Congratulations! After all those years in corporate life, you've decided to start a consulting practice. This is a new era--and that means corporations are continually downsizing and rightsizing. Whatever you want to call it--things are not the same. The opportunities that used be present in corporate life--the security, the path to advancement, and the ability to build a future are just not what they used to be. Perhaps you're at a place where you've had it with corporate life. Maybe your company has merged with another, and you've been reengineered out of the new organization. Perhaps you've been asked to move to one of the worst cities in the U.S. at a lesser position. It could be that you don't believe in the company you work for--or your boss is a total turkey. You know there has to a better way--and consulting seems like the answer.
THE GOOD NEWS
A consulting practice can be all that you dream it can be. Just some of the things that it will provide you are:
# The opportunity to put to work the knowledge that you've accumulated in your years of industry experience
# The ability to enjoy the freedom and independence of doing your own thing
# The possibility of achieving excellent financial rewards
# The flexibility of living wherever you want
# The freedom to take on those assignments you feel are stimulating and rewarding--and the option of walking away from opportunities you don't intrinsically enjoy
# The chance to meet new people in other companies and industries
# The satisfaction of working with the best resources you can find to get the job done
YOUR SERVICES ARE IN DEMAND
# The career opportunity you've chosen is one of the most rapidly expanding areas in business today. As reported in Management Constant International, published by Lafferty Publications, Ltd., "Combined revenues [in 1995] at the top 30 firms grew by 21 percent to $23.2 billion in 1995." Because of downsizing, companies are increasingly outsourcing for services and expertise no longer available from their own staff. Consultants bring their time and expertise to help fill in the gaps. You are needed because you have skills, experience, or knowledge not perceived to be available in-house. Companies or individuals may need your help to: Oversee or conduct special projects because an organizational overload requires a knowledgeable outside resource
# Analyze existing organizational functions, operations, and results to recommend specific areas and actions for improvement
# Be the outside resource that acts as an 'agent for change'
# Develop and conduct training courses specific to a company's needs
# Provide an objective third-party viewpoint on strategic planning, marketing, and other operational issues to help companies avoid pitfalls and wasted effort
# Troubleshoot tactical issues, such as sales performance, to help improve a company's quarterly results
# Provide technical advice in product development or manufacturing areas
# Write articles, white papers, and technical product bulletins and manuals
# Create marketing and promotional materials
# Conduct computer consultations to help resolve MIS issues, including software, networking, and client-server applications and to assist in computer system hardware and software selection
# Bring financial background and industry resources to bear to help a company resolve financial issues
# Act as the outside resource used to provide product evaluations-including competitive analysis
This list is not all-inclusive. What's important is that you can take the skills you've developed and the experiences you've gained to add value to the companies you've worked for directly in corporate life--and now add value to the firms you consult with.
ARE YOU COMMITTED?
This all sounds great--so why aren't there more consultants? One reason is that in order to be successful at consulting, you must be totally committed. In fact, the four keys to consulting success are:
# Total commitment to making a success of your practice
# Meaningful differentiation of the services you have to offer
# The ability to sell yourself
# The deserved reputation for providing more value than expected
What about total commitment? If it's not there--forget it. You're better off getting another job in a corporation. Don't use consulting as a way to run away from the problems in a corporation. You'll be running from one set of problems to another--with a lot more surprises! Consulting is a lifestyle you choose for your future because of what it gives you.
I've had my own consulting and training business for six years. I'm convinced that the number one reason I've been successful (and success to me is having my net worth increase every year) is that I've chosen this career lifestyle for the rest of my working life. It's so good I don't even think of retiring--I'm allergic to leisure. When I left corporate life as a Vice President of Sales for a Computer Systems Division, I vowed I would never work for another corporation again. This isn't an indictment of the corporation--it was the best job of my corporate career. I worked for a General Manager who was the best boss I've ever had. But I was committed to making my own consulting business a 'go.'
Here's how not to succeed. Don't just dabble in consulting or use it as a 'holding pattern' until something better turns up in a corporation. It's okay to do this if you recognize that this is your real purpose. But if you're just not sure--if you haven't made up your mind to stick with it--a divided purpose is a recipe for disaster. Someone once said, "A man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder�" This is especially true in beginning a consulting business.
As an example, a good friend of mind was a corporate casualty and believed that companies would use him for consulting assignments because of his vast experience in the process control industry. This sounded good to me until I called him a few times and found he was watching TV or taking a nap! Thankfully, he's now out of his 'dabbling in consulting' business.
Source: Streetwise Independent Consulting
THE GOOD NEWS
A consulting practice can be all that you dream it can be. Just some of the things that it will provide you are:
# The opportunity to put to work the knowledge that you've accumulated in your years of industry experience
# The ability to enjoy the freedom and independence of doing your own thing
# The possibility of achieving excellent financial rewards
# The flexibility of living wherever you want
# The freedom to take on those assignments you feel are stimulating and rewarding--and the option of walking away from opportunities you don't intrinsically enjoy
# The chance to meet new people in other companies and industries
# The satisfaction of working with the best resources you can find to get the job done
YOUR SERVICES ARE IN DEMAND
# The career opportunity you've chosen is one of the most rapidly expanding areas in business today. As reported in Management Constant International, published by Lafferty Publications, Ltd., "Combined revenues [in 1995] at the top 30 firms grew by 21 percent to $23.2 billion in 1995." Because of downsizing, companies are increasingly outsourcing for services and expertise no longer available from their own staff. Consultants bring their time and expertise to help fill in the gaps. You are needed because you have skills, experience, or knowledge not perceived to be available in-house. Companies or individuals may need your help to: Oversee or conduct special projects because an organizational overload requires a knowledgeable outside resource
# Analyze existing organizational functions, operations, and results to recommend specific areas and actions for improvement
# Be the outside resource that acts as an 'agent for change'
# Develop and conduct training courses specific to a company's needs
# Provide an objective third-party viewpoint on strategic planning, marketing, and other operational issues to help companies avoid pitfalls and wasted effort
# Troubleshoot tactical issues, such as sales performance, to help improve a company's quarterly results
# Provide technical advice in product development or manufacturing areas
# Write articles, white papers, and technical product bulletins and manuals
# Create marketing and promotional materials
# Conduct computer consultations to help resolve MIS issues, including software, networking, and client-server applications and to assist in computer system hardware and software selection
# Bring financial background and industry resources to bear to help a company resolve financial issues
# Act as the outside resource used to provide product evaluations-including competitive analysis
This list is not all-inclusive. What's important is that you can take the skills you've developed and the experiences you've gained to add value to the companies you've worked for directly in corporate life--and now add value to the firms you consult with.
ARE YOU COMMITTED?
This all sounds great--so why aren't there more consultants? One reason is that in order to be successful at consulting, you must be totally committed. In fact, the four keys to consulting success are:
# Total commitment to making a success of your practice
# Meaningful differentiation of the services you have to offer
# The ability to sell yourself
# The deserved reputation for providing more value than expected
What about total commitment? If it's not there--forget it. You're better off getting another job in a corporation. Don't use consulting as a way to run away from the problems in a corporation. You'll be running from one set of problems to another--with a lot more surprises! Consulting is a lifestyle you choose for your future because of what it gives you.
I've had my own consulting and training business for six years. I'm convinced that the number one reason I've been successful (and success to me is having my net worth increase every year) is that I've chosen this career lifestyle for the rest of my working life. It's so good I don't even think of retiring--I'm allergic to leisure. When I left corporate life as a Vice President of Sales for a Computer Systems Division, I vowed I would never work for another corporation again. This isn't an indictment of the corporation--it was the best job of my corporate career. I worked for a General Manager who was the best boss I've ever had. But I was committed to making my own consulting business a 'go.'
Here's how not to succeed. Don't just dabble in consulting or use it as a 'holding pattern' until something better turns up in a corporation. It's okay to do this if you recognize that this is your real purpose. But if you're just not sure--if you haven't made up your mind to stick with it--a divided purpose is a recipe for disaster. Someone once said, "A man without a purpose is like a ship without a rudder�" This is especially true in beginning a consulting business.
As an example, a good friend of mind was a corporate casualty and believed that companies would use him for consulting assignments because of his vast experience in the process control industry. This sounded good to me until I called him a few times and found he was watching TV or taking a nap! Thankfully, he's now out of his 'dabbling in consulting' business.
Source: Streetwise Independent Consulting
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