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Green Business Mastery Program

“Prior to working with BEST Coaches I had a million great green business ideas without any solid direction or plan. In the 90 day Mastermind program, I was able to clarify my vision with laser precision and focus on a winning game plan to “live the vision.” I now have a storefront under contract and [my]… organic café … will be opening within 3 months. ”

Vic Fiallo, Owner
Tierra Sana Restaurant, Forest Hills, New York

The Green Business Mastery Program is a one-year business acceleration program for “growth-stage” New York-based businesses with sales of $100K+/year whose goal is play a role in replenishing the planet’s natural resources.

Do you have a company that:

And are you looking to:

Then the Green Business Mastery Program might be for you.

Hi, my name is Stefan Doering and for the past 22 years I have been working in the environmental/sustainable business sector.  In 1991 I opened one of the first environmental retail companies in the country and within six years grew it to one of the largest. Yet the concept was about ten years before it’s time so we eventually had to shut them down.

In 2002 I accomplished what some thought was absolutely “unreasonable”. After being assaulted and left for dead in Brooklyn, I could no longer walk and doctors thought I may never be able to again.  Yet soon after leaving the hospital I created and achieved a 90-day goal of running five miles in Central Park.  Since then I’ve used the model that helped me achieve my unreasonable goal and have worked with almost 1,500 companies in 13 countries helping them set up and achieve their UnReasonable goals.  Companies ranging from start up to mature stages that generated from $0 to over $30MM in sales, helping them to consistent profitability and sustainability.

Since 2005 I also have been teaching Green business courses at Columbia University’s Center for Environmental Research and Education, working with some of the brightest people using state-of-the-art science and technology to create environmental solutions.

What I’ve learned over these years is it really is not easy being “green” and to compete head-on with the non-green alternatives to your products and services.  It can be difficult and overwhelming trying to educate consumers, who usually don’t understand nor appreciate the importance of the ecological benefits your product or service offers or why they should buy it instead of the non-green alternatives out there.  Therefore the challenge for green businesses has been trying to:

1) compete with “non-green” competitors and

2) sell an innovative solution to an un-educated audience.

Yet this is all changing rapidly today. And those companies that position themselves as the experts in their industries along with powerful solutions to our planet’s biggest challenges will have a serious competitive advantage over the non-green solutions.

And that is why I have created the Green Business Mastery Program. To work directly with a small group of leading edge businesses here in New York to not only manage but master what it will take to be successfully “sustainable”.

The program is designed to develop creative solutions for:

But this program is not for just any green business! Are you are committed to a high level of success, far beyond just generating a healthy profit?  Are you are also committed to making a serious and positive impact on our planet and communities?  Because in this program you will be working extremely hard towards creating powerful solutions towards today’s environmental challenges while demonstrating a new business model of success.

Using your Sustainability Blueprint— a profitable business model for selling products and services using your company’s detailed plan of action for maintaining and restoring ecological and social balance in a consistent and unified way.  It demonstrates the company’s commitment to “best practices.”

And for this reason, we are looking for “the greenest of the green”.

We’re creating the first Collective of Carbon Negative Companies in New York… and possibly the country.

Carbon negative companies actively convert carbon in the atmosphere into oxygen from their normal daily operations.  Examples might include urban farmers, algae producers of bio fuels, and roof top garden designers/installers.

How close to Carbon Negative are you?

The Green Business Mastery program will include a wide range of state-of-the-art, technology and science-based businesses as well as service providers and manufacturers that have an aggressive vision for restoring the planet’s environment, demonstrate passion, expertise and experience in the green / environmental sciences sector, have a unique concept, business model and/or technology, and are New York-based growth stage businesses.  We help you define, build and promote your carbon negative business.

How? We will use our collective of carbon negative companies to expand and grow exactly what carbon negative means for your business, how to set it up and then maintain it.  We will work with some top experts in the field that we are currently putting together.

Is this you?

What you don’t want

Most entrepreneurs want to increase the success of their business, but at what cost? Are you so focused on your business’ financial success you never have time to look at its impact on your community and planet?  Or are you doing the opposite:  you are very aware of your community and planet but your business is not profitable?  Neither is Green Business Mastery.

What you do want

Successful green businesses have:

Objectives of the Program

The Green Business Mastery Program is a one-year program conducted with a small group (12 to 16) of high-level green business professionals who are looking for the next level of marketing and business sustainability tools, financing, hands-on coaching and peer support. Our program is designed to help stimulate New York’s economy by helping small businesses committed to restoring the environment:

1. Get clear on your powerful company vision. What is it you will do to create a powerful impact on the planet?  Where you really want to go! A clear vision creates the passion that keeps you going. The bigger you want to play, the greater the passion needs to be.

2. Define your UnReasonable goal. Create an exciting goal that stretches you beyond what you would do on your own and inspires a powerful team of people to join you to help move it forward.

3. Define/refine your Sustainability Blueprint. A profitable business model for selling products and services using your company’s detailed plan of action for maintaining and restoring ecological and social balance in a consistent and unified way.  It demonstrates the company’s commitment to “best practices.”

4. Obtain proper financing. In order to pursue your UnReasonable goal, you may need to explore external financing through grants, investor capital, loans, etc. to properly grow your company.

5. Launch your intense marketing and sales campaign. One key goal is to increase revenue at least $100K during the 12 month program by:

a. building a strong marketing campaign to compete with your “non-green” competitors
b. educating customers on why your product is superior to non-green alternatives
c. creating strategic joint ventures and alliances with other businesses to cross-promote your businesses to much larger audiences and adding to your credibility
d. launching and leveraging a consistent marketing campaign for your product / service and how it is helping people and the planet.
e. shifting consumer habits to being more aware of the environmental issues in your industry
f. maintaining a “greenwash-free” business

6. Showcase your sustainable business model. By leveraging the Collective of Carbon Negative Companies’ resources and the program’s media outreach, you will be presented as a leader and role model for other businesses to follow.

7. Create more green jobs. The growing of your business and further contributing to New York’s economy as well as your community will increase your attractiveness to outside sources of funding and opportunities.

8. To have balance in your life. This means managing your time and energies so that you run your business, your business doesn’t run you. It also means loving your business and making a lasting contribution to your clients and community.

The Three Keys to Green Business Mastery

To accomplish these objectives in the program we work in a very focused way, applying the following three keys.

Key #1 – Financial Health

Green Business Mastery means you understand you are not impervious to what all businesses must deal with and in fact have dealt with them effectively.  You have two things in regards a financially healthy company creating consistent results.  First, you have the basics of a solid business model, created a business plan, and implemented the necessary strategies for funding, marketing, team building, product/service development and marketing.

Second, you leverage your sustainable business model to position your company ahead of the competition and as the company to beat when it comes to innovation, inspiration and a model of success.  Examples of companies that do this well are Zipcar and Terracycle. In both cases, by branding themselves authentically as helping the environment and society has / had gained tremendous customer and brand loyalty and raving fans.

Green Business Mastery means you have obtained a financially healthy company with consistent results by doing both components.

Key #2 – Environmental and Social Impact

Green Business Mastery means your company makes a powerful and positive impact on the health of the planet and communities.

Today expert climatologists around the world are agreeing we are about to hit the point of no return for our planet.

And that point is 2015, only five years away!

What does this mean?  The UN’s Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) announced in 2007 that if we do not stop our earth’s temperature from increasing beyond the levels it will hit by 2015, there will be no stopping the environmental impacts that will ensue.

To help restore our planet and communities will take something unreasonable.  Green Business Mastery demonstrates to the world the fastest way we’ll replenish the planet’s natural resources is by showing people how to make money doing it.

Now that’s UnReasonable.

“… all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”  George Bernard Shaw.

In this program, we help you be UnReasonable.  We are not interested helping you be “carbon neutral”—net zero carbon emissions.  That is reasonable.

Instead, we are interested in helping you be carbon negative—the act of removing carbon from the earth’s atmosphere.

Now THAT is UnReasonable!

Why?  Carbon, as you may know, is what is heating up our planet and creating climate change in unsustainable ways.  Helping remove it is Green Business Mastery.

Don’t worry.  We’ll help you get there with tons of support, coaching, mastermind groups, expert speakers and information on funding sources just to name a few.  And your efforts as participants will not be to make all these changes but it is important to make as many as you possible.

Plus our expertise in green businesses over the past 20 years we will help you make this happen.  See Bio

Key #3 – Business Leadership

Green Business Mastery means becoming a leader in the new way of doing business.

New York is the center of new business innovations.  The world looks to us as the state-of-the-art leader in business success and to lead us from the “old” to the “new” way of doing business.

The Old Way:  Milton Friedman, Nobel Price Chief Economist summarized this extremely popular strategy for business when he said, “There is one and only one social responsibility of business… to increase its profits….”  This one-dimensional way of doing business is known as the single-bottom-line—maximizing profits.

And this model of doing business is not sustainable and ultimately implodes on itself, as our current economic crisis has clearly shown.  And while Dr. Friedman was correct that businesses must focus on profits, this is only 1/3 of the equation.

The New Way: In order to sustain a business’ success long-term and in today’s global economy, business must also consider two other dimensions:  the success of all its stakeholders— all people impacted by the actions of your business, ranging from customers, to employees, local communities, investors, suppliers, and so on— (the people) and the impact it has on the environment they live in (the planet.)

This three-dimensional model, known as the Triple-Bottom-Line:  People, Planet and Profits, requires business owners to focus on three planes, not just one.  And that can make it difficult to compete with non-green businesses only focusing on one plane:  profits.

Or is it?

In the Green Business Mastery Program, you build a triple-bottom-line business that:

What Makes the Green Business Mastery Program Different?

As leaders in the New Way in Green Business Mastery, a new way of running a program is needed.

The five key differences in this program are the levels of:

1. Participants—this is not a business acceleration program for beginners. It is for those who already have substantial business success and a very, very serious commitment to its stakeholders and the health of the planet. It is also for those who have already have launched their business, have a web site, are attracting clients and they are growing.

2. Support—when playing a big game, an UnReasonable game, it is easy to get distracted, derailed, demotivated, and psyched out.  With your senior coach/facilitator and your mastermind group of participants to keep you moving and helping you deal with the obstacles you will encounter along the way, you are much more likely to succeed.

3. Experience/Expertise—Stefan Doering, with 22 years of green business background, is known as the green business guy.  He is also a teacher and trainer for many hundreds of green businesses helping them maximize sales and profits through breakthrough marketing campaigns that compete directly with competitors without compromising their standards towards a sustainable company.  He has personally designed and is running this program.  There will also be various expert guest speakers ranging from finance to state-of-the-art marketing strategies, to help you grow your profits and sustainability model while going carbon negative.

4. Focus—as leading entrepreneurs, it is easy to lose focus.  You will create a crystal clear vision of where you are taking your business using structures you will need to keep your eye on the ball, especially when life throws a curve ball at you.

5. Accountability—when working alone on building your company it is easy to not get things done that you said you would.  With our team of coaches and your personal mastermind group, you will be held accountable to getting things done quickly.

Who is Stefan Doering?

stefan Green Business Mastery Program

Stefan is a true innovator demonstrating business acumen in environmental business and sustainability since 1987.  He is an expert in teaching and coaching green businesses in three major areas:  1) innovating powerful green business models, 2) crafting and implementing marketing and positioning strategies for bringing green to mainstream, and 3) creating a consistently profitable and sustainable business.

Some of Stefan’s accomplishments:

There really are very few people on the planet with the expertise and training Stefan has to guide you into Green Business Mastery.

Why do green businesses at this level need a program like this?

We need more Green Business Masters. Our planet and economy cannot afford more businesses running on the old way of doing business and we need successful new way businesses to show others the way.

And these green business leaders will greatly benefit from the intensity, level of expertise and support of the Green Business Mastery program.

When going for an UnReasonable green business goal, a goal outside your comfort zone, having intense support, tools and educational programs is crucial.  But not all support is created equal. Some support is rather random, with a few ideas and inspiration here and there. This might be good for a business just getting started, but isn’t sufficient to build a solid business that brings in a substantial income month in and month out for years on end.

Support to develop creative solutions for:

Tools to Grow Your Business Effectively:

Education (for others to follow your lead):

We tend to go only as far as our current knowledge, plans and limitations.

With new knowledge, plans and attitudes, what we can accomplish is virtually unlimited. Sadly, very few people even reach a fraction of their potential in their businesses (or other areas of their life, for that matter).

Within the structure of the Green Business Mastery Program, you will enter a “high stakes game” where you’ll play and work at a level that you have rarely experienced.

In the Green Business Mastery Program you will:

It will take this level of thinking, doing and being to become a Green Business Master.
What specific results can you expect if you participate in the Marketing Mastery Program?

You will be trained and supported in being:

You will build your X Factor—using your UnReasonable and UnStoppable training to add a factor of “x” percent to your current business.  The “x” number is the percentage you will grow your business in the program.  For example, you decide your X Factor = 25 towards sales.  This means you will increase sales by 25% from where they are now.

Don’t worry, we’ll help you create, prioritize and manage the X Factor number(s) best for you, particularly as they pertain to making key management and financial decisions and staying true to your ideals of true sustainability.  Here are some of the categories you can put the X Factor on:

This will be the first time we have conducted this program in exactly this format. However, we have conducted similar in-depth business building mastermind group programs over the past few years. I recommend you read a few of the case studies of those who have participated in them. You can read these case studies on this page.

What is required to participate in the Green Business Mastery Program?

As previously mentioned, this program is not for new comers to green business. It’s for you if you have been in business for at least 3 years, a working, professional web site, are generating at least $100K/year in revenue, can demonstrate your passion and commitment to shifting how we do business on the planet and have the energy and inspiration to focus and create a massive transformation in your business’, society’s and planet’s success.

If that sounds like you and you are interested in achieving the outcomes promised in this program, I invite you to take advantage of a complimentary “Green Business Growth Strategy Session” (see below for details.)

The structure of the program includes:

1. Two group sessions by teleconference (group call by phone) each month with Stefan. Each call will be approximately 90 minutes long.  Sessions will be recorded if you need to review or miss a session.  You will then have access to these calls online.

2. Four small group meetings/calls per month with your “Mastermind Group” of 3-4 program participants, plus a senior coach/facilitator.  A mastermind group is a group of “like-minded” entrepreneur just like you working on their UnReasonable green business goals that support each other, hold each other accountable, brainstorm with you and share stories and experience to help you build your company.

3. A minimum of one individual meeting with Stefan Doering by telephone each month.  You will use this time with Stefan to adjust your strategy (if necessary), get clarity on principles and coaching specific to your needs.

4. A Green Business Mastery Report sent to Stefan every month, logging the progress in implementing your UnReasonable goal.  This will be used to keep track of where you are so we can adjust our coaching and presentations to exactly what you are dealing with during the program.

5. Weekly office hours by phone with a coach to make sure you stay on track and get the 1-on-1 attention you might need.  This works great if you need some extra or “spot” coaching.

6. Guest speaker series covers issues such as private and government funding sources, marketing strategies, technology tools, networking opportunities, and sustainability issues.

A description of the structure of the program, however, really doesn’t do it justice. You will be immersed in a process of building your business in a whole different way and be supported in following through and making it happen.
Get a Complimentary “Green Business Growth Strategy Session”

If you think this program may be for you, here’s what to do. Fill out the form below completely so I know about your situation and environmental commitment in some depth. Then I’ll get back to you and, if appropriate, offer you a complimentary one-hour Green Business Growth Strategy Session.

In this session we’ll explore:

I’ll also answer any questions you might have about the Green Business Mastery Program and we’ll see if it’s the right step for you or not.
Name
Business Name
City, State, Country
Email Address
Phone
Kind of business
Existing website
Please tell me a little about your business
What is the approximate annual income generated from your business?
What is your annual income goal?
Are you full time in your business or part time?
How many years have you been in your current business?
What business / sustainability training and/or coaching have you have, if any? When?
Please list three business goals you’d like to accomplish in one to three years. These can be income goals or other accomplishments.
What are your three biggest business (and “sustainability”) challenges? That is, what do you struggle with and what has been hard for you to accomplish up to this point in your business?
What is your commitment to the environment? What do you do or have you done to help heal the planet in the past and for how long have you been doing it?
What is your commitment to your stakeholders? What do you do or have you done to help your communities and people involved in your business?
Do you consider your company carbon positive, neutral or negative? Is the result of your business offsetting your carbon footprint or reducing carbon in the environment? Explain.
Three times we could meet by phone to discuss your participation in the program in the next one to two weeks.
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