How I Built a $400K Solo Consulting Practice

Introduction

Starting out as a solo consultant can feel like stepping off a cliff without a parachute. One former Accenture manager faced exactly that when he lost his corporate role and decided to freelance. Within a year, he’d built a practice generating $400,000 in profit. This case study distills the methods he used to move from side hustle to full-time consulting success.

Part 1: Asking Strategic Questions

Before any outreach or branding, he tackled three core questions: Why go solo? He listed personal goals—flexibility, income, control over client mix. What services to sell? He mapped his decade of management consulting experience into defined offerings: IT strategy, transformation programs, and operating model design. Big bang or gradual launch? He chose a hybrid: start on the side, validate demand, then quit once a pipeline formed.

Part 2: Sell, Sell, Sell

With the strategy set, he skipped logo design and jumped into selling. Two channels drove revenue: network outreach and broker platforms.

Network Outreach

He built a prospect list from LinkedIn connections, tracked every contact in a simple spreadsheet, and sent personalized messages explaining his shift to solo consulting. He followed up with coffee chats, turned conversations into proposals, and closed deals fast by demonstrating deep knowledge of client challenges.

Leveraging Brokers

He also signed up with multiple freelance broker platforms—Toptal, Business Talent Group, Malt—and treated applications like job interviews. Detailed CVs, clear statements of offering, and constant updates on availability helped secure assignments even when direct outreach slowed.

Q&A Highlights

Type of Work:Mostly IT strategy and transformation, with a mix of onsite and remote days.
Engagement Style:Prefers long-term, full-time roles over one-off workshops.
Branding:Initially LinkedIn content; later launched a formal firm website.
Marketing:No ads—relies on referrals, LinkedIn posts, and broker traffic.

Conclusion

Solo consulting isn’t a lucky break—it’s a process. Defining your why, mapping your skillset to clear services, and diving straight into selling will reveal whether the market will pay. Overdeliver on early projects, stay disciplined with follow-ups, and you can replicate this path to a $400K annual practice.