Designer Mentorship
60 minutes of focused, no-bullshit consulting to get you out of the spiral and into a design business that actually runs like one.
You're good at design. It's everything else about running a design business that's making you lose your mind.
The scope creep you keep letting slide because you don't want to be "that designer." The pricing you second-guess every single time someone asks for a quote. The client who wants to "run it by her husband" who "has a really good eye." 🙄🙄🙄
(Meanwhile, you're three rounds past what the contract technically covered, but you don't know how to enforce that without sounding difficult.)
You started this business because you're creative and you wanted freedom—not so you could spend half your week managing 87 extra revision rounds and the other half logging onto Instagram wondering how everyone else has it more figured out than you.
And the thing is, you've probably got clients. They're just not the kind who trust you, pay you well, or respect the scope you paaaaainstakingly outlined in your proposal.
Somewhere along the way, client work started feeling less like creative direction and more like creative customer service. And you can't help but wonder: is this just what it's like? Or is there a version of this career where people actually trust you?
Hi, I’m Sarah Kleist—and trust me when I say: I lived it.
From the outside, it probably looks like I’ve always have my shit together. 220+ websites designed and launched in the span of 5 years, 6-figure revenue every year since 2022, speaking on conference stages, featured in major press publications...
But I promise you, I did not start here.
When I started, it looked a lot more like: 16-hour workdays, sleepless nights, resenting my clients, 384 revision rounds for every project, making pennies, and taking out all of my frustration on my friends and family when I finally set my laptop down each night.
Trusttttttt, I did NOT start out with all the answers. I was charging $400 for full websites (wish I was kidding), had consistent 5am mental breakdowns, every project timeline overlapped, I had zero boundaries, and made a whole lot of mistakes that I had to learn the hard way.
(Oh, and I’m also self-taught, so I didn’t even have design confidence to fall back on. Looking back, it’s honestly a miracle that I’m here at all.)
I've navigated every client dynamic, every red flag, every pricing spiral, and every "why is this so hard!?!?!" moment a designer can have.
All my fuck-ups mean you don't have to make them, because I don’t gatekeep a single damn thing.
the good news?
Designer Mentorship Call
enter...
$250
A 60-minute, personalized business consulting call that equips you to effectively communicate your creative genius, develop efficient biz systems and workflows, create raving-fan clients who shout your name from the rooftops, and become recognized as an expert in your corner of the internet—so you can make way more money and feel way more fulfilled.
Fill out the questionnaire.
Before your call, you’ll answer questions about where you're at and what's not working. That way, instead of spending the first 20 minutes of our call figuring out what's going on, I'll already know—and I can show up with ideas for you before we even start talking.
We chat it out.
60 minutes on Zoom digging into whatever's feeling messy, stuck, or unclear. (And I'll record the whole thing so you can actually be present instead of frantically scribbling notes the whole time.)
You get a personalized recap with next steps.
After the call, I'll send you a recap of our call and clear, actionable plan based on everything we discussed—so you can close your laptop knowing exactly what to do next and start fixing the problems right away.
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$250
here's how it all goes down:
we can cover topics such as...
Each session is custom-tailored to you, but
Offers, Services, and Revenue
- Building a service suite that actually supports your life and goals
- Pricing for sustainability—not just what you think people will pay
- Creating a weekly workflow that leaves room for your own business
- Streamlining your tools and systems (Dubsado, Notion, onboarding, offboarding, all of it)
- Creating client timelines that work mutually beneficial for both you AND the client
Each session is tailored to you, but
we can cover topics such as
Client Experience &
Project Flow
- Designing a client journey that keeps projects on track, prevents scope creep, and makes boundaries easy to enforce
- Leading projects like a creative director instead of an order-taker
- Improving your discovery calls (and actually closing them)
- Client psychology and understanding what clients really want
- Building a project flow that feels good for you
Money & Business Health
- Setting prices that reflect your value (and knowing when to raise them)
- Getting out of the feast-or-famine cycle for good
- Cleaning up your payment structures and payment plans
- Creating booking systems that actually protect your time
- Building a service suite with different price points so you're not relying on one type of buyer
Positioning & Personal Brand
- Building a personal brand that positions you as an expert (not just another designer)
- Articulating what actually makes you different
- Getting clear on what you want to be known for
- Translating your story into a brand people care about
- Leveraging a multi-hyphenate identity instead of hiding it
Marketing
- Auditing your website, services flow, and portfolio to make your brand feel more premium
- Updating your copy to reflect your authority and badass services
- Planning and directing brand photo shoots for yourself or your clients
- Setting up a simple, sustainable email strategy that makes your newsletter your main channel
- Figuring out what to actually talk about online and how to stand out on Instagram, TikTok, or Threads
Mindset, Identity, & Confidence
- Working through the "am I even legit?" spiral and imposter syndrome that comes with client work
- Navigating perfectionism so it stops slowing you down
- Building sustainable confidence
- Avoiding burnout before it starts
- Building your network, finding new opportunities, and meeting interesting people to further your career in ways you never thought imaginable
I'm originally from the Midwest, so yes, I'm warm — but I'm also a real one and I will be soooo fucking for real with you.
If something's broken, I'll tell you. If you're undercharging, I'll tell you. If that client you're venting about is actually kind of right, I'll tell you that too. (Gently. But still.)
But I won’t give you fake feedback just to justify my price tag.
I've had designers book a call ready to scrap their entire business model when the actual problem was, like, one unclear service description and a weird onboarding portal. That's not a rebrand, that's a Tuesday. Let's fix it and move the hell on.
And btw, that's exactly how we're able to cover so much ground in one hour—I'm not burning time poking at things that don't need poking. Every minute goes toward the stuff that actually matters.
A on my mentorship style—
quick note
Feel unorganized and know your business would run smoother with better systems
Are drowning in scope creep and want to hold boundaries without spiraling
Are tired of clients treating you like an assistant instead of an expert
Don't have strong onboarding or processes and want things to feel more legit
Are undercharging or unsure how to structure your offers
This is for you if you...
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Know you're talented but feel like your current reality doesn't match your potential
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perfect
frequently asked questions
I can absolutely give you feedback on your designs and client work, but this mentorship is really focused on the business side of running a design business. There are other designers out there doing design education way better than I ever could. (And that's on knowing your strengths, bb.)
Nope — I'm not a lawyer or an accountant, so it's literally illegal for me to give you that kind of advice. But I can point you toward qualified professionals who can actually help with that stuff!
I'd love to help you! Brand new business owners are honestly some of my favorite mentorship clients, and there are SOOOOO many mistakes I can prevent you from making.
Totally fair! Shoot me an email at sarah@sarahkleist.com and ask away. I'll be honest with you about whether this is the right fit—I'm not here to convince anyone to book something that's not going to serve them.
That's super common. (Sometimes you don't know what you don't know!) Fill out the questionnaire when you book and just tell me what's feeling off—even if it's vague. I'm good at asking the right questions to figure out where we should focus. That's literally the job.
Some people book once and get exactly what they need. Some people come back every few months when they hit a new growth phase. Totally up to you, there's no pressure to commit to anything beyond the one call, because you’ll have a loooong to-do list after 1 call with me, trust me ;)
Please. I started with $400 websites, no systems, and complete chaos. There is nothing you can show me that will shock me. I've seen it all and I've lived most of it. Come as you are.
One hour of real
talk six more months of winging it
60 minutes from now, you could have clear next steps instead of 17 open browser tabs and a vague sense of dread. Together, we’ll create a plan you trust, systems that actually work for your brain, and a business that doesn't require you to be online 24/7 to function.
(You might even…. start taking weekends off. WILD!!!!)
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