Consultancy is a popular gig for many experts in various fields nowadays, and there are plenty of good reasons that could be pointed out as the main driving factors behind that. For the most part, though, most people are simply lured by the prospect of being paid for their knowledge rather than slaving over a project, and the idea of working on a flexible schedule further adds to the attractiveness of the position.
People Are Going to Get Mad and Blame You
No matter how hard you try, projects are going to go wrong every once in a while. And since you’re being paid to be the primary figure of authority in those situations, it makes sense that people are going to point their fingers towards you specifically. You need to learn to deal with that in a professional, level-headed manner. Nobody wants to work with a hothead, even when they know deep inside that you’re right.
You’re Getting Paid to Know
Many consultants who’re still fresh in their field don’t understand the fine balance in the relationship between a company and its consultants, and the unfortunate reality is that many are less confident than they should be in that relationship. Remember, if a company wants you on board as a consultant, it means that they assume they have less knowledge than you, so you should be assertive and confident when giving your statement on any situation.
You Should Probably Increase Your Rates
Another common mistake in this field is to undercharge. It happens more often than you might imagine, and it’s not even limited to fresh specialists without too much experience. If you’re constantly getting offers and people seem more eager to work with you than they should, then you’re probably underselling yourself. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to strike the right balance in this regard, and you might have to do some experimentation to figure out where the sweet spot lies.
It’s Not All Smooth Sailing
There are going to be downtimes, and it’s important to know how to persevere and push through while maintaining an air of confidence around you. As we said above, projects are occasionally going to not run as expected or even fail completely, and you should be able to recover gracefully from those situations and increase your business credit and move forward. This will also make it more likely that your employers will want to retain their relationship with you in the future. On the other hand, you must also know how to deal with situations where you’re not getting as much work as you might want to.
Being a consultant sounds like a dream position for many people, but it has some hidden caveats that are important to observe if you don’t want to face severe disappointment in your field. The good news is, as long as you’re careful and persistent, you’re already ahead of a large number of your competitors. The rest comes down to actually having the knowledge that you’re supposed to be selling in the first place.