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Looking for expert advice to help and inspire you in your HR Consulting Business, or looking for guidance and insight as you start your journey into establishing your HR Consulting business? Wherever you are on your consulting journey you are in the right place.

Check out our latest blog content, packed with interesting views, stories, advice, guidance and anecdotes from the UK's Leading Mentor for HR Consultants, Sarah Hamilton-Gill. With over 30 years experience as an HR Consultant, Sarah has much wisdom to share and is reagrded extremely highly in her field.

We hope you find our articles useful. Please do share your views in the comments.

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Category: Life as a Consultant

  1. Now is a time of exceptional opportunity for Consultants. Here’s why:

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    You know that age old saying, ‘There’s no time like the present’. It’s never rung truer for HR Consultants than right now.

    Now is the time to Leap into Consulting™.

    Given current global circumstances, this might go against what you think.

    So - why now?

    With ongoing lockdowns, furloughs and struggling businesses, becoming a Consultant can feel like a risky move. But the truth is we are living through a time where all the elements have aligned for HR consultants to succeed.

     Here is why:

    1. Businesses are crying out for external help. With many full-time staff on furlough or facing redundancy there are resource gaps that need to be filled. Hiring a consultant helps businesses do this while they remain in recovery mode.

    2. Full-time HR staff who are still working have spent much of the last few months firefighting. A lot (if not all) of their attention has been focused on COVID-19 and its implications. But that doesn’t mean that other HR functions don’t need attention. They do. And consultants are perfectly placed to address them.

    3. At a time like this, businesses need to hire people who are used to change, people who know how to work in uncertain circumstances, and people who can jump right into the unknown to make things happen. Hello consultants, this is our forte!

    It doesn’t matter if you’re just starting out on your consultancy journey, or if you’ve been working as a consultant for a while.

    What does matter is your next steps into establishing yourself and finding an income. And the time is now. This exceptional opportunity for HR Consultants won’t last for long, so now is the time to push forward, take the Leap into Consulting™, and to make things happen.

    September has always been one of the busiest months in the consulting diary so you need to have clarity and be ready for this.

    Here at Leap into Consulting™ we have the perfect 6 week course to make sure you’re prepared, up-to-speed, and able to take advantage of this window.

    Have you spent the last few months during lockdown working on your business? Great!

    Have you spent the last few months juggling everything you can at home without putting any effort into your consultancy? That’s ok.

    Have you found yourself furloughed or redundant but with a strong desire to get back into the working world? Fantastic.

    Our HR Consultant Bootcamp will ensure that in just 6 weeks you’re ready to jump into consulting and to say ‘yes!’ To all the amazing opportunities that are waiting for you.

    But time is of the essence. Say yes to our 6 week bootcamp now. The course starts on 3rd August 2020 and by mid-September you’ll be saying ‘yes’ to lots of exciting consultancy offers.

    Are you ready to make consultancy work for you? Contact us for more information now. Space is limited to just 8 people, so register your interest now

  2. Why Navigating The Second Half Of 2020 Might Be Easier As a Consultant

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    Do you want to create your own future? To boldly navigate new goals? To confidently negotiate a higher income? 

    If you dream of achieving more, then becoming a consultant might be the way forward for you. Let me show you why. 

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    Over the last few weeks, I’ve had lots of conversations with confident, assertive and motivated people about returning to work post Covid-19 lockdown, and one topic has arisen time and time again: concerns that a full-time salaried job no longer offers what they need. 

    For hard-working and driven people, a full-time salaried career is no longer viewed as either a secure or desirable way to achieve personal or financial goals.  

    Becoming an HR Consultant turns this on its head. This is why: 

    Professionals employed by someone else are worried in the current climate, not only about health concerns but about future company redundancies, salary reductions, lack of growth opportunity, childcare needs, lack of personal time, and a lack of company value or appreciation. 

    Each and every one of these is a very valid concern and something that employers need to address. 

    But for you - there is another way. And now is the time to act.  

    Set your own goals, workload, salary and time by starting your own consulting business. If it’s security you crave, this may feel contradictory. But let me explain how it can help. 

    As an HR Consultant and business owner you will have the freedom to: 

    • Create your own desired income; you won’t need to worry about redundancies or salary deductions.
    • Ascertain your own earnings, and find ways to boost your income in times of need.
    • Self-motivate to grow your business and achieve goals.
    • Take control over your time. You’ll be free to take time off whenever needed, no questions asked.
    • Create your own unique set of business values - and live up to them.

    As the UK prepares to go back to work, now is the time to set up your consulting business. Covid-19 has created a high demand for HR services that you can fulfil. But there is only a small window of opportunity to take advantage of this.

    I’m running a 6 week HR Consultant Bootcamp to help you achieve it. This is the last Bootcamp before businesses emerge out of furlough. This Virtual Bootcamp will help you get ready for potential clients.

    Indepedent Freedback: "I thought being a Consultant would be lonely and I wouldn't have much support but actually I feel more connected by this group than my current employer".
  3. Reinvention

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    I’ve recently been announced as one of the finalists in the Successful Women in Business Awards, founded by Gill Donnell MBE. 

    While I’m always honoured to be nominated and become a finalist for business awards, this one means more to me than many. 

    Why? 

    Because the award I’m up for via the Successful Women in Business is the ‘Reinvention Award’. 

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    This means a lot to me as I’ve worked hard to be where I am today, and it hasn’t always been a linear journey. I’ve seen my fair share of crisis times; the current Coronavirus crisis and subsequent financial crisis is just the latest. 

    Indeed, over the last few months I’ve had to pivot my business from face-to-face bootcamps and coaching sessions to bootcamps that are run entirely via a virtual platform. Getting an entire course up online in a matter of days is no easy feat, believe me. 

    More than this though is the reinvention of the way in which I run my sessions today. Until a few months ago I was working with people who actively wanted to make the Leap into Consulting™, But now with furloughs, job losses and general insecurity in the workplace, many of the people I work with are not considering making the leap out of pure choice. Many have no other choice. 

    Of course, when the circumstances of my clients are changing, the way I deliver coaching must too. 

    As I’ve been through similar crisis myself a few times in my 25 year consulting career, I know how to work with my new set of clients and how to deliver what they need, in order to help them leap back into success. 

    You could say my entire business model for the last few months has been about reinvention; for both myself and my clients. 

    I’m proud I’ve been able to do so, and I’m proud of my clients who are doing the same. 

    So to be a finalist in the ‘Reinvention Award’ means more to me than many may realise. 

    Thank you for the nominations, for recognising me as a finalist, and for the many opportunities I’ve been presented with that have allowed me to be where I am today. 

  4. Why professional development is also personal development

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    Are you considering either personal or professional development, but are not sure which to choose? We understand. On one hand, you want to advance your career. On the other, you want to nurture your personal life, self-esteem and relationships. 

    The answer to this is actually fairly simple, invest in a development programme that does both.

    Here at Leap into Consulting™ we offer a wealth of professional advice that will inevitably boost your personal circumstances too. The lines overlap, and in using our professional development tools and techniques, we’re sure you’ll find that your personal life benefits too.

    Yes, our training programmes are designed to boost your career and your income, but with us it’s personal. Our unique blend of intuition, empathy and humour will help you see results - in all areas of your life. 

    Here are just some of the ways that our professional development tools and mentoring will help you reap benefits in your personal life, too:

     

    It will help with decision making: 

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    Our coaching sessions are designed to help you define what you want out of your career. We structure this in a way that guides you to understand yourself and what is important to YOU. In our sessions, this may mean critically assessing your current clients or aspects of your role to discuss which are working for you and importantly - which are not. Often, this critical thinking will extend into other aspects of your life too. Once you’ve found a clear path to making professional decisions, you’ll be able to make personal decisions more easily too - leading to a more effective life, outside of the office. 

     

    You’ll build a professional network: 

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    By the very nature of what we do, you’ll build your professional network with us. We hold webinars attended by groups of career-minded professionals, as well as some face-to-face events with focussed and driven attendees. As a consultant who may often work alone, it’s important to build these networks with like-minded people. You may find peers who can help you achieve your career goals, or you may find someone who wants to talk holidays over a glass of wine one evening. As a consultant or a business leader - both are important in creating a well-rounded lifestyle. 

     

    It will bring back your self esteem: 

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    Consultants often work alone, perhaps from home or perhaps jumping from office-to-office on an ever-changing basis. This way of working can be tough on even the strongest of us. Without an annual review or fixed line manager to sing your praises, it can sometimes be tough to see just what you’re worth. Investing in professional development will highlight your skills, assets and accomplishments, in turn bringing back any lost self-esteem. And navigating the world with a sense of self-esteem will do wonders for both your professional and personal life. 

     

    You’ll rediscover your creativity:  

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    Having someone on hand to help you decide what you really want to do with you career will bring back your creativity. Perhaps you’re currently employed full-time and find yourself filling your days with tasks you’d rather not do, were you given the choice. Or perhaps you’re a long-time consultant who started with dreams and aspirations but have found yourself stuck in a rut in order to ‘get by’. Think again. Professional coaching will help you think outside of the box once more, allowing you to inject some creativity into your professional life. It will help you to discover what you want to do with your life rather than what an employer wants you to do. And there’s nothing better for your sense of well-being than following your own path. 

     

    It will offer a sense of direction: 

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    Any professional coaching takes place with one ultimate goal in mind, helping you achieve your career goals. Our professional coaching methods combine this with elements of life-skill coaching: clear decision making, elevated self-esteem and sense of worth, rediscovery of creativity and network building - giving you a rounded yet clear focus that will seep into other areas of your life too. 

     

    You’ll regain a work/life balance:

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    Knowing what you want will inevitably lead you to a more balanced work/life view, and one that works for you. If you want to work 70+ hour weeks, you’ll have the tools to find enough clients to keep you busy. If you want to chop your working week in half in order to spend more time with loved ones, you’ll discover how to price yourself in a way that allows you to make it happen. If you want to simply cut the work that isn’t giving you fulfilment, you’ll find the confidence to do so. Whichever way you look at it, understanding your ideal work/life balance and knowing how to get there is priceless. 

     

    It will improve your relationships (with yourself and others): 

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    Professional development will change the way you see yourself. It will help you to recognise your achievements, to understand what is important to you both professionally and personally, and allow you to make impactful changes in your life and career. And in elevating the relationship you have with yourself, you’ll elevate your relationships with others too. 

     

    It will make you happier!  

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    If it’s not clear by now, let us spell it out for you - professional development will make you happier! Yes, it will make you happier at work, but it will also make you happier outside of the office, too. It will build your self-esteem, equip you to make better decisions, help you find the confidence to chase a life you dream of, and bestow you with a sense of all your achievements; past, present and future. 

    The benefits this will have on your personal life are numerous. We can’t name them all but we can say, a person who is happy, confident and knows what they want in life becomes inspirational and unstoppable!

    - Are you ready to make the Leap into Consulting™?

    - Find out how we can help you make the leap this leap year.  

  5. Gain an extra’s day pay in 2020: make the Leap into Consulting™

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    Thousands of consultants across the country will gain an extra day’s pay in 2020. 

    Why? 

    2020 is a leap year; 366 days make up the calendar year rather than the usual 365. If you want to get really specific, this means 254 working days rather than the usual 253.

    Consultants will charge for this extra working day while those in full-time employment will usually work the extra day without any additional financial benefit. 

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    But pay is just one reason to make the Leap into Consulting™ this leap year. Working as a consultant has many benefits. Here are just a few to consider: 


    You can choose your projects:

    Have you ever been pulled into a job by your manager that you really didn’t want to do, but had to because ‘it’s work’. Think again. As a consultant you can choose which jobs you wish to take on and - perhaps more importantly - which ones you don’t. Love organisational design? Choose projects focussing on this and go to work happy every day. Don’t enjoy recruitment? You’ll never have to look at a CV again. 


    You can choose who you work for:

    The choice of who you work for as a consultant is up to you. Entirely up to you. Your CV will become a running list of the people you have chosen to include, not those who have chosen you. So if you prefer working with smaller start-ups, you can dedicate your time to them. If you’re looking for big corporate names, you’ll rack up a few in no time at all. And the best thing? If you want to work with a combination of both, you absolutely can. 

     

    You can design your work/life balance:

    As a consultant, you get to choose who you want to work for - but you also get to choose when. Do you want to work Monday-Thursday only? Clock-off by 3PM? Take a month off in between jobs? All of this is possible. Yes, even the month off. You’ll decide which hours, days and even months you work. Whats more, even if you do decide to stick to the regular 9-5, Monday-Friday, you can still cut out that pesky commuting time and be finished up with work for the day well in time for dinner.


    You’ll build your network: 

    Working for a multitude of companies means working side-by-side with many different peers, VPs, board members and CEOs. Aside from the rounded experience this brings it also allows you to build a long, long list of professional contacts from varying specialities. What does this mean? It could mean someone to soundboard off next time you have a tough question from their niche. It will also likely mean a long list of full-time employees with your name on-hand next time they or their boss are looking for a consultant. We call that win win!

     

    The growth opportunity:

    Growth opportunities as a consultant come quicker and faster in terms of both experience, and pay. It works like this: consulting across many different companies means you’re not stuck doing the exact same job day in, day out. Its a fast-track to wider learning opportunity. You therefore have a far wider scope to learn and understand many different parts of a business and increase your specialist knowledge. This alone makes you incredibly valuable and sought out by businesses, which in turn comes with a higher pay check. 

     

    Better compensation (including extra pay for overtime!):

    It’s no secret that when a company is looking for a consultant to assist with a project, they’re willing to pay above and beyond market rate than that of a full-time employee. They need someone with specialist knowledge and that’s you, the consultant. You can also charge for an extra day’s work (hello, leap year!) and even more brilliantly - for overtime. If you’ve not yet made the Leap into Consulting™, have a think next time you’re stuck at the laptop past 6PM: you could be charging for this. You’ll never look at overtime the same way again. 

     

    Freedom from office politics:

    One major advantage of being a consultant is the freedom from office politics that you'll gain. Yes, you may have to deal with some of the day-to-day issues, but on the whole once you clock off from your working day, you’ll leave it behind. Even if not, you'll absolutely leave it behind once you move on to another project. And remember that month off we talked about. There’ll be no dealing with politics then! 

    - Are you ready to make the Leap into Consulting™?

    - Find out how we can help you make the leap this leap year.  

  6. Get over your Summer Blues !

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    I have listened to many consultants that worry about the fall in client work throughout the summer months. For me this is something that you should only experience in your first year until you get your business model right. 

    • What types of services and products can you offer during the summer months that will continue regardless of holidays?
    • Do you offer Summer Specials to generate interest and cashflow opportunities?
    • What is the balance between your products and services?
    • What % of your income is from the internet?

    I'm happy to talk - please don't feel alone with this stressful situation. I have been there and it requires a fresh approach!

    Here's the link to my calendar - book in 20 minutes for us to get ideas and some quick wins.

    https://calendly.com/sarahhg-ghr

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