

Why You Probably Won't Survive as an Independent Consultant - joshua8883
http://www.gobignetwork.com/wil/2007/7/24/why-you-probably-wont-survive-as-an-independent-consultant/10179/view.aspx
<p>Don't take the title of this blog post wrong.  I hope you survive as an Independent Consultant... I really do.  Yet before you jump ship for the bountiful glory that is independent consulting, allow me to tell you the story of Zed - a person much like you that failed to realize the true evil that lurks behind the facade of independent consulting.<p>Meet our Hero: Zed<p>Meet our hero, Zed.  Long ago, Zed was working as a star programmer for a consulting company getting paid $30 per hour while billing out $150 per hour to their client (probably more).  Zed used his superior analytical skills to learn that his company is being paid $120 per hour more than Zed is being paid.  Thats just ludicrous!<p>So Zed did what any entrepreneurial minded superhero would do - he quit his job and went to work for the client as an Independent Consultant. This move now got him paid $60 per hour.  The client paid out less, Zed's made twice as much, and that evil consulting company had been banished into oblivion.  <p><pre><code>    Everything is now right in the world.  Zed is now living the life as an Independent Consultant - the dream job that's easy to start and nearly impossible to sustain.
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But Zed's bliss would not last forever.  Little did Zed know, that a new menace was about to rear it's ugly head - An evil force known as "Nu Bidnsss." <p>Our Villain: Nu Bidnsss<p>Within his first year of consulting, Zed was protected (financially) from ever having to deal with Nu Bidnsss.  He was heavily sheltered in the warmth of a paying client to whom he could enjoy a prosperous life. <p>Yet like every consulting engagement, the client too eventually fell out of love with Zed.  Zed's incredible programming abilities eventually gave the client a product they were proud of, and soon Zed would not be needed any longer.<p>One day, as Zed left a client "wrap up" meeting, he felt a cold chill across the back of his neck.  He tensed, turned around quickly and saw the most fearsome creature he had ever laid eyes upon - Nu Bidnsss.<p>Nu Bidnsss Sucks<p>Without a lofty paying contract firmly in his hands, Zed did not know how to attack Nu Bidnsss.   Beating this evil beast required abilities he had never learned, like salesmanship, networking, and the Shaolin art of the "Ass Kiss." <p>Zed realized at that moment, that his training was all wrong.  Until now he had made a great living by being a star programmer.  His skills had made him heavily recruited out of college, highly sought-after in his consulting company, and well-paid from clients.  Certainly with these skills he would never have to come face-to-face with Nu Bidnsss.  Yet here he was, staring it down.<p>The Fall of Zed<p>Try as he might, Zed could not stop the force of Nu Bidnsss.  It quickly swallowed up his savings, his second mortgage, and all of his credit cards.  As Zed struggled wildly to defeat the beast, he realized that it was not his ability to work for clients that would save his life, it was his ability to get new clients, that would be his lifeblood.<p><pre><code>    Alas, Zed has no frigging clue how to get new clients. 
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And so Zed was defeated by Nu Bidnsss.  Drained of any of his financial resources, emotional excitement and his seemingly endless list of smart-ass remarks, he was taken by Nu Bidnsss and forced to work in the salt mine cubicles of hell - Big Corporate.<p>- The End -<p>Epilogue<p>This story is as sad as it is consistently true. <p>Surviving as an independent consultant isn't about actually consulting (it's a given that you can do that.)  It's about finding new business.<p>As it happens, most people suck at finding new business.  Once the Pixie Dust of the first client engagement wears off, the painful reality of having to beg for business becomes very obvious.<p>If you truly want to build a business as a consultant, focus on the business of selling yourself, not specifically on delivery.  If you're not good enough to get yourself in the door on your own merits, your life as an Independent Consultant is going to be short-lived at best.  Like our boy Zed.
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simpleenigma
Being an hourly consultant at the moment I will attest to the fact that it is
much harder then it sounds at first. My only saving grace for being self-
employed for the past 10 years is that my client like me and they tell their
friends about me.

Having lost one large client at a most inopportune time, I can attest to the
perils, but when you get the formula down you can make a decent living and
still have time to live.

But the real fun is in creating something larger then yourself and it is
almost impossible to do that completley on your own.

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youngnh
So...its not enough to be good at something to make it in business, you have
to be good at the thing that you're not good at to be able to continue doing
the thing that you're actually good at.

~~~
omouse
"Now," the master spoke, "you understand the world of enterprise software
development."

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webwright
People jumping into consulting also don't realize the costs of:

-Self employment taxes -Business expenses -Vacation (3 weeks a year) -Holidays (1 week per year) -Sick Time (1 week per year) -Errands (a few times a week) -Bench time (all of the time between projects)

You run the numbers and $60/hr starts to feel pretty freakin' ugly.

(note: I was a consultant and built a 20 person consulting biz... And then
sold it. I'll never be an hourly consultant again, if I can swing it).

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jamiequint
How to survive: Take the idea that to be successful you have to "Make
something people want." and apply it to consulting. (e.g. provide a service
people want) If you want to optimize your per-hour take (since you are bound
by your time if you work solo that is the only thing you can significantly
maximize) keep on top of your skills and move with the market.

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wschroter
It sounds odd, but even when we were billing $150 per hour for Web work
(through our agency with 100+ people on projects) the margins weren't that
great.

I'm not making a big sales pitch for working with a consulting firm (I sold
mine and will never go back). But I wanted to point out that the golden vision
of consulting is tarnished at best.

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wschroter
I've watched this cycle happen so many times with indy consultants that's it's
ridiculous.

Of course there are situations where you may be so good that work just keeps
getting fed under the door, but it's the rare exception.

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Jd
Very rare. Client management often is a full time job in itself and can be
very frustrating.

Before consulting I recommend finding at least one large client that can
guarantee 20-30 hrs of work for at least 8 months. Then use the remaining time
to work on other projects, develop relationships and especially target
potential large clients.

Otherwise you may end up like me, with lots of good ideas and lots of credit
card debt. Still, one learns by trying.

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Tichy
Um, what the heck is "Nu Bidnss"??? "New Biddings"? That story is hard to
understand for non-native speakers...

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Jd
'New Business' I believe, which I assume expresses the idea of finding new
contracts.

Not easy to understand.

~~~
wschroter
It's new business. I was thinking about all the cool star wars action figure
names and the spelling just kind of grew from there. I should have added the
phoenetic version I suppose.

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falsestprophet
So, how should one find clients?

