How I Got Started in Independent Consulting
How my independent consulting business started and where it's going
My interest in entrepreneurship, business, and tech
I've always been interested in doing business on my own since I first went to college in Japan. I didn't do anything much on the idea of doing my own business at all back then.
I studied international communications there. A lot happened around that time (a story for another time). With my curiosity to learn and explore more, I ended up transferring school to BYU-Hawaii to pursue a business degree overseas.
A few semesters after studying in Hawaii, my wife (girlfriend at the time) and I decided to get married and settle in Utah where my wife was going to school.
I switched my major a few times at UVU (Utah Valley University) because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do or was worth getting a degree in. A business degree seemed be a good choice, but after taking a few business classes back in Hawaii, I learned it was not something I wanted to get a degree in. In the end, I decided to pursue a CS degree because I thought turning ideas into apps was so cool and a good skill to have. My friend who is a programmer helped me see the potential of learning programming in general. I also thought, why not pay for some tangible skills than a business degree that might be learnable on your own or the job (I mean anything is learnable without going to school nowadays).
I started learning about data science and analytics a little bit after that. Learning a programming language like Python helped me find that path.
Hustling on Upwork
One day when I was still going to school, I learned about a few websites/services, namely Upwork and Fiverr that would allow me to do freelancing work online. I was intrigued by the idea and jumped on creating my profile on Upwork.
I already had some skills that I acquired through classes, side projects, and internships. I was confident I could take on a project within my skill set. And I was right, I was able to do several, small projects on Upwork over the course of 1~2 years while going to school and working. I learned to create proposals and what it is like to work on contracting gigs. I made a little over $1,000 on Upwork if I remember correctly.
I soon realized that it was not sustainable for me though. It takes too much time and effort to get a single gig. You'd need to bid for each project with your proposal and you hardly hear back. I know there are people succeeding on platforms like Upwork, but it was not working for me. Being on Upwork felt like it was a race to the bottom and I didn’t want to compete with offshore folks. Also, I find Upwork fees of 20% of what you get paid too expensive.
You might say just keep doing gigs on Upwork and earn some extra cash, but even then I don’t think the time and effort I’d need to put in doesn’t equate to what I’d get paid.
I started taking personal branding more seriously in 2023
I was just someone who would just scroll through posts on LinkedIn up until 2023. I did post content here and there but I was not consistent. What I realized is that building a personal brand would benefit not only me but also others who could potentially learn from my posts.
In 2023, I decided to post more frequently and engage with other creators. I focused on providing value through my LinkedIn content and my blog post on my personal tech blog.
There are quite a few folks who inspired me to share my experience and knowledge online. Justin Welsh’s content was super intriguing and insightful. I started to think of ways to generate income while building my personal brand. I also read a few books on side hustles around that time.
I started to take action, whether it be creating LinkedIn posts, my blog posts, or just brainstorming what I can offer to other people. I came up with some ideas such as doing 1:1 consulting sessions, creating a digital product, and doing independent consulting.
I decided to take down my Upwork profile because I didn’t want to sell myself short. I also wanted to be consistent and fair to my potential clients. If I was selling my 1:1 consulting sessions at the rate of $200/hr but my rate on Upwork is at $100/hr, what would my clients say?
My only regret is that I didn’t keep testimonials/reviews from Upwork. I had 5-star reviews on all the projects I’d done.
The fruits of my work
After I started to put more effort into creating LinkedIn posts, blog posts, and 1:1 consulting sessions, I grew my network and LinkedIn/blog views started to gain more traction than before.
And that’s when I found my first direct client. In short, the CEO of this software company reached out to me on LinkedIn telling me he’d read my blog post and wanted to get in touch with me. I’ll discuss this first client more in detail in another article, but that’s how I started working with them. And they’re my first direct client ever.
One other great thing that happened to me because of my content was my book on Python Polars. I got reached out by Packt Publishing for a technical book on Python Polars. That’s because I shared LinkedIn and blog posts on Python Polars quite a bit in 2023. I’m sure there were other people who were equally or even more qualified, but I believe putting yourself out there and committing to spending hours on writing a book got me this gig.
Not to mention, I got to meet with and develop relationships with other people whether it be other consultants or my old LinkedIn connections. I now have people I interact consistently on LinkedIn as well. I learn from my network every day.
My plan for 2024
I haven’t gone full-time on my independent consulting just yet. I think it’s wise to wait until I establish a solid client base. Or at least a few gigs that pay the bills. I have a wife and a daughter, so I’m cautious about taking a leap from my full-time job. I don’t have a set date for when I go all in. That may or may not happen this year, but you’ll know when I do.
I plan to be more active in attending meetups, conferences, and networking events to put myself out there. I already got one speaking gig for 2024, which is a good start.
Also, I’ll set up my LLC and start branding my consulting work through it going forward as well.
More to come and I’ll be sharing what I’ll learn with you 👍