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Is Independent Consulting Right For You?

It’s that time of year. The cookie crumbs are all that’s left in the tin, and we’re back on the treadmill. Often, this is the time of year to reflect on career and make new decisions for the coming year.

Each holiday season, we see a flurry of inquiries from smart, talented professionals
searching for the answer to the question: Is the independent consulting the right career path for them? Have you ever wondered if could you go solo in 2012?

To properly answer the question, a few things are important:

1. Get educated by experts. Is someone in your network an IC? How did they do it? Take a moment to reach out to a friend, family member or colleague that has made the transition and learn from their experiences. What did they do right, or wrong? Would they return to a traditional role or are they happy with their change in career choice? If you don’t have people to turn to, you may want to join an educational session or Webinar. We’re running one for our network -- and we welcome you to join us. It’s our way to say Happy New Year to our friends and family at MBO.
2. Think about income. After all, this is what it boils down to for most of us. Coming up with a way to supplement or replace income by choosing the independent consulting path requires some work. Did you know there’s various ways to calculate a bill rate (a rate for services)? This may be an area where you turn to others for help. Last year, we developed a little cost-based calculator on our own Web site that we are pretty proud of (bear in mind: that’s only one of the ways to calculate a bill rate, but it’s a good place to start). The burning question for you (and a spouse or dependent) is this: are you financially prepared for an independent lifestyle? Do feel good about the fact that those who ask this question -- and take the time to understand the results of their analysis -- do better in the end both financially and from a personal satisfaction standpoint. (At MBO, we have more than a few independent consulting millionaires. Getting this right does bear dividends).
3. Skills, Skills, Skills. It all boils down to this. What’s your marketable skill? In what area is your name the “go-to” and for whom? If you have gained a competency in something (whether advertising copy, tax analysis, project management, or software design, or HR consulting, to name a few), you can flaunt it. What makes skills so valuable is if you can combine them with the network of those who want to buy your skill. That’s the formula that make independent consulting magic for those who have entered the field. It is a formula that works every time and we’ll clue you in to another secret here. Most first contracts come from former employers. So while you are exploring and thinking about those skills, don’t burn any bridges. Keep your LinkedIn network, your skills list, and your company reputation, up to date.
4. Finally, take the time to ask and answer the question properly. What do we mean? We mean, really explore your career and personality and if necessary, even quiz yourself on the topic. Do you have what it takes to be self-employable? Are you a bone fide solopreneur masked as an employee? Or would you be better served by continuing on your current W2 path and simply optimizing it for greater satisfaction? We’re developing a quiz for independence that we’ll be sharing in early 2012. Follow us on Twitter (@mbopartners) to be the first to learn about the release.

Clearly, the question is on your mind, or you would not have gotten this far. So, the
obvious next step is: Are you ready to learn more?

(By the way, you may want to meet  a few of those who already made the jump in 2011).