When considering going out on your own, the first question that usually pops up is:

• Do I want to leave the corporate world?

If that question alone doesn’t scare you off, there’s a cascade of other existential questions that follow:

• Am I better suited as an FTE or could I handle being self-employed?
• Would I qualify as a freelancer or a consultant? (Oh, and what’s a fractional?)
• Would I be a generalist or specialist?
• What would I even sell? One-off projects or a standardized service?

Each question can be an all-too-easy exit ramp for someone to say, “Ok, I’m sticking with what I know.”

But for many, it can be easier to start with a different question:

• “What one part of my job am I exceptionally good at?”

That’s no simple question either, but once you have an answer, ask:

• “Could I envision a standardized service doing only that thing?”

If yes, you’ve begun to answer that original cascade of questions from the bottom up.

• I’m exceptionally good at [blank]
• I could design a niche, standardized consulting service around that
• Selling just one of those makes me ‘self-employed’
• If I could sell a few a year, perhaps leaving corporate isn’t all that scary after all

Start with what you’re great at - the other answers will follow.

💡

-Wes