You know I had to share the video!

Well, if anything is constant, its change. In my last post on 1/9 I had talked about figuring out what “next” looks like in the future. Well, I didn’t realize my future would be so soon.
I am currently funemployed. Sucks, right? Well, not really. Well, my bank account thinks it sucks. But for my mental health, and career aspirations, it was absolutely for the best.

So what’s next? One thing is for sure. Working “internally” for someone is off the table. I’ve tried that experiment in 2022 and 20223 after 5 years of consulting and frankly, I don’t think its a fit for me anymore. Either i’ve just been extremely unlucky (possibly), or I just don’t really fit that model anymore.

So i’ve chosen to go back to consulting. I found that the partners were hiring for regular consulting roles, or solution architects. No one was hiring for leads or people/delivery managers which is really what I want to get into. I’ve had experience leading teams and projects, and it excites me when I see folks I train and mentor succeed. So since those roles weren’t available, I decided to accept a role with a small consultancy called Tiny Feet Cloud Services.

Remember them? I do. The interview was easy, I was hired on the spot. They told me they dont provide healthcare, no PTO, pay is sporadic, work will be hard, i’ll probably have to manage 4-5 email addresses at a time. I said to this hiring manager that he must be out of his mind. Then I remembered, oh yeah, hiring manager was me. Yup, going out on my own again.

For those new to this blog, Tiny Feet Cloud Services was in business from 2020 – 2022. I opened toward the end of 2020 to control my own destiny when my employer was going through layoffs, and I felt the writing was on the wall. I did a lot of sub-contract work and had a few of my own direct clients. I really really enjoyed it.

So why did I close up the first time? I made some dumb mistakes. I relied on Salesforce a bit too much at the end for leads instead of filling my pipeline with consistent sub-contract work. I think I got high off my own supply, if you catch my drift. I originally opened with a 70/30 model of 70% sub and 30% direct, and over time, got to be about 20/80, with a goal of fully moving off of sub work. But when those big projects dont close youre counting on, it can be devastating financially if you don’t resource correctly.

I was also terrified of growth. I was doing well and tapped out on utilization. I didn’t have the funds to grow and hire someone, but i also didnt have the stamina to go sell and bring on projects to support someone. Instead of bringing on a business partner to do the additional work or hiring fractional contractors, I just freaked out and folded. That, and well, healthcare is super expensive and a pain in the royal ass if you have to manage it yourself.

So will it be different this time? Yes. I’m not afraid of success this time, I have a plan in the event that I need to expand, I have a more focused offering, and have a way to continue to fill my pipeline.

“What about the economy Bill? People are getting laid off left and right!” You, dear reader, are right. But I think in a post-Covid and remote first workforce (or struggling to be), organizations are waking up to the reality that having the agility to leverage short engagements with fractional folks gives them an advantage.

Running my own business, being able to choose what I want to work on and when, carrying minimal debt, and being able to control my work/life balance without resistance is freedom that I am very much looking forward to regaining.

I hope that in a year i’m not showing the Scorpions video again and talking about growth and hiring folks.

Here’s to the future!