INSIDE 1:1 MENTORING
Build a Calling Floor That Lasts
An example, not a client story.
You look at next week's calendar and see no protected calling time, only meetings and the hope that referrals arrive. Ivanka Menken uses Funnel-Day Calling inside 1:1 Mentoring, a 6-month programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, to set a four-hour calling floor and split it by funnel stage: new leads one day, follow-ups the next, past clients after that. You leave with a one-page weekly calling plan and a simple check on whether it lasted.
Funnel-Day Calling is a tool inside the programme, not a separate product.
AN EXAMPLE WEEK
Four hours, four stages, one check
- Mon to ThuOne calling hour, one stage a day
- FridayHours kept, calls made, conversations
- The floorFour hours, in the example
THE CALLING FLOOR
“Split it by funnel stage, not one vague block of cold calls.”
An example, not a client result. Your stages are yours.
SOUND FAMILIAR?
Calling happens when the pipeline feels quiet
- 01You cannot say how many hours a week go to calling.
- 02Your pipeline depends on referrals and quiet weeks.
- 03You call the same funnel stage and ignore the rest.
AN EXAMPLE WEEK
It is Sunday afternoon and next week's calendar is full. Client meetings, a supplier, two internal catch-ups. There is no block for calling anyone. If a referral comes in, good. If not, you will start calling on Thursday when it feels quiet, ring the same three warm leads again, and forget the past clients and the proposals that went out last month.
THE CALLING, AS IT STANDS
- Hours a week on calling: not known
- When it happens: when the pipeline feels quiet
- Who gets called: the same warm leads
- Past clients and open proposals: forgotten
- The check: none
An example week. Your calendar is yours.
WHAT IVANKA SEES
A floor split by funnel stage, not one vague block
A calling floor works when it is split by funnel stage, not when it is one vague block of cold calls. One block becomes cold calling only, and cold calling is the first thing a busy week pushes out. Give each day a stage, new leads, follow-ups, past clients, open proposals, and every part of the pipeline gets a call. The shift is from calling whenever it feels quiet to keeping a written floor across the stages.
A calling floor works when it is split by funnel stage, not when it is one vague block of cold calls.
THE COST OF STAYING STUCK
Without a calling floor, the pipeline stays at the mercy of referrals and quiet weeks. Busy months empty the next quarter, and the warmest conversations, past clients and open proposals, go quiet first.
Funnel-Day Calling
A stage for each day, and a Friday check
Funnel-Day Calling sets a minimum number of calling hours, four in the example, and splits them by funnel stage, a different stage on a different day. The calendar keeps the hours; the weekly check shows whether the floor lasted.
An example week. Tap a part. Your stages, days and floor are yours.
Funnel-Day Calling · a framework by Ivanka Menken
What it is
It is a one-page weekly calling plan. Each row is a day, a funnel stage, an hour and what a call at that stage is for. Underneath sits a weekly check: hours kept, calls made and conversations started, by stage.
What it replaces
It replaces calling when the pipeline feels quiet, the same warm leads called again, and a cold-calling block that the first busy week pushes out.
It sits inside 1:1 Mentoring, with the Fortnight Loop and the monthly scorecard. You or your team make the calls; Ivanka helps you set the floor and read the check. There is no separate checkout.
THE CALLING PLAN, ON ONE PAGE
- 01The floor: four hours, in the example a week
- 02The stages: new leads, follow-ups, past clients, open proposals
- 03The days: one stage on each of four days
- 04The block: protected in the calendar, like a client meeting
- 05The check: hours kept, calls made, conversations started
- 06The review: which stage produces conversations, every month
INSIDE A SESSION
Put the floor in the calendar
In an example session, Ivanka asks three questions: which funnel stages exist in your business, what happens at each, and how many hours a week can be protected for calling? She maps the four-hour floor across different days and stages with you, then tests it against next week's calendar. You write the one-page calling plan and the weekly check. Before the next session, you block the four hours and fill in the check each Friday.
THE CALLING PLAN, FILLED IN
- The floor
- Four hours a week
- Monday and Tuesday
- New leads, then follow-ups. One hour each.
- Wednesday and Thursday
- Past clients, then open proposals. One hour each.
- In the calendar
- Blocked like a client meeting, before the week fills.
- Friday
- Hours kept, calls made, conversations started.
An example. Your stages are yours.
THE FOUR-STEP LOOP
- 1The one thingThe pipeline that depends on referrals and quiet weeks.
- 2The numbersHours on calling now, and the floor you will keep.
- 3The storyWhy calling feels like the first thing to drop.
- 4The commitmentThe four hours blocked, a stage for each day.
THE QUESTIONS
- Which funnel stages exist in your business?
- What is a call at each stage for?
- How many hours a week can you protect for calling?
- Which day suits which stage?
- What will you count each Friday?
Before the next session, you block four calling hours across the week, one stage a day, and fill in the check every Friday: hours kept, calls made, conversations started.
WHAT CHANGES OVER THE PROGRAMME
A calling floor with a weekly check
By month 6, calling is a written floor in the calendar, not a reaction to a quiet week.
NOW
- Calling hours are not known.
- The pipeline depends on referrals.
- One stage gets called; the rest go quiet.
- Nothing shows whether calling happened.
BY MONTH 6
- A written four-hour calling floor, split by funnel stage.
- A weekly check that shows whether the floor lasted.
- A clearer view of which stages produce conversations.
- The floor reviewed on the monthly scorecard.
THE 12 FORTNIGHTS
- 1Call
- 2Call
- 3Call
- 4Call
- 5Call
- 6Month 3
- 7Call
- 8Call
- 9Call
- 10Call
- 11Call
- 12Month 6
The programme is the container: 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions, a monthly scorecard, and reviews at month 3 and month 6.
ILLUSTRATIVE RESULT
In the example, the founder blocks four hours a week, new leads on Monday, follow-ups on Tuesday, past clients on Wednesday and open proposals on Thursday, and fills in the check each Friday. After a month, the check shows which stage starts the most conversations. Illustrative, not a client result.
WHY IVANKA
A strategic mentor who co-founded a business
Ivanka Menken is a strategic mentor for founders of $500K to $3M businesses, co-founder of The Art of Service, an author and an international speaker, based in Brisbane, Australia.
She asks where the next conversation will come from, and keeps you to the hours you write down. If next week has no calling time in it, the decision in front of you is four hours and four stages. Put them in the calendar before Monday.
WHO IT IS FOR
Who fits, and who does not
It fits
- You run a $500K to $3M business that wins work through conversations.
- Your pipeline depends on referrals and quiet weeks.
- You call when you remember to, and the same people.
- You will block the hours and fill in the weekly check.
It does not fit
- You want accounting or financial advice.
- You want a done-for-you fix or someone to make the calls.
- You want a call script or a sales training course.
- Your work never comes from conversations.
THE INVESTMENT
AUD $1,500
per month ex GST
6 months · 12 fortnightly sessions
It is part of 1:1 Mentoring, a 6-month programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, not sold separately.
- 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions
- A monthly one-page scorecard
- Reviews at month 3 and month 6
- Funnel-Day Calling, if your work comes from conversations
Three founding places in total, shared across 1:1 Mentoring and its three focus programmes, are available at A$1,000 a month, in return for honest monthly feedback and a testimonial, which can be anonymous. Claim a founding place.
Funnel-Day Calling is one of the tools inside the programme. It is not sold separately.
FREQUENTLY ASKED
Questions about a calling floor
How does Funnel-Day Calling work inside 1:1 Mentoring?
In a session, Ivanka Menken asks which funnel stages you have, what a call at each is for and how many hours you can protect. You split a four-hour floor across days and stages, test it against your calendar and write a weekly check. 1:1 Mentoring runs 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, and the tool is part of it.
Do I need to cold call for four hours a day?
No. Some sales teams keep four hours a day; for most founders, the example floor is four hours a week, one hour on each of four days. Most of it is not cold: follow-ups, past clients and open proposals. Ivanka Menken sets the number that fits your week inside 1:1 Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.
What if my funnel stages are different?
Use your own. Some businesses have three stages, some have five. Name what actually happens between a first contact and a signed client, then give each stage a day. Ivanka Menken maps your stages with you in the session, inside 1:1 Mentoring, which runs 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.
How do we track the calling floor?
With one weekly check, filled in each Friday: hours kept, calls made and conversations started, by stage. It takes five minutes. Once a month it goes on the scorecard, so you can see which stage produces conversations. Ivanka Menken reads it with you at each session of 1:1 Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.
Block the four hours before Monday
If next week has no calling time in it, start with 1:1 Mentoring. Funnel-Day Calling is inside it, and the 20-minute intro call is where you can see whether the programme fits.