How do consultants make money?
Consultants basically help clients identify a BIG problem (or root problem). Next, they apply their significant knowledge to the client's problem in order to find a solution.
In today's Google era, anybody can rapidly become a consultant making a lot of money. However, there is a catch: you have to be able to APPLY the information to a client's situation or problem, in order to help him/her SOLVE that problem.
How does that work actually?
Imagine you have 16 black cards, and the client has 3 red cards. You can only make money IF and only IF you can find the three black cards you have which MATCH the three red cards the client has.
For example, if the client has the following three cards: 2, 7 and Queen of Hearts, then you must pull out your three corresponding cards: 2, 7 and Queen.
In this case, we would say that the client has 3 problems. If you pull out the corresponding black cards, then you are able to solve those 3 problems. Sometimes, you might only be able to solve only 1 or only 2 problems.
(Don't forget, you don't have 26 black cards; you only have 16 black cards. That's because no consultant has ALL the solutions).
For you to maximize your revenues, you would have to find a client that has PRECISELY the 16 problems to which you have 16 solutions. Of course, no single client has so many problems. More likely, you would have a group of clients who, together, would have those 16 problems.
Notice that there will be 10 problems to which you do not have solutions. This is why it's often good to find consultants whose skill sets and solutions complement your own; you can then swap clients.
It's interesting to note that often, clients don't know exactly what their problem is. They might tell you, "I have a Jack of Hearts problem." However, upon closer examination, you see that they actually have a King of Hearts problem. It is then your job to gently guide the client to "see" his real problem, BEFORE you propose your King of Spades solution.
You might think that your job doesn't require consulting skills, yet I submit that in today's knowledge economy, everybody does consulting work. It's all about finding problems and helping employers solve those problems.
The more problems you can solve (for an employer or a client), the more money you can make. Of course, the size of the problem you are solving, determines how big your paycheck is.
In today's Google era, anybody can rapidly become a consultant making a lot of money. However, there is a catch: you have to be able to APPLY the information to a client's situation or problem, in order to help him/her SOLVE that problem.
How does that work actually?
Imagine you have 16 black cards, and the client has 3 red cards. You can only make money IF and only IF you can find the three black cards you have which MATCH the three red cards the client has.
For example, if the client has the following three cards: 2, 7 and Queen of Hearts, then you must pull out your three corresponding cards: 2, 7 and Queen.
In this case, we would say that the client has 3 problems. If you pull out the corresponding black cards, then you are able to solve those 3 problems. Sometimes, you might only be able to solve only 1 or only 2 problems.
(Don't forget, you don't have 26 black cards; you only have 16 black cards. That's because no consultant has ALL the solutions).
For you to maximize your revenues, you would have to find a client that has PRECISELY the 16 problems to which you have 16 solutions. Of course, no single client has so many problems. More likely, you would have a group of clients who, together, would have those 16 problems.
Notice that there will be 10 problems to which you do not have solutions. This is why it's often good to find consultants whose skill sets and solutions complement your own; you can then swap clients.
It's interesting to note that often, clients don't know exactly what their problem is. They might tell you, "I have a Jack of Hearts problem." However, upon closer examination, you see that they actually have a King of Hearts problem. It is then your job to gently guide the client to "see" his real problem, BEFORE you propose your King of Spades solution.
You might think that your job doesn't require consulting skills, yet I submit that in today's knowledge economy, everybody does consulting work. It's all about finding problems and helping employers solve those problems.
The more problems you can solve (for an employer or a client), the more money you can make. Of course, the size of the problem you are solving, determines how big your paycheck is.
posted by Super Peter at 5:19 PM
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