Product Description

Getting Started in Consulting, Third Edition provides practical solutions and proven strategies for launching a consulting business. Readers will learn how low overhead and a high degree of organization can translate into a six–figure income within a year of startup, while working from a home office. Author Alan Weiss also offers key information on how to finance a consulting practice, how to write proposals, how to set up billing and bookkeeping, and more. This newly revised and expanded edition includes a "budget sampler": how to best invest $5,000, $10,000, or $20,000 on startup; a brief Q&A section after each chapter of questions from the first two editions on each topic; a new chapter on leveraging technology; updated references and examples; updated appendices; and free downloadable tools and forms to help readers get started.

For Alan Weiss′s biography, please see below.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #25310 in Books
• Published on: 2009-04-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 302 pages

From the Back Cover

The Unbeatable, Updated, Comprehensive Guidebook For First–Time Consultants

Getting Started In Consulting

More people than ever are making the jump from corporate offices to home offices, taking control of their futures, being their own bosses, and starting their own consultancies. Consulting is a bigger business than ever and growing every day.

For almost a decade, Alan Weiss′s Getting Started in Consulting has been an indispensable resource for anyone who wants to strike out on his own and start a new consulting business. It provides a rich source of expert advice and practical guidance, and it shows you how you can combine low overhead and a high degree of organization to add up to a six– or even seven–figure income. You′ll learn everything you need to know about financing your business, marketing your services, writing winning proposals, meeting legal requirements, setting fees, keeping the books, and much more.

This new Third Edition of Getting Started in Consulting is more comprehensive, up to date, and practical than ever. In addition to the nuts–and–bolts basics, you′ll also get a wealth of new information and resources:

• How to leverage new technologies to lower your business costs and increase your profits

• A budget sampler that shows you how best to maximize an initial start–up investment of $5,000, $10,000, or $20,000

• Free downloadable tools and forms to help you design and start your business quickly and easily

• New interviews with consultants who achieved rapid success, including their personal stories and most effective techniques

• Brand–new references, examples, and appendices

If your dream in life is to get out of the office and out on your own, consulting is a great way to make it happen. Make sure you do it right—and do it profitably—with Getting Started in Consulting, Third Edition.

About the Author

Alan weiss is a consultant, speaker, and bestselling author. His firm, Summit Consulting Group, Inc., has consulted with such clients as Merck, Hewlett–Packard, GE, and Mercedes–Benz, among many others. His thirty other books include the bestseller Million Dollar Consulting. For more information, contact him at his blog, www.contrarianconsulting.com, or Web site, www.summitconsulting.com.

Customer Reviews

Essential reading for the budding consultant!
I purchased this book after the excelent Million Dollar Consulting, with a view to setting up my own firm and I must say that the book has proved to be invaluable!
Alan Weiss' conversational writing style makes his books easy to read. He has the knack of making the daunting seem realistic and achievable, due to the systematic nature with which he breaks down the process of setting up your own practice.

Every few pages contain conversations with other consulting firms about what they have learned since setting up their own businesses and what they would do differently next time. These insights can cut years off your learning curve!

There is also excellent advice on how to go about raising your profile via keynote speeches, writing articles, and many other hints and tips to add value to your services.

One key point he makes is that of not charging per diem or hourly and the concept of charging project fees basaed on value outcomes to the client. This can help you to make considerably more money and differentiate yourself from the myriad of consultants offering commodity services and charging hourly or daily rates.

Finally, the appendices offer invaluable advice ranging from the content of your brochure and office essentials to the various trade organisations you can liaise with to network.
Definately a book to keep referring to!

A book all consultants or aspiring consultants should read
I obtained this book from my local library and made a few notes as I was reading through it. This worked well until I reached the chapter "Closing the Sale" which incorporates the "Nine Steps of Great Proposals"; I then realised that I would want to refer back to this time and time again so I logged straight on to Amazon to order my own copy.

The title understates the usefulness of this book by including "Getting started in." ALL consultants of whatever level of experience are certain to find something in this book which digs them in the ribs and says "you really aren't getting the most out of your work, are you ?"

Very few of us aspire to the levels of success that Alan Weiss achieves but he gave me the confidence to believe that I can achieve considerably more than before I took the book off the shelf.

My only caveat is that there are some elements in which the U.S. origin reduces the value because the organisations listed are US-based, however a little research should identify UK equivalents for many of them.

Been there, done it....valued the book
I have been running a consulting business for 4 years now, and amoungst the many books I read on start up and since this has been the most useful and supportive. Having got it out from the library (preserving funds at the early stage), I then bought the latest edition of the book, have given it as a present to a freind who was starting up and used it on and off for the last 4 years.
I would recommend this as your first port of call if starting up.