mentoring Clients.

In addition, I will give you messaging access to me anytime you need it during office hours. Got a question? Had an opportunity suddenly come up? Need help closing a sale? Want to run a social media post past me before posting? Just text me on my private Telegram channel and I will get back to you the same day. You can send your question as a voicenote if it’s easier and I may also respond as a voicenote when I need to explain something in depth for you.

~~The price is £1997 per month including VAT in addition to membership of the Crazy Successful Formula.~~

I am introducing the Private Client Mentoring option at just £1,497/month including VAT in addition to your membership of the Crazy Successful Formula.

The minimum commitment is for 3 months but consider committing to work together for 6 months if we have a lot to do together (for instance, launching an entire new business).

Pay in advance for 6 months and I will meet you in person for an extended 2-hour kickoff strategy session in Soho House in London (photo below) and buy you lunch afterwards in the rooftop restaurant by the pool!

Private Client Mentoring is by application only. Please click below to register for more details or send me DM to talk about it. Or join the Crazy Successful Formula and then get in contact with me about upgrading.

"I had lots of good ideas for my business, but they were disparate. My problem was that I was burning out by trying to pursue all of them so the issue was how I corral these things into something saleable that's going to make me money, but something that I really want to do as well.

Working with John, I ended up having a really solid package offering which brought together all of those good things that I wanted to focus on and that I knew my target audience would want as well."

- Phil Askew, photographer and creator of the brand story playbook

How much time do I need to take part?

Allow about 1 hour per week to watch the syllabus content, sometimes a little more.

There are other events happening such as additional “What’s stopping you?” clinics and guest expert sessions but you do not have to attend these unless you need to ask something that week or wish to interact with the guest expert.

Everything we do is recorded for watching later and you’ll have access for the entire duration of your membership.

On top of this of course there is time for implementation in your business. Some weeks this will just be filling in a worksheet or trying out a new kind of social media post.

Other weeks you’ll want to carve out more time so you can write some sales copy according to my instruction or contact a bunch of people to ask them to help you with market research.

The key thing is that I will save you countless hours (If not days) you are likely to otherwise waste on things you don’t need right now or will never pay off for you (many people are wasting 90% of their time on these things!)

Create a business that stands out and wins in a crowded world

Ready to stop competing for attention?

Here's everything you'll get out of the Crazy Successful Formula

Innovate: Make your business stand out

Validate: Make rapid sales

Accelerate: Massively boost your revenue

What's included

Win the inner game of entrepreneurship

The Crazy Successful Formula is for you if...

It's not for you...

Meet John

Join Crazy Successful Formula & transform your business!

Includes these bonuses:

Want to go faster and further with my personal mentoring?

VIP membership

Private Client Mentoring

What clients say about John

Got a question?