Meet Stef Mauler | Independent Educational Consultant & College Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Stef Mauler and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Stef, other than deciding to work for yourself, what was the single most important decision you made that contributed to your success?
Starting a business is frightening. The decision to leave the comforts of an established company with a consistent paycheck and secure benefits is fraught with self-doubt. “Do I have the expertise that I need?” “Will people purchase what I am selling?” “Will I earn enough income for the business to survive?“ “What if I fail?” In this world of uncertainty, it is tempting to adjust the business strategy to get those first sales and establish a customer base. The most important decision I made in launching The Mauler Institute, LLC was to decide early on what was inside and outside my box of expertise and to remain disciplined about the clients I would take and those I would decline. While it is difficult to turn down revenue, remaining committed to my strategy helped me to clearly articulate the specific value that I offer to collegebound students and how I differ from my colleagues in the educational consulting industry. Often, entrepreneurs who are launching a new product or service are told to “fake it until you make it” and worry that admitting lack of knowledge or ability will damage their credibility in the marketplace. For me, the opposite is true. Turning down prospective clients who are outside my area of expertise actually elevates my credibility. People are stunned when I send them to a different consultant who would better serve their needs. As a result, I have quickly built a reputation as a trusted advisor who cares more about serving students and families than I do about making money. Referring students to other educational professionals also helped me build a network of colleagues who see me as a collaborative partner rather than an aggressive competitor and they often refer potential clients (the right clients) back to me. There is a great business saying that goes, “The day you say no to a customer is the day you know you have a strategy.” Know your strategy and stick to it.Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
The Mauler Institute, LLC works with students in 8th through 12th grades to help them develop and execute successful college admissions strategies. I started working in Ivy League admissions almost 30 years ago, at the University of Pennsylvania Office of Undergraduate Admissions. There, I met thousands of high school students and their families as they went through the mysterious Ivy League admissions process. Discovering that most applicants had the academic record, but were not admitted, I set out to understand what differentiated the students who were accepted from those who weren’t. After analyzing successful applicants, I developed a system and gained acceptance to every MBA program to which I applied, without a 4.0 GPA, 800 GMAT or the ability to donate a building. I refined my college admissions approach using the proven business principles I learned at Harvard Business School to help my clients differentiate themselves from every other smart, talented student who is applying to their target colleges. When I started my business over a decade ago, very few people knew that independent educational consultants even existed. So, my initial sales cycle was two-fold. I first had to educate families about the role of an IEC and the value they offer; only then, could I sell them on the effectiveness of my unique approach. By being disciplined about my strategy and my core competency of applying business and marketing principles to the college admissions process, I was able to target the specific clients who would both understand my methodology and would also pay for the expertise I had to share. So, I started giving talks to private wealth clients of financial advisors. They certainly understood my direct language and business approach and were accustomed to paying for knowledge. Furthermore, I was offering them help to secure the one thing money, alone, could not buy (at least not legally) – admission to desirable colleges for their children and grandchildren. From there, word spread quickly. While most IECs take approximately 5 years to build a sustainable business, I had a full case load by the end of my second year. Now, my challenge is how to grow my capacity without diluting the quality of service – a challenge that many service providers face. To address this, I have developed The Complete Candidate, a 5 part multi-media system which shares all of the tips, tricks, templates and processes necessary to implement my successful college admissions approach (available on Amazon https://www.themaulerinstitute.com/the-complete-candidate/). I also offer The Complete Candidate College Admissions Bootcamp where I personally work with small groups of rising seniors, both virtually and in person, to complete all the activities I do with my one-on-one clients. At the end of the intensive 5-day boot camp, students have a completed application, ready to submit to their target colleges. https://www.themaulerinstitute.com/workshops/Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
When I have out of town guests visit us in the Dallas Fort Worth area, a trip to The Stockyards in Fort Worth is an absolute must. We start with dinner at Tim Love’s Lonesome Dove, where we order an array of appetizers that my friends are unlikely to get in their hometowns. We feast on rabbit-rattlesnake sausage, elk sliders, wild boar ribs and kangaroo carpaccio nachos and wash it down with a spicy jalapeno margarita. Next, we walk through the historic stockyards to get to the rodeo, the only year-round rodeo in the world. Make sure you get there for the opening ceremonies; it makes me tear up every time. After two hours of bull riding, barrel racing and calf roping, we walk across the alley to Billy Bob’s, the world’s largest honky tonk. There, we will shoot pool, play slots, line dance, ride a bull and maybe catch a live concert.The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The wonderful thing about my field is that independent educational consultants (IECs) are in the business of guiding families, so most of us have an innate spirit of generosity in teaching and guiding others. Membership to the national organizations, IECA, HECA and AICEP has been critical to my professional success and satisfaction. The colleagues I have met at conferences, on college visits, and through the online discussion forums teach me, support me, and help me when I face a challenge. Being an IEC can be a lonely job; I can’t imagine being in this industry without this global network of colleagues.

Website: https://www.themaulerinstitute.com/

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