Getting paid by a full-time Employer is satisfying. However, the income earned from getting consulting work based on your own expertise feels even better. Working for a large organization can make a guy feel like a cog in the system. Out of necessity, everyone is replaceable. A company can’t set itself up to collapse or regress badly every time an employee leaves, so creating a system that keeps individuals replaceable is inherent in the Business model. There is often only so much you can do to stand out, and this background sense of dispensability can color your sense of self-worth over time.
I remember becoming frustrated early on in my career. I would speak at community events on behalf of my employer. I developed relationships with the event hosts, I marketed the events, and I coordinated the logistics. I developed the presentations from scratch, presented them, and spoke with all of the attendees. When the events were covered in the local press, it was disheartening to see that my name didn’t even appear! It was as if I didn’t matter and only the organization was delivering the content. While it is true that I had to work for the organization in order to have the opportunity to develop that programming at the time, it was still deflating that all the credit for my achievement was being given to my employer.
Creating your own consulting company gives you an opportunity to have your individual contributions recognized. Taking credit for your successes builds confidence. Since you own the company, the bragging rights are yours. Clients come looking for your expertise rather than hoping that you provide the service they have come to expect from someone else’s brand. This boost is especially helpful when dealing with difficult moments at your full-time job. When a project you’ve done for your employer hasn’t worked out as you planned or you are dealing with a difficult co-worker and wondering why your employer hired this person, it is rejuvenating to look at the successes of your own business during your lunch break or after the kids have gone to sleep. It allows you to reaffirm your own competence. In your consulting company, the frustrations are more easily managed because you are the person making all the decisions.
I remember having frustrating days at work dealing with various forms of bureaucracy or hiccups in getting things done. Having my own consulting business gave me renewed confidence in my abilities. The positive feedback from clients reinforced my self-confidence. It helped me to recharge my batteries for my full-time work.
So, how do you begin? How do you run a consulting business when you’re working full-time and still be a present daddy for your family? The key is to sell what you already know in a format that fits within the hours you have available. Everyone has some area of expertise that can be monetized. When priorities are thoughtfully organized, you can find the time to work on your own business. The ideal time to start your business is yesterday. Otherwise, start today.
Lavie Margolin is the co-author of Balancepreneur: How to earn six figures and tuck your kids in at night. Tweet him via @Laviemarg . Join the Balancepreneur Facebook group here.
