If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life!” is often said by people who have taken advantage of one of the many small business opportunities available in America today. Yet, we all know that while some people grab life by the horns and take control of their destiny, others allow their lives to be controlled by others and wait for opportunities that never seem to come. Do you have friends or family members who always seem to get that lucky break? They always seem to be in the right place at the right time. Why is that? What makes them different?

Happy, successful people have learned to make the most of every day. They are excited about the future and willing to sacrifice today to have a better life tomorrow. This enthusiasm and optimistic attitude allow them to take a chance and take advantage of opportunities as they arise.

Like it or not, your future is in your control! The outcome of your life is a direct result of the decisions you make or fail to make. Unfortunately, many people blame others or circumstances for their failures. They sit in thankless jobs, complaining about a lack of income, respect, and a lack of advancement in their careers. Their only hope for a brighter future is to win the lottery. Unfortunately, that never happens. Emotionally and often financially drained, many give up and accept life as they see it—a dull, unfulfilling experience with little reason to try. A few finally decide to take control of their future to seek the American Dream and open their own business.

What does the American Dream mean to you? In his legendary “I Have a Dream” speech, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. described a world of racial equality and the vision of a better life. While you may have your twist on the American Dream, I am confident that somewhere in your definition is a desire to create a better lifestyle defined in some way by personal wealth.

In a world filled with “get rich quick” schemes, multi-million-dollar sports contracts, state lotteries, and idol contests, I believe our society has eroded the dream and replaced it with the belief that shortcuts and luck are the only ways to get ahead. The truth is that there are no shortcuts in life. There is no substitute for hard work and some sacrifice to achieve financial success.

Most people enter business for themselves after becoming frustrated with their current situation and believing owning a business is the answer to their prayers. Unfortunately, you may be one of them. Corporate downsizing, limited financial opportunities, and job instability make controlling your future appealing. However, if you have not already done so, before making such a decision, you should ensure that owning a business is the right decision.

But let’s face it, owning a business or managing a team is hard work. And up to this point, you’ve managed, for the most part, to do it on your own.

For most, admitting there is a problem and asking for help doesn’t come easily. But just reading this message means you’ve taken the first step to building a better life for yourself and those who depend on you to develop an effective business model. So, for that, congratulations! And that’s what it is about anyway, isn’t it? Creating a better life. At Ivy Consulting Group, we like to say that it’s not about building a better business – it’s about building your business in a way that provides joy and happiness for everyone around you.

You’ve joined countless others who have realized that seeking help from a trained and certified I/O professional is a tremendous asset to you as a business leader. So whether your biggest challenge is hiring, training, motivating, or even letting go of underachieving and disengaged people, you’ve come to the right place.

The secret to why our process works are because of our dedicated team of highly educated and motivated I/O professionals. And while they come from various backgrounds, industries, and socioeconomic and demographic communities, they have more in common than what makes them different. All are educated in top institutions, are masterful in their craft, and love to help people succeed!

Using our Ivy Consultant Toolkit, certified consultants work through a proven curriculum of over eighty processes in 10-Dynamics, covering every aspect of your business. Our team can use proven research methods or create custom performance assessments, host team-building workshops, motivate your sales team, and everything in between. The point is, when you hire an Ivy Consultant, you are getting the best. And best of all, you can start today for FREE. No obligation. No pressure to buy. Just great advice, one question at a time. 

The First Step

After creating an account on our site, we ask business leaders to complete our proprietary I.C.G. Culture Assessment. This self-assessment tool will identify what works well in an organization and what, let’s just say, is not. In most cases, the areas where there is the most significant gap between where a company is now and where the leaders hope it will be, are the same areas that cause the biggest frustration and are the most significant growth opportunities. So this is our starting point.

Like many tools and services on this website, the assessment is free. That’s not to say that it is not a powerful tool. After completing the questionnaire, it will provide the user with extremely valuable information and can act as a benchmark to evaluate future progress. In addition, an Ivy Consultant can offer a free consultation to go over the report in detail and recommend the best action plan to maximize results. All of this is provided with no obligation or pressure to hire.

Once you have joined the Ivy Consulting Group network, you are part of a team of successful Industrial-Organization Psychologists and Practitioners who will soon become more like family than business acquaintances. We encourage you to be an active member of our incredible team and share openly with others. If you incorporate the lesson plans we teach into your business, we are confident that you will be happier than ever before, controlling your destiny and living a life you may have never thought possible.

Welcome to the family!

Jeffrey L. Hastings, A.L.M.
Harvard, 2022

C.E.O. and Founder