Service as a Product

I had a good fifteen minute conversation last night empowered by some Smokehead whisky. Consultants usually charge a certain amount of money per hour for their services and the contract lasts for a certain time. The markets at least where I operate have pretty stabilized prices, but are there alternatives? Can you charge more?

Now, I like reading and I have pretty much covered all books Robert Kiyosaki has written. One thing he talks in his book Retire Young, Retire Rich is leverage. When he talks about leverage he talks about anything that can leverage income. In real estate this could be debt, but in consulting business it could be your knowledge, skills and ability to sell yourself for your clients. When you started working as an entrepreneur you probably did this because you thought that you could get more leverage through better hourly rate and tax advantages.

You might have reached the level where you are already working full day, so you cannot get leverage by working more. In addition, you might have problems increasing your hourly rate. You might have already became a guru in a specialized field which already pays top dollars, so you cannot get much more. What then? Maybe you can sell your service as a product!

Deal with the Red Tape

This is the part that slows people down. Yes, the paperwork. However, if you want to create your own company you have to deal with it, but don't let that to stop you from starting. It is a small price to pay and if you are willing to pay, you can get the others to do these things for you.

Depending on which country and state you live in, dealing with the paperwork and officials can be anything from easy to hard. It depends also on what kind of business entity you want to create. If you are totally green about the differences in business entities, I cannot stress this enough - you want to do the homework on this one! Let me know if you want me to talk more about this and I'll write more detailed blog about the topic.

Securing Your Finances

Leaving the safety and comfort of the day job is intimidating for many, but the thought has probably crossed the mind of everyone. Some people are bolder than others and then some are like me who tend to analyze every aspect of everything. As a result it took me over two years from the idea of starting my own company to actually quitting my day job and doing what I wanted to do for a long time.

Starting your career as a consultant - or a specialist - requires focus on different things which pretty much depend on your personality and personal situation. I try to narrow the focus on this blog onto a professional who wants to become a self-employed consultant.