INSIDE 1:1 MENTORING
Put a Triple Rate on Rush Work
A client asks for the work by Monday, it is Friday afternoon, and you are about to say yes at your normal rate again. Ivanka Menken uses the Fortnight Loop inside 1:1 Mentoring, a 6-month programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, to turn rush work into a written rule: the trigger, at least triple the normal rate, and who can approve an exception. You quote it before you say yes, and review it at the next fortnight.
The Fortnight Loop is a tool inside the programme, not a separate product.
AN EXAMPLE RUSH REQUEST
Friday afternoon, due Monday.
- THE NORMAL RATEwhat every rush job had been billed at1x
- A SMALL SURCHARGEapplied case by case, then droppedAd hoc
- THE RULEat least triple, written, quoted first3x
THE RULE
“If it is rush work, it is at least triple. Quote it before you say yes.”
Your trigger and rate will differ.
SOUND FAMILIAR?
Rush work at the normal rate
- 01You say yes to last-minute work before you think about the price.
- 02Your surcharge changes with every client and every mood.
- 03Weekends disappear to keep clients happy.
RUSH WORK, AS IT STANDS
- Rate for rush work: the normal rate
- Surcharge: small, applied case by case
- Trigger for rush: not written down
- Who approves an exception: the founder, every time
- Review of rush jobs: never
A pricing rule that lived in one head.
THE EXAMPLE CASE
A rush request with no rule behind it
01
THE MOMENT
Friday afternoon, due Monday
It is Friday afternoon. A good client emails: can you turn this around by Monday? You know what saying yes costs: the weekend, the work you had planned, and the next client who learns that rush is free. You say yes anyway, at the normal rate, because there is no rule to point to and asking for more feels like a fresh negotiation every time.
02
WHAT THEY HAD TRIED
Add a small surcharge
The obvious fix was a small surcharge for rush jobs. It was applied case by case. A loyal client got it waived. A nervous week meant it was never mentioned. Within a month the founder was folding on every request again, still giving up weekends, and now with clients who had seen the surcharge disappear once and expected it to disappear again.
03
WHAT IVANKA NOTICED
No written trigger, so every request was new
Ivanka noticed there was no written trigger for rush work. What counted as rush, how much notice was normal, who could say yes: none of it was on paper. So every request became a fresh judgement call, made under pressure, on a Friday, with a client waiting. The founder was not bad at pricing. The rule simply lived in their head, where it lost every argument.
THE DIAGNOSIS
The rule lived in the founder’s head
The diagnosis was not the size of the surcharge. It was that the pricing rule lived in the founder’s head, so it had to be renegotiated with themselves every time a client asked.
The reframe: the decision was never unclear. The cost of delay had never been named. Once the weekend, the displaced work and the precedent were counted, at least triple the normal rate stopped looking greedy and started looking accurate. A written rule makes that call once, not every Friday.
A pricing rule in your head loses every argument with a client.
THE COST OF STAYING STUCK
Every rush job at the normal rate costs a weekend and teaches the client that rush is free. The next request arrives sooner.
THE TOOL
The Fortnight Loop, for one rush rule
The Fortnight Loop is how 1:1 Mentoring turns a decision into a commitment and checks it two weeks later. For rush work, the loop names the decision, counts the cost of saying yes at the normal rate, writes the rule, and reviews every exception at the next session.
Tap a part. Your trigger and rate will differ.
Fortnight Loop · a framework by Ivanka Menken
What it is
It is one rule on one page: what counts as rush, the rate, at least triple the normal rate, who can approve an exception, and how the rule is quoted before the founder says yes. Then a review date, two weeks out, with every rush request since listed against it.
What it replaces
It replaces a surcharge applied by mood, a weekend given up to keep the peace, and the same negotiation with yourself every Friday afternoon.
It sits inside 1:1 Mentoring, next to the monthly scorecard. Each fortnightly session starts from the commitment you wrote last time, so the rush rule is checked against what actually happened. It is coaching, not a done-for-you pricing fix, and there is no separate checkout.
THE RULE, AS WRITTEN
- 01The trigger: what counts as rush, in plain words
- 02The notice line: how much notice is normal for this work
- 03The rate: at least triple the normal rate
- 04The exception: who can approve one, and why
- 05The quote: the rule stated before you say yes
- 06The review: every rush request listed at the next fortnight
HOW IVANKA WORKED WITH THEM
One rule, one review date
In the session, Ivanka named the decision: what to charge for rush work. She listed the options, counted the cost of waiting, the weekends and the displaced work, and asked for the smallest reversible step. The founder wrote a one-page rule: the trigger, at least triple the normal rate, and who could approve an exception. They left with one decision, one next action, to quote the rule on the next rush request, and a date to check it.
THE RUSH RULE, AS WRITTEN
- Trigger
- Work requested with less notice than the normal turnaround.
- Rate
- At least triple the normal rate.
- Exception
- Approved by the founder only, written down with a reason.
- How it is quoted
- In the first reply, before saying yes.
- Review
- At the next fortnight
Your trigger and rate will differ.
THE FOUR-STEP LOOP
- 1The one thingRush work at the normal rate.
- 2The numbersThe weekends and work each rush job displaced.
- 3The storyWhy asking for more felt like a fresh negotiation.
- 4The commitmentA written rule: at least triple, quoted first.
THE QUESTIONS
- What counts as rush work for you?
- What did the last rush job really cost?
- What rate makes saying yes worth it?
- Who can approve an exception?
- What will you say to the next client who asks?
Before the next session, the founder quoted the rule on the next rush request before saying yes, and listed every rush request and exception for the review.
WHAT CHANGED
A rule quoted before the yes
By month 6, rush work has a written rule, every exception has a reason, and the next pricing decision follows the same process.
BEFORE
- Rush work went out at the normal rate.
- The surcharge changed with the client.
- Weekends went to last-minute jobs.
- Every request was a new negotiation.
BY MONTH 6
- A written rush rule at least triple the normal rate.
- The rule quoted before saying yes.
- Each exception reviewed at the next fortnight.
- A repeatable process for the next pricing decision.
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 this case, the founder wrote a rule with at least triple the normal rate on last-minute work and reviewed each exception at the next fortnight. The founder began quoting the rule before saying yes, instead of deciding the price after the weekend had gone.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU
Write the rule before the next Friday
Ivanka Menken built 1:1 Mentoring for founders of $500K to $3M businesses who keep carrying the same decisions. Every fortnight she helps you name one decision, write the commitment and check it two weeks later.
This fits if rush requests keep landing and you keep saying yes at the normal rate. It does not fit if you want someone to set your prices for you. The decision in front of you is one rule. Write the trigger and the rate before the next rush request arrives.
“Helps founders lead with clarity and integrity by modelling vulnerability, emotional intelligence, and grounded decision-making. Creates an environment where leaders can openly explore challenges and grow without fear of judgement.”
R.W., founder
WHO IT IS FOR
It fits
- You sell services and clients ask for last-minute work.
- Your surcharge comes and goes with the client.
- You give up weekends to keep clients happy.
- You will write the rule down and quote it.
It does not fit
- You want accounting or financial advice.
- You want a done-for-you pricing fix.
- You want permission to refuse all rush work.
- You want a rate card written for you without testing it.
THE INVESTMENT
AUD $1,500
per month ex GST
6 months · 12 fortnightly sessions
The Fortnight Loop is part of 1:1 Mentoring, a 6-month programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST. It is not sold separately.
- 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions
- A monthly one-page scorecard
- Reviews at month 3 and month 6
- The Fortnight Loop for every pricing rule
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.
The Fortnight Loop is part of the programme. It is not sold separately.
FREQUENTLY ASKED
Questions about a rush fee rule
What counts as rush work?
Rush work is anything asked for with less notice than your normal turnaround. Write that line in plain words, so the trigger is a fact, not a feeling. Ivanka Menken helps you set it inside 1:1 Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, and the rule names the rate, at least triple the normal rate, and who can approve an exception.
What if I set the rate wrong?
Then the review tells you. The rule is checked at the next fortnight against every rush request since: who paid it, who pushed back and what each job displaced. Ivanka Menken reads that list with you inside 1:1 Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, and you adjust the trigger or the rate with evidence instead of a Friday mood.
How do I keep it reversible?
Write it as a test for one fortnight, not a policy for ever. Quote it on the next rush request, note the answer and keep the exception rule tight. Ivanka Menken sets the review date with you inside 1:1 Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, so changing the rule is a decision you make, not a quiet slide back.
What happens at the review?
You list every rush request since the last session, what you quoted, what the client said and any exception you approved. Then you keep the rule, change the trigger or change the rate. Ivanka Menken runs that review inside 1:1 Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, and the next pricing decision uses the same process.
Quote the rule before you say yes
If rush requests keep landing at your normal rate, start with 1:1 Mentoring. The Fortnight Loop is inside it, and the 20-minute intro call is where you can see whether the programme fits.
Not accounting, financial advice or a done-for-you pricing fix.