How many people have had success leaving “big” consulting to start doing freelance work? The freedom and money sound very appealing, especially since I’m getting pretty sick of the corporate rat race. Luckily I’m in a niche area and get hit up on LinkedIn a lot about independent contracts. What kinds of things should I be considering as I contemplate this potential career change? Any advice from someone who has made the jump is appreciated.

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It’s a hot market. Just do it and boomerang in 6 months if it doesn’t work out.

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Haven’t made the jump myself, but ensure your finances are in check (12 months expenses incl. healthcare benefits etc)

Then you’ll need a pipeline, your rates, testimonials, potential team depending on work etc.

Think of your current project regarding the logistics — you now have to do all of that + the actual work

I didn’t do all that when I did it for a little while. I just started and worried about all that later.

Plenty of staffing firms out there looking for folks to fill roles and there is a dearth of good candidates. You don't need to build up a full business as a lot of them will offer to pay you as an S-Corp or just hourly as a W2 along with (mediocre in comparison) benefits. There's a whole industry of folks who'll be glad to take a cut to find you work. I left ACN for a contract project 10 years ago as a SM to get off the road, made more money and got to see my family every night. If you don't like it, the boomerang is easy assuming you do good work and don't burn bridges. I've bounced back and forth a couple times depending on projects. Geography matters if you want to work near home; I live in a target rich market and it's been easier to find gigs as I've built up my local network. As mentioned by SBA1, get your finances in order. I think of it as funding my own bench.

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