For my loyal readers out there, I’m giving you $50 OFF the BRAND NEW HOME STUDY VERSION of my training program “New Consultant Boot Camp.” But hurry, sale ends February 10th! Get the details here…

Philly and I have a long history. It’s where I was staffed on my first client as a consultant. Over the years I’ve had a lot of fun eating my way through the city. Here are some of my favorites for team and client dinners (and yes, as you can tell from the list I’m definitely a fan of Starr Restaurants).

Summer internships are a rite of passage for aspiring consultants. Whether your ultimate goal is a job offer or just to try before you buy, here are six ways to make the most of your internship.

Having a strong relationship with your clients makes a huge difference in your ability to be successful. But this skill doesn’t come easily to everyone. To remind you of some of those essential skills you may have forgotten you already have, stroll with me down memory lane…you’ll see how the same tactics that worked on the playground will help you in the business world too.

Submitted By: Kristine Schoonmaker
In just a one day I’m going to be sharing the 3 questions (and the answers too) that you need to know if you want less stress, better performance, and more free time as a new consultant.
I’m really excited for the call and hope you are too.  If you haven’t already reserved [...]

Do you know any consultant that isn’t glued to their cell phone? I don’t. It’s almost like a nervous twitch that all become afflicted with as soon as they join a firm. You may think your constant emailing and conversation makes you seem indispensable and highly responsive. In reality, however, it could be suggesting more about how you view those around you. While it’s great to be connected and in the know, there are some places that are not appropriate for conversations or emailing.

Consulting firms – and all companies really – look to fill their areas of greatest need when hiring new employees. While your skills, education, experience and interests are important, at the end of the day, they need to fill the seats to meet the demands of their clients and the type of projects they are selling most. So it should be no surprise when someone with a highly analytical mind and an interest in strategy gets aligned to technology, especially for new hires coming right out of college with limited experience. When you find yourself in the wrong spot for you, here are 7 strategies you can implement to help you get a move on inside your firm, rather than quitting and going somewhere else.

There are some people that know exactly what they want to do professionally for as far back as they can remember. And then there are the rest of us that are slightly later bloomers in that department. One big reason many pursue a path in consulting early in their career is to get a lot of different experience so they can figure out exactly what they want to do later. There are lots of problems with this approach that lead to frustration and burnout. If you are bold enough to declare your focus early, however, you reap many professional and personal benefits.

Consultants that get great ratings and fast promotions didn’t get there by accident. There are a handful of strategic activities they invest in to make sure the odds of success are stacked firmly in their favor. While you can’t control the environment in which the decisions are made, you can control the foundation for the conversation, and that happens well in advance.

Each year consulting firms go through an annual ratings process to rank their talent and make promotion decisions. The environment is incredibly competitive and the formula for success is anything but black and white. When you understand how the review process actually works, however, you can greatly increase your odds of success. But don’t hold your breath waiting for the company training on this one. Here’s what HR probably won’t tell you.

Regardless of your area of expertise, if you are a consultant, you’ll likely find yourself regularly leading a meeting remotely, working in temporary space, pitching your services or skills to get staffed or sell work, traveling, and throwing a deliverable together in a crunch. Being well-prepared with a robust toolkit at your disposal will help you tackle each of these with ease over and over again. Here are 20 items to include that are sure to make a big difference in your work and your life.

As a business owner, there are many hats I wear on a daily basis. Nearly every week, there are situations where I am faced with something new that I haven’t had experience with in the past. Similarly, as they frequently move from one challenging project to the next, consultants have to be very comfortable with ambiguity and manage any fear of the unknown they have to get the job done. Recently, in the simplest of tasks, I was reminded of a very important lesson of highly successful people: the ability to ask for help when needed. If you are like the many that are wrestling with something but aren’t asking for help, consider the impacts it is likely having on you.

As a consultant, you may find yourself jumping from project to project and client to client in a given year. Each change brings new team dynamics and, typically, a need for you to establish yourself as a credible and trusted advisor for your clients. Whether you’ve been in the game for years or just found yourself on your first client engagement, here are 14 great ways to build credibility with clients fast.

Consultants often have a very full social calendar during the work week. Team dinners are a frequent occurrence and a great way to build camaraderie when you spend Monday to Thursday away from home. It is also a common way to encourage relationship building with clients and celebrate big milestones. These functions can also impact your professional image and your career for the good, or the bad. Here are 5 tips to survive a team dinner.

As a consultant, sometimes the staffing process can be a whirlwind. Ideally you’ll have conversations with your project lead or clients prior to arriving on site day 1. However, if you you have limited information, here’s a quick list of 20 questions you can ask to get the essential information to get up and running quickly.