--- title: "From VPE to solo mentor: 317 billed sessions in year one | 1:1 mentoring" description: "The full story of leaving a €230k VPE seat to build a mentoring venture. Y1 numbers, the strategy that worked, and the mistakes I made." url: "https://www.marian.coach/blog/from-vpe-to-solo-mentoring-year-one/" lang: "en" image: "https://www.marian.coach/_astro/talk-24.CoyLhCqC_WnSq7.jpg" --- ![From VPE to solo mentor: year one cover](https://www.marian.coach/images/marian-hero.jpg) > Achieving €300,000 revenue with my Central European Software Engineering Leadership venture. ## Year one data (July 2022 → July 2023) ### Mentoring - **Volume:** 317 billed sessions across **26 mentees** from **16 companies or individuals**. - **Funding:** 19% self-funded, 81% company-funded. - **Global reach:** 64% Czech Republic, 12% US, 12% Slovakia, 6% UK, 3% Poland, 3% Israel. - **Conversion:** 76% post-intro client conversion rate. - **Feedback:** [9.03/10 average](https://www.marian.coach/testimonials/) since I started collecting formal ratings in Jan 2023. - **Composition:** [52% debutant Engineering Managers](https://www.marian.coach/engineering-leadership-statistics/), 19% mid-level managers, 29% CTO/CPO ranks. - **Remote:** 93% online via video. - **Avg engagement duration:** 7.3 months. - **Inbound funnel:** **74% word-of-mouth**, 17% social media, 9% website. ### Advisory (fractional CTO / audit) - **Volume:** 79 days billed across 3 firms. - **Scope:** engineering metrics, internal audits, due diligence, structural shifts, career frameworks, agility. - **Rate:** €1,550-2,100/day excl. VAT. - **Funnel:** 100% word-of-mouth. ## Phase 0: Pre-launch [My last full-time role was VPE](https://www.marian.coach/blog/vp-of-engineering-mews-a-look-back-on-my-1st-year/) at [Mews](https://www.mews.com/), where I helped the company survive Covid, stabilise R&D, and scale to 100+ engineers. I built a new team every month in the last year while keeping quarterly roadmap delivery **over 80%**. We turned engineering into a differentiator. Mews reached Series C on that engine. Under the surface, I’m an **introverted person** deep in my mind. I push myself to polish how I talk and listen. The 16personalities test flagged me as “Doctor / Defender” (ISFJ), which pointed me at my niche. I feel best when I’m helping or earning the trust of the people around me. I have a Computer Science degree from MFF UK: my bridge to tech experts and math-brain CTOs. I get the tech world because I was that geeky coder for 14 years before turning to leadership. ![Marian Kamenistak with hand on forehead, looking at his laptop, contemplative.](https://www.marian.coach/_astro/portrait-thinking.BI-2Z8YX_lAoLb.webp) Pre-launch, still an introvert running the numbers before making the leap. > The most precious career investment I’ve preserved for two decades is a strong [learning routine](https://www.marian.coach/knowledge). 4-8 hours a week, curated sources, purely technical for the first 14 years, progressively shifting to leadership as time went by. ## Phase 1: Fuelling April 2021: I launched a **Czech Engineering Leadership meetup**: private, small, invited only people with something unique to add. Even virtual, the connections became strong. Then I stepped out of the introverted comfort zone: I started **blogging** about leadership on the Mews tech site. My first post (“[Building Trust with Engineering Teams](https://www.marian.coach/blog/how-to-build-trust-with-engineering-teams/)”) took 11 evenings. Writing became my canvas and my weapon. It untangled thoughts I didn’t know I had. ## Phase 2: System check Back in 2021, my ex-boss Honza Široký planted the seed: try mentoring at [PlatoHQ](https://www.platohq.com/become-a-mentor). I did, for two years. Alongside, I facilitated PlatoHQ circles with 12 people at a time. The more engineering teams I led, the more urge I felt to support my line managers. I set up an internal **New Team Lead Growth Programme**: a three-month structured foundation for new managers. I didn’t want to wait two years to find out who would thrive and who would struggle, especially while hiring aggressively and guaranteeing 80%+ quarterly delivery. ## Phase 3: Ignition The **aha** moment: when PlatoHQ [changed its compensation policy to zero](https://blog.pragmaticengineer.com/quit-mentoring-at-plato/) and I decided to leave, one of my mentees said he wanted to keep going, and pay for it. Seven weeks later I had **three more clients** from my close network. My heart raced the day I got my first payment. By mid-2022 things got tricky. Day job + evening coaching. I saw the worry in my wife’s eyes. I was a millimetre from burnout. I had to choose. ## The defining moment June 2022: - **Current job:** I loved my VPE role at Mews. - **Side gig:** four billable clients in the evenings. Inside I felt the pull to build my own venture as a 6-month experiment. - **New offer:** to validate market value, I ended up with an offer of ~**€230k/y** compensation package (salary + bonus + stocks) for a full-time division lead role in Czech Republic. Half my family said stay on the regular-job trajectory: the war, cost-of-living crisis, uncertainty. They were brilliant at constructing reasons not to start. The other half was supportive. ![Marian Kamenistak standing in front of a brick wall, hands together, smiling.](https://www.marian.coach/_astro/portrait-outdoor.CdyTp4cl_1eNe6z.webp) Standing on the decision that ended a €230k offer and started this venture. Meanwhile I researched hard. I saw the scene: people who got famous for a single topic, people relentlessly active on social, people refurbishing others’ content, people selling books or certificates. From my [learning habit](https://www.marian.coach/knowledge), I saw: - how Gergely’s **[Pragmatic Engineer](https://newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com/)** newsletter had traction, - how sharp and inspirational Will Larson’s **Irrational Exuberance** was, - how tight Jade Rubick’s weekly newsletter courses were, - how spot-on John Cutler’s **Beautiful Mess** scenarios were, Together, these signalled there IS a way to build a solo venture on unique perspectives with a balanced (not manic) social presence. Close to my nature. ## The click One Saturday morning, listening to a podcast by Ondrej Kobersky about stock investment: he explained why **timing the market is a poor idea**. Compare that to consistent investment through good and bad years: the consistent approach wins. > It clicked with my venture situation of waiting to gain a competitive advantage instead of persisting to invest regularly despite unfavourable indications. **Iterative discovery.** I made my lifetime decision in a second: I turned down the €230k role and gave notice. ## Y1 lessons: what actually worked 1. **Niche beats breadth.** “Engineering leadership mentoring, CEE roots, EN/CZ/SK” was specific enough for word-of-mouth to work. 2. **Word-of-mouth is the funnel.** 74% of paid mentees came from previous mentees or ex-colleagues. Building a real community ([ELC](https://www.engineeringleaders.io/) meetups) fed this. 3. **Free intro calls, no upfront payments.** Removed all buying friction. If we’re not a fit, no money changes hands. 4. **Feedback score at every session.** From Jan 2023 I asked for a 1-10 rating after every session. The 9.03 average IS the sales pitch. 5. **Write. Consistently.** Blog posts + LinkedIn built the top-of-funnel that word-of-mouth couldn’t cover. 6. **The advisory revenue paid the rent.** 79 days × €1,550-2,100 kept the cash flow steady while mentoring compounded slowly. 7. **Don’t wait to feel ready.** Iterative discovery beats timing the market. Every time. ## What I’d do differently - **Start writing 2 years earlier.** The compounding effect on inbound funnel is enormous. Every post is an asset that keeps working. - **Invest in the meetup community faster.** ELC is now the most valuable long-term asset. I could have built it earlier. - **Say no more.** In year one I said yes to almost every intro call. Half of them weren’t fit. I burned time I should have spent on writing or product. - **Price higher, sooner.** [I started at €150/hr and grew to €300+](https://www.marian.coach/pricing/). Should have started at €300. --- If you’re considering a similar move: don’t romanticise it, but don’t wait either. The market will not signal “now”. You have to invest through the uncertainty. And if you want to talk through your specific situation, [book a free 30-min intro](https://www.marian.coach/meet). No sales pitch. 1:1 mentoring ## Ready to move this from advice to action? 1:1 mentoring for engineering leaders. 300+ mentees since 2019. Pay-as-you-go or a 6-session pack. First intro is free. [Book a free 30-min intro →](https://www.marian.coach/mentoring/) ## Read next - [ ### How to Find a Great Mentor: 10 Criteria to Score How to find a mentor worth paying for: 10 criteria, each scored 0-10, with red flags and the questions to ask. Works on coaches too. Run it on me. 22 July 2026 · By Marian Read → ](https://www.marian.coach/blog/how-to-find-a-great-mentor/) - [ ### Mentoring vs Coaching: Which One You Need Mentoring transfers experience, coaching builds clarity. The difference between coaching and mentoring, a comparison table, prices, and a 3-question test. 22 July 2026 · By Marian Read → ](https://www.marian.coach/mentoring-vs-coaching/) - [ ### How Much Does Executive Coaching Cost in 2026? US, Europe and CEE Rates Executive coaching costs 200 to 600 USD per hour in the US, 120 to 330 EUR in Central Europe. Full 2026 rate breakdown, plus one public mentoring price list. 20 July 2026 · By Marian Read → ](https://www.marian.coach/blog/how-much-does-executive-coaching-cost/) ### New posts, straight to your inbox. Your emailSubscribe You're on it. Nothing hits your inbox today. First send goes out once the list is live, and you're already on it. 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