Is consulting for you? How do you know if what you have to offer is a viable thing? And how do you get started with it all?
What is a freelance consultant?
Before we go too much further, we should make sure we’re on the same page about what we’re setting out to do. We’re talking about you as a freelance consultant. The “freelance” part of the equation Freelance means you’re self-employed and independent. You work from contract to contract, directly for a client (although you may find…
New consultant? Don’t quit your day job. Yet.
Let me tell you a story about the first time I tried freelancing. I was young, ambitious, inexperienced, and completely fed up with my job. I believed I had what it took to make it as a freelancer, and so one day, I quit my day job. I went cold turkey. I had no contracts,…
How to know what to offer as a consultant
Are you paralyzed with the feeling that you just don’t know what you can offer to the world as a freelance consultant? Ok. It’s ok. Let’s jump into it. You may have seen this Venn diagram before; it’s not a bad one at all. It helps you find the work that will motivate you and…
How to do consultant market research
Consultant market research—Or, “Is this really a thing?” In the last assignment you made a short list of the services you can offer: things that somebody has actually paid you to do (as an employee), that you enjoy (or at least that don’t suck more than 20% of the time.) From here on in, we’re going…
Your passion is your unique selling point
Define your passion and you’ll define your unique selling point—the thing that sets you apart. . I became a consultant in part because I wanted to do my work to my own standards on my own timelines. I wanted to do things right. This is your chance to do the same. What does ‘doing things…
Conflict of Interest: How to Avoid It
If you take on freelance consulting contracts, will your employer fire you for conflict of interest? It is generally perfectly legal to have supplemental income outside your job. First, check your contract or letter of offer. Did you agree not to work outside your current employment situation? Have a look also at your employer’s general…
Do you need special qualifications to be a consultant?
Short answer: It depends. Consultants, like any other working people, are expected to be qualified for the work they do. For people like us, those qualifications come in a few forms. Qualifications that are mandated by a regulatory body If you want to practice law, you need to be a board-certified lawyer. If you want…