Question 1

I don't have time for a 12-week program right now. My schedule is already packed.

Accepted Answer

You don't have a time problem. You have a priority problem. You're spending 50+ hours a week making other people's careers work. This program asks for 90 minutes a week to finally make yours work. The professionals who join this program are VPs, directors, and senior leaders running teams, managing stakeholders, and juggling more than you'd believe. They show up because they understand something: the cost of staying stuck is measured in years, not hours. Every week you wait, someone less talented but more strategically positioned moves ahead of you. That's not a scheduling conflict. That's a career leak.

Question 2

$2,997 is a lot of money. I'm not sure I can justify the investment right now.

Accepted Answer

Let's do the math. If the gap between what you earn now and what you should be earning is $30,000 a year, that's $2,500 a month. By the time you "think about it" for 60 days, you've already lost $5,000, more than the cost of the program. Leela used one framework from a single session and secured a $28,000 salary increase in one conversation. Kelly moved past $200,000 in total compensation within the program timeline. The program has produced over $10.4 million in documented salary increases. This is not an expense. It's the highest-ROI professional investment you'll make this year.

Question 3

I'm smart enough to figure this out on my own. Do I really need a program for this?

Accepted Answer

You're absolutely smart enough. That's the problem. You've been relying on intelligence and hard work your entire career, and it got you here. But "here" is a plateau. The second skill set, the one that turns performance into advancement, is not something you stumble into by working harder. It's a system. And it's invisible until someone shows it to you. The people who are advancing past you right now are not smarter than you. They learned the system you haven't learned yet. You can spend the next three years trying to reverse-engineer it through trial and error, or you can learn it in 12 weeks with frameworks that have already produced $10.4 million in results.

Question 4

I've done coaching before and it didn't really change anything.

Accepted Answer

Most coaching is motivational. You leave feeling inspired, and two weeks later you're back to the same patterns. This is not that. Every session has a specific framework. Every framework has a field assignment you deploy that same week, in your real job, with your real stakeholders. You come back the following week with data. There is no theory without execution here. The structure is designed so that by Week 3, you already have measurable evidence that the system works. If previous coaching didn't change anything, it's because it gave you feelings instead of frameworks. This gives you frameworks.

Question 5

What if this doesn't work for someone at my level? I'm already fairly senior.

Accepted Answer

The more senior you are, the more this matters. At the individual contributor level, hard work can carry you. At the senior level, the game changes completely. Promotions are decided in rooms you're not in, by people evaluating criteria you've never been told. The Power Map, the EP TRIAD assessment, the strategic positioning frameworks: these are specifically built for professionals who've already proven they can do the work and now need to learn how to make that work visible to the people who control what happens next. Gretchen was already a senior leader. She still saw a $175,000 increase. Senior is exactly where this has the most impact.

Question 6

I'll do this later when things calm down at work.

Accepted Answer

Things will not calm down. You know that. And every quarter you wait, the compounding cost grows. If you're $100K below where you should be, that's half a million dollars over five years. The professionals who join during their busiest seasons are the ones who see the fastest results, because they have live stakeholders, real projects, and active negotiations to apply the frameworks to immediately. Waiting for the "right time" is how people lose years. The right time is when you have real situations to work with, and you have them right now.

Question 7

My company should be paying for my development. Why should I invest in this myself?

Accepted Answer

Some participants do get their company to cover it. But here's the real question: are you willing to wait for your organization to prioritize your career the way you would prioritize it? The people who invest in themselves send a different signal to the market than the people who wait for permission. And practically speaking, when you use one framework to negotiate a $28,000 raise, the program paid for itself before you finish it. This is your career. Waiting for someone else to fund your advancement is the same pattern that got you stuck in the first place.

Question 8

How is this different from an MBA or leadership development program?

Accepted Answer

An MBA costs $80,000 to $180,000, takes two years, and teaches theory. Corporate leadership programs teach you to be a better employee for the company that sponsors you. This program teaches you to be a better strategist for your own career, in 12 weeks, with live coaching from someone who charges organizations $5,000 per hour for this level of advisory. You deploy every framework in your real job the same week you learn it. No case studies about someone else's company. No group projects with strangers. Just applied strategy that produces measurable results in your actual career, starting immediately.

Question 9

What if I can't make every live session?

Accepted Answer

Every session is recorded in full, and you get access to those recordings for a full year from your enrollment date. That said, the live sessions are where the real transformation happens, because you get real-time coaching on your specific situation, you hear how other senior professionals are applying the frameworks, and you build relationships with people operating at your level. Most participants rearrange their schedules to be there live. But if you miss one, you won't fall behind.

Question 10

I'm not sure my spouse or partner will support this investment.

Accepted Answer

Show them the math. If this program closes even a $30,000 gap in your compensation, that's $150,000 over five years. The investment is $2,997. That's a 50x return over five years on the conservative end. This is not a self-help purchase. This is a strategic financial decision backed by $10.4 million in documented results from real professionals. If your partner looked at any other investment with those numbers, they'd tell you to move fast.

Question 11

What if I get the promotion but then can't perform at that level? I don't want to be set up to fail.

Accepted Answer

This is one of the smartest questions on this page, and the fact that you're asking it tells me you're exactly the kind of person who succeeds in this program. Here's what most career programs won't tell you: getting the promotion is only half the equation. Thriving in the new role is the other half. That's why The Second Skill Set doesn't end when you land the title. Once you've completed the program and stepped into your next role, you'll have the opportunity to enroll in our leadership development program, designed specifically to help you perform, establish credibility, and build momentum at your new level. We don't just help you get promoted. We help you succeed there, build your track record, and position yourself for the next move after that. This is a career partnership, not a one-time event.

The promotion was decided six months ago, and nobody told you.

The invisible scorecard: how your company is rating you right now and what to do about it.

Everything you get when you enroll today.

12 Weeks Live with Marie

Six tools to deploy the system fast.

The Power Map Template

The Value Portfolio Builder

The EP TRIAD 15-Factor Assessment

The Career Conversation Script Library

Full Session Recordings (1-Year Access)

AI Career Strategist Package (Program Access)

90-Minute Private VIP Strategy Session with Marie

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You already know the problem. Let's fix it.

Marie Horvath

And it keeps happening.

Still have questions? We get it.

Real professionals. Real results.

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