Part Time Consulting

[dlano]

Good evening community,

Like many of you here, I have a full time job and do additional work in the moonlight. I currently have one client who provides me with 25-30 hours a month. I desire to acquire more clients become self employed. I'd like to know how you guys explain to potential clients the fact that you're availability is limited. In other words, how do you make the transition from employee to owning running your own company full time without taking the financial risk of quitting the full time job? I'd like to join the local Chamber of Commerce to begin networking, but I'm a little concerned that I may not be viewed as top notch because of my limited availability.

I'd like to hear your stories and actions taken to make the transition from part-time to full time consultant.

d|an

 

[mrdenny]

I simply tell my clients, that consulting isn't my full time job, and that I have a full time job which is what pays the bills so my availibility is limited. Those that can work within those limits are happy to have me work for them. Those that aren't probably need more TLC than I can give them at the momemt anyway.

Denny
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[chiph]

If you find that you have a client that is taking up a large portion of your time, you can tell them you need a few days off each week for business development.

They should understand that.

Chip H.


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If you want to get the best response to a question, please read FAQ222-2244 first

 

[dlano]

What do you guys think about offering clients remote support during the day, and on-site support such as installs and deployments in the evenings and on weekends?

This schedule is working out well with the client I have, but what sort of appeal do you think this arrangement will have for others? I know it depends on the client's needs, but I'm wondering if there are many of you who have a large client base with this sort of schedule.

 

[johnwm]

I don't know what jurisdiction you work under, but you should maybe check with your company's HR department and/or an employment lawyer. It appears that you may be laying yourself open to civil or criminal charges if you are spending ANY of your current employers time servicing private clients.



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[dlano]

I currently own and operate a small real estate investment company. Although my education is in technology, I began acquiring small apartment buildings while in college. Many of the day to day tasks keep me busy during the day, but I am able to find time to offer remote support. I hope to build up enough clientel with my technology buisness to support my family, that way i can hire a property manager to take care of my investments.

 

[dpu]

Like Dlano I have a full-time job and have been toying w/ the idea of a part-time consulting position.
Dlano how did you aquire your first client?

 

[kmcferrin]

Well, if you're already self-employed via your real estate company then you should be in good shape. You can probably find ways to split your days between the two. If the eventual goal is to transition to IT full time and hire a property manager, have you looked at hiring a part time property manager? Do you have a wife or other partner that can take up some of the slack in the property business until you're ready to hire someone? Not to diminish the real estate business, but the day-to-day tasks are probably things that don't require a great deal of specialized knowledge, unlike IT consulting.

For a lot of people the consulting business starts when they have a friend or business contact who needs IT services. From there they usually are able to pick up a little more business on the side either via actively marketing themselves and networking or from word of mouth. But when you're just starting out it's a lot easier to get business from people that already know and trust you than to build that relationship from scratch.

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