Earnest Consulting Group

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 SAM.gov, 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲.

September 18, 2026 | Uncategorized

By the time an opportunity posts, the work is mostly done. The agency scoped it months ago. They talked to vendors. They already have potential vendors in mind. You're auditioning for a part that was cast before you ever read the script. The companies that win were in the room early. They knew the requirement was coming because they studied the buyer, not the bid board, not the SOW, not the evaluation criteria. You do that with research. Past awards, contract end dates, spending history. It's all sitting in public data while everyone else waits for an email. Better…

THERE IS NO BALANCE. IT’S A FULL-ON TUG-OF-WAR.

September 16, 2026 | Uncategorized

We always hear about work-life balance. There is no balance. I like to call it a full-on tug-of-war... I’m writing this as I’m waiting for my daughter at a dance studio. She’s currently at rehearsal. It's no different for people with a career in government sales. ESPECIALLY IF WE’RE INVOLVED IN WRITING PROPOSALS! For a minute, though, think about who competes in tug-of-war. Firefighters. Shipbuilders. Navy SEALs. The strongest, fiercest people we can find on either end of the rope. That is not a coincidence. It takes real muscle to hold the line. Family and work are both pulling with…

𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗼𝘁 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗸𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻.

September 15, 2026 | Uncategorized

I’ve seen good deals and bad deals… Companies offering to buy us when they thought we were desperate and gave us a lowball offer. One company seeing the value of our business and offering top dollar. Neither time were we in the market of selling. At National Veteran Small Business Coalition - NVSBC's Huntsville Engagement Dinner on 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟯𝟬𝘁𝗵, a rockstar panel will walk you through what buyers actually look for. What makes a government contractor worth buying What you should be building right now, whether you sell in two years or ten. Own a government sales business? This is…

𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗮 𝗯𝘂𝗳𝗳𝗲𝘁. 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝘂𝗽 𝗼𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗻𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝘁.

September 14, 2026 | Uncategorized

𝗦𝗕𝗖 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 is the exception. It's the one room where federal agency leaders, primes, and small businesses actually talk to each other. Decision-makers included. The people who sign the things. You leave with real teaming partners, a read on what contracts are coming, and enough intel to stop guessing what agencies want. Pipeline does not grow from behind a laptop. It grows from the conversations you were too busy to have. We look forward to seeing you 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟰-𝟲 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗲! Register here: https://lnkd.in/g8zuu8HY

𝗔 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝘅 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘀. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲.

September 10, 2026 | Uncategorized

Six seconds is a billboard on the highway. One line, one reason to remember it, and then you're doing 70 in the other direction. So why do most companies put their SBA set-aside logo large at the top and the word "innovative" three times on their billboard? Six seconds gone. Nothing landed. Put the thing that matters where their eye hits first. Metrics. "Maintained 2 million square feet of federal facilities. 98% inspection pass rate." That's a billboard somebody remembers at the next exit. One page. One clear reason to keep reading. If the good part shows up after six…

PORCUPINE ANSWERS ARMY’S FIVE-PAGE REQUEST WITH 214 PAGES, TELLS SAM IT SHOWS RIGOR

September 9, 2026 | Uncategorized

The Army wants commercial software configured and working in months. One firm is still quoting a four-year custom build. THE SOFTWARE FACTORY. The Army asked for five pages. Quillby sent a binder. He sent it by certified mail. Quillby the Porcupine has built custom software for the government since 1997. He plans to keep doing exactly that. The Army has other plans. A July Army directive told program offices to buy commercial products first. Custom development is now supposed to be rare. Quillby read the memo twice. He changed nothing. Last month a program office ran a commercial solutions…

If everything needs your approval, nothing scales

June 30, 2026 | Business Development

If everything needs your approval, nothing scales Nothing leaves your kitchen until you taste the plate. So in the name of quality control, you create a traffic jam with your name on it. We have watched it for 20+ years. Every quote, every email, every proposal lands on the founder's desk for a final blessing. Work piles up behind one person. Then it sits. Cold. If nothing goes out until you approve it, you’re not building a business. You’re capping your business. Pick one decision this week that no longer needs you. Let it go out without your signature. Trusting…

The goal is to build a company that can win more contracts.

June 23, 2026 | Uncategorized

A contract win is a hit single. A company is #1 on the album charts. Everybody wants a hit single. We see it constantly. A team lands one award, throws a party, then spends the next two years trying to remember how they pulled it off. Here's the thing. The win was never the goal. The win was a symptom. A symptom of a company that finally did the research, built the strategy, and executed without tripping over its own feet. Take the system away, and you are a one-hit wonder. Great song. No second release. Still playing dive bars.…

So I’m going to share a little secret with you…..

June 15, 2026 | Business Development

So I'm going to share a little secret with you..... Not everyone who works with me wins contracts. Sometimes, nothing happens. Here are the top three scenarios when companies don't win contracts: 1. They don't do the work or stay engaged consistently with strategy sessions. 2. They choose to do it a different way from what we suggest. 3. They give up shortly after starting because they don't see quick results. Then there are the ones who are successful: 1. They devour the information like a ravenous dog who found a box of unopened treats. 2. They take action on…

New firms are like sprinters. Mature firms build like distance runners.

June 15, 2026 | Business Development

Young govcons chase the next contract. Any contract. It's a three-step process: They burn the team. They burn the process. Then they burn out. Mature firms are designed for the marathon. Intelligence capture systems are on repeat like that new song you couldn’t get enough of in high school. Pricing strategies that last. Teams that stay. That's the marathon training playbook. Not the 100-yard dash ran in a continuous loop. In government sales, endurance beats velocity every single time. Stay strategic.