Share what you’ve learned.
“I spent thirty-five years figuring this out. I’d like a way to pass some of it on, without joining a speakers’ bureau or giving a keynote.”
That’s what blue lemons is for. A quiet, considered way to make your experience available to people who need it, on a schedule that fits around the life you’ve earned.
Four steps to your first paid call.
Apply in about ten minutes.
Your details, your LinkedIn, the work you're proud of, and the profile clients will see: a photo, a short bio in your own voice, and your rate. Everything in one go.
Talk to the founders.
We read every application personally, then invite you to a short call. If we're a fit, we approve you, and your profile goes live the same day. Nothing more to fill in.
Get booked and paid.
A client requests a time and writes a brief. You confirm, we collect the payment and pass on your fee. We take 15% and handle the rest.
Have the conversation.
Meet on a private video call. Share what you know. No decks, no pitches, no follow-up admin. You show up, you help, you get paid.
What we can promise.
Fair pay, promptly.
You set your rate. We take fifteen percent, less than a speaking agent, infinitely less than a typical agency middle-man. Withdraw weekly, straight to your bank.
On your schedule.
Two hours a week or twenty. Mornings only. Weekends never. We don't mind: the calendar is yours.
Serious people only.
Clients write a short note before every call, explaining what they'd like to discuss. No tyre-kickers, no discovery-call wastage.
We handle the admin.
Payments, scheduling, refunds, the occasional awkward reschedule. You show up to the call and share what you know. That's it.
What we ask of you.
The promise runs both ways. The experts who do best here, and the ones clients come back to, tend to share four things.
Real experience, honestly held.
Twenty-five years or more of actually doing the thing, not watching it done. You needn't have been the most senior person in the room, but you do need the scars, and the judgement that came with them. We check, and we say no more often than yes.
Judgement, not a lecture.
A brilliant first hour is mostly listening. The experts clients come back to draw out the real question, go deep on the one or two things that matter, and leave someone with something they can act on by Monday. Being useful beats being comprehensive.
Turn up like it matters.
On time, prepared, camera on, their brief already read. These are paid conversations with people making real decisions, and they can tell when you've done the reading. Warmth and candour, in equal measure.
Discretion, always.
What's said on a call stays on the call. Clients bring us the decisions they can't take anywhere else, and that only works if they can trust you completely.
“After I retired I didn’t want to go back to boardrooms. blue lemons lets me pass things on to the next generation in sixty-minute parcels. It’s the most useful thing I do all week.”
A founding blue lemons expert
Before you apply.
What does it cost to join?+
Nothing. No membership fee, no listing fee, no charge to apply. We take a flat 15% commission when, and only when, you get paid. If you don't earn, neither do we.
How does the application work?+
About ten minutes: your career, the work you're proud of, your terms, and the profile clients will see. One of the two founders reads every application personally. If it looks like a fit, we'll invite you to a 20-minute call, then do quiet reference checks. Approved experts go live the same day.
What's the 20-minute call about?+
It's a conversation, not an interview. We want to hear your story in your own words, tell you honestly how the platform works, and make sure it's right for you both ways.
Who sets my rate, and what do I keep?+
You set your rate. We'll share what comparable experts charge if you'd like a steer, but it's yours, and you always keep 85% of everything the client pays.
How and when do I get paid?+
Clients pay before the work happens: calls are paid when booked, and project work is funded stage by stage before each stage begins. Your share is passed to you promptly; we're building instant payouts so 'approved today' means paid within days, not the 30–60 days that's normal in this industry.
Do I need my own company?+
No. You can work through your own limited company or as a sole trader, whichever you already use. We handle the payment and pass on your share; how you account for it is up to you.
Do I need insurance?+
It isn't required, but we highly recommend it. You share experience and judgement rather than regulated professional advice, so nothing obliges you to hold professional indemnity cover. Even so, almost everyone who advises for a living carries it, and our expert agreement asks you to cover us if a claim ever comes out of one of your calls, up to a capped amount. Insurance is what stands behind that, rather than your own pocket, and holding cover is what lifts the cap from what you have earned to what your policy pays. We're working with an insurance broker to make cover available through blue lemons at a sensible group rate, and we'll write to every expert as soon as it's ready. In the meantime, if you already have cover through your own company or a professional body, it's worth checking that it extends to advisory calls.
How much time do I have to commit?+
As much or as little as you like. Some experts take one call a month; others make room for several a week. The application asks what you're available for, and nothing obliges you beyond what you accept.
I'm not retired. Can I still apply?+
Yes. Employed, between roles, portfolio career, semi-retired: all welcome. What matters is twenty-five years of real operating experience and something worth passing on.
Can a client hire me directly?+
For advisory calls: after twelve months of working together through blue lemons, yes, freely and with our blessing. Before that we ask that further calls with a client you met here are booked through the platform. Anything beyond calls is a different matter. We only handle advisory calls, so if a client asks you for a project, a retainer or an interim role, that work is yours and there is no fee. We would love to hear about it, but nothing is owed.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
We read every application personally. Create your account, then take your time. Your application saves as you go, so you can finish it whenever suits you. We reply within three working days.
Start my applicationWe’ll get back to you within three working days.