Business analysis consulting isn't for everyone, but I took the plunge in 2013 and it changed my life for the better.
I was a BA team lead at the time and by the end of 2012 I'd quit my full-time job, incorporated myself, started looking for consulting clients, and landed my first client engagement within a few months.
Here's how my life changed.
𝟭. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲
Permanent employment was limited in income potential. Transitioning to consulting is what gave me the ability to 5x my gross income between 2005 and 2022.
𝟮. 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
There's a reason why permanent employment is so coveted. Stability. Becoming a consultant means you have zero stability in your career. Employers often don't need any reason to terminate your engagement, and you must learn to source new clients and client work every time your engagement ends.
𝟯. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲
Having more income makes your "bench time" (aka time you're not working) easier to weather. This free time can be dedicated to anything you want. For example, I chose to dedicate all my bench time to building and launching BA BLOCKS. Now, I'm turning down consulting engagements (temporarily) to focus on teaching.
𝟰. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
Being a permanent employee shields you from much of the complexity and risks of having to start and operate your own business. Your employer manages all the risks of operating a business, and you as the employee, get to enjoy a relatively simple employment life.
As a consultant, you are a business owner, and you must handle your own:
➔ Bookkeeping, accounting, and legal costs of operating a business.
➔ Retirement investing to make sure you can retire when you want to.
➔ Business development to make sure you have work coming in.
➔ Risk of tax and regulatory compliance with changing laws.
𝟱. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
Your clients hire you for your hard skills. They are paying you big money, and they want results. VPs and Directors understand nothing better than ROI, and expect you to deliver on the "R" using your hard analytical skills to deliver while using your soft skills to magnify the value.
Whether you're consulting or permanent, consider gaining these 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 through the most practical BA training in existence today. FOBA™ enrollment starts on Monday. See the dates and details here 👉 bablocks.com/foba
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Photo: Taking a selfie in the elevator at 18 King St E, Toronto. This was the building where my first-ever BA consulting client had their office.
BA BLOCKS
Business analysis consulting isn't for everyone, but I took the plunge in 2013 and it changed my life for the better.
I was a BA team lead at the time and by the end of 2012 I'd quit my full-time job, incorporated myself, started looking for consulting clients, and landed my first client engagement within a few months.
Here's how my life changed.
𝟭. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲
Permanent employment was limited in income potential. Transitioning to consulting is what gave me the ability to 5x my gross income between 2005 and 2022.
𝟮. 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
There's a reason why permanent employment is so coveted. Stability. Becoming a consultant means you have zero stability in your career. Employers often don't need any reason to terminate your engagement, and you must learn to source new clients and client work every time your engagement ends.
𝟯. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲
Having more income makes your "bench time" (aka time you're not working) easier to weather. This free time can be dedicated to anything you want. For example, I chose to dedicate all my bench time to building and launching BA BLOCKS. Now, I'm turning down consulting engagements (temporarily) to focus on teaching.
𝟰. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
Being a permanent employee shields you from much of the complexity and risks of having to start and operate your own business. Your employer manages all the risks of operating a business, and you as the employee, get to enjoy a relatively simple employment life.
As a consultant, you are a business owner, and you must handle your own:
➔ Bookkeeping, accounting, and legal costs of operating a business.
➔ Retirement investing to make sure you can retire when you want to.
➔ Business development to make sure you have work coming in.
➔ Risk of tax and regulatory compliance with changing laws.
𝟱. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
Your clients hire you for your hard skills. They are paying you big money, and they want results. VPs and Directors understand nothing better than ROI, and expect you to deliver on the "R" using your hard analytical skills to deliver while using your soft skills to magnify the value.
Whether you're consulting or permanent, consider gaining these 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 through the most practical BA training in existence today. FOBA™ enrollment starts on Monday. See the dates and details here 👉 bablocks.com/foba
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Photo: Taking a selfie in the elevator at 18 King St E, Toronto. This was the building where my first-ever BA consulting client had their office.
1 year ago | [YT] | 8