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I’ve gotta admit, I’m a bit of a Davos nerd, from the sidelines of course.
The easy joke from the outside used to be to write the week off as a flashy ski-week boondoggle for the global 0.01%.
But I feel like the tone has shifted more respectful recently, perhaps in the spirit of, “the world’s crazy right now, it’s not a terrible idea to bring the world’s economic power players together and talk about solutions.”
I woke up early yesterday Seattle-time to catch a live briefing BCG put on to share key insights they were hearing on the ground there this week.
My three takeaways from the convo, and my application of each one to solo consultants are below:
- Geopolitics certainly carried the global headlines, but it seems the conversations beneath the surface for businesses were more around building a long-term “geopolitical muscle” to weather volatility.
For solos, we can apply the same thinking — we can’t control macro conditions, nor is there ever truly a 'steady state'.
But we can build resilience into our businesses (experiments, new offers, flexible pricing, cash buffers) so that things don’t slam to a halt under fears that the sky is falling.
- Indiscriminate AI investment is over (e.g. ‘build AI into all of our processes’, or ‘add an AI feature to all of our products’).
Instead, firms are focused on (and eager to invest in) hyper-focused, vertical-specific, problem-oriented innovation.
For solos, this would underscore the importance of specialization.
Even if your services aren’t AI-adjacent, the theme here is that companies do, in fact, have budget to invest in growth, but more than ever, they’re looking for solutions that are custom-tailored to their domain.
(That means you, if you've niched.)
- Cross-pollination lifts the grey ceiling. A week like Davos only works because people show up in the same village and talk to each other.
Not just sit and passively take in panels and insights.
Actually converse.
For solos, this is particularly important as our structural setup can easily give rise to isolation, LinkedIn doomscrolling, and an echo chamber of one.
All of this gets heightened in a down-swing.
We have to actively find ways to engage in productive, compounding conversations with peers.
And, importantly, do so on two fronts: 1) other consultants & independents and 2) clients, contacts and other connections within your domain.
It’s these conversations that will feed your business, and your soul, when the noise gets loud and starts to shake your foundation.
Have a great weekend.
💡
-Wes
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