PICA Member Spotlights

Q&A with independent consultants who successfully “made the leap” and created the consulting career of their dreams

 

Q: Why did you decide to go independent?

A: I had mostly worked at mid-sized companies in sales operations, customer service and other operational functions, which meant I often had to wear many different hats. Throughout my career I’ve worked across multiple departments on some really interesting projects. I always enjoyed working with cross functional teams, so I decided that instead of focusing on the day to day overseeing, I wanted to focus on creating solutions to business problems. I started thinking more and more about the freedom and the flexibility I could potentially have as a consultant. And I also hoped that by focusing more on projects for different customers across different industries that I would be more effective.

Q: So now you've been independent for two years. Is it living up to your expectations?

A: It hasn’t actually been two years. I started a couple of years ago just as the pandemic began, and I did the PICA bootcamp right at the beginning. But then the pandemic hit and I realized I didn't have all of my ducks in a row. At that time, a lot of people were very unsure about where the economy was headed. 

So, I went back into a regular full-time job. About seven months ago, when things became more settled, I decided I really wanted to go for it. Post Covid, everything that goes along with remote working seems more natural and I felt I was just in a much better position to go forward with everything.

Q: What has been the hardest part now that you've really launched your business?

A:  I think honestly the hardest part is confidence in yourself at the beginning and getting your message out there. I'm not a particularly extroverted person and I'm definitely not used to having to sell myself. So, I think those were the two most difficult things. I think reaching out to my network was what really helped me get over that. A lot of my ex-colleagues have gone on to different opportunities and they were interested in what I was doing. They knew that I always keep up with new technologies and ways of doing things. 

Q: I am a huge fan of reaching out to colleagues and networking. But when you say you reached out to them, what did you specifically do to start to build that momentum?

A: So, the first time I tried this, I did it all wrong. I basically said, ‘Hey, is there something open that I can help you with, like today,”... that kind of stuff. I've learned that you really have to approach it more slowly and learn about the problems that a person is dealing with. Then you can start planting seeds about how you can help them. My second time around I just got into a rhythm of speaking to people who I value in terms of what they did and our relationship in the past. We would just have kind of a recurring meeting. It really is a long game that requires you to be patient. But I still speak with a lot of my contacts. I do a ten-minute virtual coffee type thing with them on a regular basis, and I found that once I got a few projects under my belt, word of mouth was a big help, too.

It's really critical to keep the momentum going because you can have a three-month project and feel like things are fantastic. But then if you come back and there's only a week left of it and you haven't kept your communication with the rest of your network warm, then you’re basically back to square one.

Q: What has surprised you the most in the last several months that you've been independent?

A: It's surprised me that there's a lot of potential work out there. I think there's a lot more than we realize. In the beginning you kind of having the feeling that companies are never going to want to spend money to do this kind of stuff. But I think companies are open to hiring consultants because there’s so much constant change and employee turnover and new technology. You just have to work with them and find out what their problem is and how you can potentially solve it for them.

Q: What's next for you and Blazing Star Consulting?

A: I think I still need to refine what I'm doing and decide on my ideal client. I need to work out how many clients I can take on at once because that's kind of been a challenge as well. I think once I really define my ideal client, I will be able to find them faster and help them solve their problems quicker, too.  I think that's what I'm going to be doing over the next few months.

Q:  How can people find out more about you and your business LinkedIn?

A: I have a website which is connected to my LinkedIn. I also try to attend PICA events on a regular basis.  For instance, I attended the really great webinar that you guys had a couple of weeks ago about being in the top 1% of LinkedIn and I learned a great deal from that about creating content.  I'm hoping to create content over the next few months that will also let my network learn more about what I do.

Q: Is there anything else you’d like to add that I didn’t ask about? 

A: Just that PICA’s office hours have been really helpful to me. I’ve attended a few and it’s a great place to bounce ideas around or get answers to simple things that I needed to know. The times I’ve attended there were other consultants on the call so that’s helpful, too.


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