[poulsbohemian]

Sounds a lot like where I was about twenty years ago, and today I sell stuff for a living... a few thoughts I wish someone had given me...

1) Productize yourself. That is, have several very clear services you offer at established rates. Brand yourself around a very clear idea that has people saying "hey, call the <service> guy" when they need <service>.

2) A lot of us in tech are shy and introverted by nature, which on the surface appears in direct opposition to the skills needed to sell. What I'm telling you is that you can absolutely learn how to be the life of the party - it just takes work and courage, just like any other skill.

3) Sharp branding can make you stand out. Good quality cards, website, etc. Speak well, write well. When you ask someone for a meeting, be very clear in communicating why it is a good use of their time. Figure out early if you are talking to the person with the authority to buy.

4) Small companies will often run you through the wringer of interviews etc, only to not actually have much money. Well-established companies will often be slow to pay and full of bureaucracy, but reliable income.

5) Time-boxing is your friend. It is hard to both do the sales and do the work. You need to really be aware of this as a potential problem.

6) Do sales by not doing sales - there is a lot to be said for meet up groups, speaking opportunities, providing "free" resources, etc. That is - be seen as an expert in your community and people will come to you and/or you will have already passed the social validation test.

[tucaz]

Item 1 is key in my mind. As someone in a role that procures a lot of services the worst thing someone trying to get a foot in the door can do is “everything”. Especially if you can’t explain how you work.

It leaves all the burden of figuring out how I could potentially use your services on me, and I’ll try my best to avoid having to deal with that uncertainty on top of what I’m already trying to achieve.

If you want to be successful offering services be very clear about how you work.

[MR4D]

I'll second this as well.

Everyone has a "go-to guy". Often it's a plumber, a handiman, a lawyer, etc. Your might be the "devops guy" or the "Cisco guy", etc.

Build that reputation and then expand.

Also, learn to listen well, ask good questions, and take good notes. Communication when you are independent can make or ruin it for you.

[ImPostingOnHN]

> It leaves all the burden of figuring out how I could potentially use your services on me

Thank you for sharing this. I feel a lot of client services businesses starting out (read: individuals going into consulting for themselves for the first time) try to build an enigma to make themselves seem experienced and comprehensive. As a buyer, I want to know, up front, what exactly an engagement with you looks like: What will you do? How much will it cost, over what schedule/criteria? What does our feedback loop look like as we progress?

If I get the impression that you're so desperate for work, you'd agree to do anything and everything for money, I'll feel uneasy. If you're confident about being able to do [thing] well, and can explain what it looks like for us to do [thing] together, it will put me more at ease.

[leros]

#1 is something I have a hard time with. I'm a developer who became a generalist and my specialty is not one particular thing. The corporate world wants to pigeon hole me into being a product manager, I'm only average at that. Being able to blend engineering, product, some marketing and general leadership skills is my thing. I can kind of do everything, but I don't know how to make a clear list of services to explain. myself. The contracts I've done so far I've stumbled into and only been successful because of my blend of abilities.

[claudiulodro]

Rather than specializing in a skill you could specialize in a market or domain e.g. digital services for furniture manufacturers (probably not a domain you personally are familiar with, but just an example).

[leros]

So far I've been finding myself bringing product marketing to companies that don't already do it (they bring me in to improve engagement and product marketing is the low hanging fruit). I really don't want to get pigeon holed into that though.

[claudiulodro]

What about branding yourself as an "Engagement Consultant"? That's a more defined service with plenty of demand (probably) and doesn't quite pigeon hole you into one type of activity.

[ducttapecrown]

Consulting!!

[946789987649]

Sounds like who you're targeting right? Big corps don't need generalists, start ups do.

[replwoacause]

#2 is particularly insightful. I’m an engineer who strongly dislikes social dynamics, so this point resonates with me.

[poulsbohemian]

I have a lisp, a stutter, and would be happy to live in a cabin in the woods far far away from civilization... but I got out of tech and now make a living in real estate and I'm active in politics. If I can learn the techniques to play an extrovert on TV, then anyone can do it. You have to have a plan for how to develop the skills and you have to put work into it, but it really is possible for anyone.

[manglav]

Would you mind if I reached out to you? I have the same stuff, but I haven’t been able to find any good coaching or books on speech.

[poulsbohemian]

I will email you, but really I don’t know that I can be much help. I did speech lessons as a really little kid, but don’t think they helped much with the lisp. The stutter comes and goes - I will suddenly have a run where it’s happening a lot and then it goes away. Not sure if it is tied to stress or sleep or ?? Started very young but has never been so pronounced that I’ve sought to do anything about it - I generally don’t even think about it, but lately it’s been back again.