Welcome back! Over the past 200+ Lightbulbs, I’ve been sharing tips, insights and frameworks all in service of monetizing your corporate expertise as an independent consultant.

I've workshopped and released these as they were relevant and top of mind for my work with coaching clients, as well as my own journey.

What’s been building in aggregate behind-the-scenes, though, is a more holistic narrative of what I see as the 5 core pillars for going from amorphous expertise to sellable service.

So, as a year-end recap this week, I’ll be revisiting the key concepts in a macro-framework I’m calling the ‘First Mile Foundations’.

Whether you’re new to The Lightbulb or not…

Whether you’re new to solo consulting or not…

I hope this view will be a helpful resource for you to guide the efficient deployment of your unique expertise.

The first pillar is Self-reflection.

So, you’ve jumped into the soloist pool, perhaps triggered by a layoff, burnout, career break, or just a higher calling.

The best way to get a sense of your direction is to first look inward, in two directions.

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1. Is self-employment a good fit?

First, the ‘Liftoff’ framework is a 5-part triage that can help you figure out if self-employment is a good fit by looking at five key angles:

• Your intrinsic motivation
• Social orientation
• Soapbox
• Resilience
• Financial stability

In live workshops that I’ve led on this framework since publishing, participants have walked away not necessarily with a go/no-go on whether they should go solo…

But instead with a clearer understanding of their inherent strengths that fit with the soloist model, and where they might need to bolster some support.

You can find the summary post here, with links included for assessment of each angle.

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2. Your 'genius zone'

Second, before we get our minds into the details of niching, service design, pricing etc., it can be helpful to take an unclouded inventory of your ‘genius zone’.

Coined by Gay Hendricks in his book The Big Leap, your genius zone is that type of work that comes to you so naturally that it doesn’t even feel like work to you.

The general idea is that you shouldn’t be spending much time doing things that you’re good at. Or even great at. Rather, you should spend as much as your time as possible doing only things you are exceptional at.

I’ve alluded to this concept throughout the year, but haven’t set out to recreate the framework.

For an orientation on this concept in the arena of solo consulting, I’d recommend Rochelle Moulton and Jonathan Stark’s 2023 episode of ‘The Business of Authority’ found here.

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Now, with a two-pronged assessment of your proclivity for self-employment, and an idea of where you effortlessly provide exceptional value, you’ll have a solid grounding for the next pillar tomorrow: market assessment & niching.

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💡

-Wes