After a 30 year career in the public sector: Local, State and Federal I am not sure what to consult in. Do you have a guide on this first large decision?
Ah Rhonda, excellent question!
Book number 1: I want to be a Consultant is the one you’ll want. It guides you through questions about things like client base and how you want to run your business but it assumes you have chosen an expertise.
If you want to narrow down a little I always like to recommend the exercises in What colour is my parachute. They bring out a new book every year, but the one that your local library has will be good enough. Do the exercises and learn more about what you love, hate and would be prepared to spend your time honing.
You’re looking for your strengths, so you could also try using Strengthsfinder 2.0. You can buy an online test for less than $20. It is quite comprehensive and comes out with a report on your top 5 strengths.
Knowing your strengths can help you to isolate what you love to do – and what you love to do is often what you want to spend the time trying to sell.
Or go the entrepreneurial way: look around at what people need but don’t have and consult in that. Charge enough that you only have to work a day a week at it, and then spend the rest of the week doing what you love. For that, try the Four Hour Work week.
