Build Your Consulting Business With Intelligent Risks

Starting a consulting business is full of risks. The authors of the book “The Start-up of You” suggest that entrepreneurs should take “intelligent” risks. Reid Hoffman, the co-founder and chair of LinkedIn, co-authored the book with Ben Casnocha, an entrepreneur and author.

They don’t promote taking irrational risks; they point out that successful entrepreneurs are often those who can soberly assess risk and find ways to manage it. Here are two ways they offer to assess risk:

1. Can you survive the worst-case scenario? One study of high-level executives found that rather than consulting decision-making trees or trying to quantify risk, the question they often asked themselves was: could they survive the worst-case scenario? You may have had a Plan B and C in your head when you started your consulting business—think through what would happen if you actually had to resort to them.

2. Can you reverse the decision? Before you take a risk, consider whether that path prevents you from being able to easily access your backup plans if you need them. The authors’ example here is the founder of Dell Computer, Michael Dell. When Dell wanted to leave college to found his startup, he didn’t leave in haste. Instead, he took a leave of absence, which secured his option to go back to school (Plan B).

Consider taking some intelligent risks with your consulting business. If you’ve already experimented with “intelligent” risk-taking, share some stories in the Comments section below.

And to follow through on the tips introduced in this short article, especially if your consultancy will also work with SaaS and IaaS, be sure to enroll now in our free 7-day eCourse: Go-to-Market Strategy 101 for B2B SaaS Startups and Scaleups.