Establishing a solo consulting business is a journey of paradox.

• I’m burnt out from corporate, but still want to juggle a few different paths.
• The world’s supposedly my oyster, but everyone tells me to niche down.
• I have some inbound prospects, but it’s not the work I really want to do.

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With so many mixed signals, it’s easy to get stuck when trying to specialize.

So, you set out on a more generalist path, and end up with no signal.

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So, how do you break out of the conundrum?

Yes, you do need to choose a lane for a core service. One that pairs your unique domain expertise with an urgent pain point affecting a narrow client profile within your market.

But! It’s ok to allow yourself a ‘B-side’ — a small portion of your capacity you keep open for a second, discretionary lane.

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Tactically, B-side work could look like:

• One last project to offboard an existing client
• A new service you’re experimenting with
• A left-field client that strikes your interest

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Some critical guardrails on the B-side:

• Build your revenue goals based on your ‘A-side’ capacity only — consider B-side revenue a delight, not an expectation
• Only accept B-side work that is inbound or opportunistic - do not set up explicit marketing activities to support it, as it will distract from building your A-side pipeline
• Cap your B-side capacity to 10-15% of your ‘working in the business’ time, and be mindful that your B-side isn’t taking up more mindshare than that cap either

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For new consultants feeling suffocated by the idea of specialization, having this ‘B-side’ available can act as a snorkel — even if you end up not using it.

💡

-Wes