I’ve been employed as a technology consultant for over two years now and in that time, I’ve come to appreciate a lot of the things to which I’m exposed. I’ve put together a list of some of the things for which I’m most grateful, and I hope that this becomes a helpful resource if you’re considering a similar career.
Without further ado, 25 things I love about Consulting:
- Exposure to the latest and cutting-edge technologies.
- Exposure to vastly different management styles and methodologies.
- Exposure to different industries and corporate cultures.
- Working with abstract problems and creating concrete solutions.
- Understanding complex problems only after carefully listening to someone explain it.
- Dealing with client egos, territorial habits, insecurities, and abrasive tendencies.
- Learning how to “push back” against unreasonable client and management demands.
- Learning how to ask questions until they get answered.
- Having to become intimately acquainted with something completely foreign. Quickly.
- Developing a sensitivity to tone, body language, and other nonverbal cues.
- Learning how to speak the language of different corporate environments.
- Learning the fine art of negotiation.
- Realizing that something is technically impossible, and doing it anyway.
- Learning how to ask for help. A lot. Whenever it’s needed.
- Learning how to communicate effectively.
- Realizing that no one is going to manage my career for me.
- Tactfully negotiating highly political environments.
- Working in fast-paced, high-pressure environments.
- Learning how to resolve conflicts and getting work done at the same time.
- Learning when (and that it’s ok) to compromise.
- Learning how to “just get something done” instead of making the first iteration perfect.
- Learning how to make strategic allies within an organization.
- Learning how much it pays to be kind to everyone, from the janitor to the receptionist.
- Exposure to some of the most cultured, well-traveled, and intelligent people on earth.
- Marriott Rewards points. Can I get an “amen?” :-D
To be clear, I’m grateful for all of these experiences. I can say with confidence that I’ve developed a pretty unflappable resolve over the past two years. I’ve been exposed to stuffy environments where laughing in the hallways feels like an offense punishable by death, and I’ve worked at a client where the manager comes in at 10am wearing jeans and sneakers.
I would strongly recommend a career in Consulting (at least for a few years) to anyone who can hack the pressure. There’s a very high rate of attrition (being with my company for five years puts you in the ~77th percentile) in consulting, and with good reason – it’s simply not for everyone.
Above all else, I enjoy the people. I’ve made some of the best friends anyone could ask for, and I don’t for a moment regret launching my career in Consulting.
Is there anything you’d like me to expand on? I’d be happy to address your questions and comments about consulting in the comments!
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I think a lot of the things you love are things that carry into *all* future endeavors. Especially with regards to matching the culture you’re in. While one wants to (in theory) stand out and be noticed for achievement, recognition, promotion, etc.in whatever environment they are in, it’s important to tone your look, actions, and mannerisms appropriately.
Future (somewhat self-serving) article idea: How to match yourself and your skillset to a particular consulting firm and appeal to their recruiters. Or, perhaps, what signs (positive, negative, warning) one should look for when applying to a firm.
The distinction I could have made is the fact that many of these experiences (with respect to the first three in particular, for example) in Consulting vary wildly. It’s hard to imagine that a homogeneous corporate environment could compare to frequently switching between vastly different industries (health care and communications in my case).
You will certainly encounter a lot of these things in any work environment. The difference with Consulting is there is usually a tight project timeline and generally speaking, a fixed amount of time in which a problem needs to be solved. Anything that threatens the ultimate goal must be addressed quickly, carefully, and definitively.
Does that make sense? Thanks for weighing in, by the way. I can see about your post request, sure :)
A few of my favorite things about being a consultant include:
- “Free” flights for weekend getaways.
- Easily earned and maintained airline status.
- Being a team player and helping out in other areas such as testing, development, design, etc. that neccessarily aren’t your expertise.
- You are constantly learning something new.
- You learn to work with different personality types to get the job done efficiently and effectively.
- Per diem at times :-)
As I think of more I’ll come back and share!
How could I leave out the travel perks?
When I was on a long-term project in the Midwest, I used to jokingly tell my friends that I was pretty much Kryptonite with AirTran and Marriott. I still have my status with both, actually. Points/Miles add up quickly, and “free” vacations are the best. Per Diem is certainly another crowd-pleaser :)
Mr. Jackson, how do I get into self-employed consulting? I’ve decided to expand the services of my music publishing/production company to include artist and label marketing consultations but I have no idea how to build a reputation for myself in that area (other than what I post on my blog, which doesn’t have a very far reach right now). I think I have a good handle on marketing so that I’d be good at giving new media marketing advice for artists and labels that want to expand their online presence and develop new campaigns to reach their target audience. Plus I even possess the know-how to write up some marketing documents to steer my clients in the right direction. If I could somehow launch this aspect of my business and get @ least a couple initial clients I am confident I’d do well enough with them to warrant repeat business.
Thanks for your help.
- Dex
Hey Dex, thanks for stopping by. As with any other service being provided to others, you’ll need to demonstrate your expertise and experience. In 2009, this is largely done online. You’ll need to decide whether you want to do business under your name, an alias, or under an entity that you incorporate (which you should, of course).
You will want to consider working at a reduced or competitive rate at first to build your client list, and absolutely blow them away with your service. You’ll want to research other music consultants and find out holes in their approach that you can exploit. Example: if, once you’ve identified your niche, you find out that one or two firms are dominating that space, you might consider undercutting their prices. If there’s someone who’s successful in a particular genre, market yourself as the versatilist that you are – show your expertise across different genres.
Blog about music. Blog about music consulting. Let people know what services you offer. Don’t be shy. Be a walking, talking, “I do music consulting better than everyone else” machine. Develop Raving Fans. Figure out your Blue Ocean Strategy. Build a Tribe around your service. When everyone else is putting out yesterday’s news and putting out things like press releases and snail mail promotions, be the Gary V. of your field and exploit video. Every day. Be aggressive. Care more than everyone else. Don’t listen to anyone.
…stuff like that ;)
Thank you very much. All these points are super helpful. I’m going to put them into practice ASAP. I’m already blogging about music but now I’ll blog about music consulting too. I definitely need to build a tribe!
Mr. Jackson you are one helluva consultant.
It’s great that you love what you do. I will be launching my career in Consulting over the next few months in the blogging niche.
Any advice for the newbie consultant who are just getting into the game.
What you said about the attrition rate is very true. I have seen it first hand during my tenure at #BearingPoint. It was a hot mess! Despite the high income – a majority didnt last long due to a bunch of variables. But it was a great brand but it was full of disorganization do to the fact it want to be a global player but it lack a good accounting software to support it. I swear if i ever see a client that has OneGlobe or Deltek – I am going to respectfully decline because it some 20th Century Software BS!
I think I have thick skin to survie in the concrete jungle of consulting!
The biggest thing is finding the decision maker – it seems that I have to get pass the firm’s gatekeeper to secure the checkwriter after all he or she is signing the check and have the last word on whether they want to hire me. Some act like I am going to take their job whereas it is only temporary and I am trying to help them get more business.
I am a Social Media Consultant!
Cheers!
Duane Harris CEO/Founder of Pah 3 Worldwide, LLC A Social Media Consulting Firm
Situated in Atlanta, GA
Thanks for the RT, Ashley.
Yes…it should tell you something :) Thanks for the RT, Nomnso.
Thanks, David.
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