If you are thinking about starting a consulting or coaching business, there is a question I wish more people would ask at the beginning:

Am I building the right business… or just getting into business?

Because those are not the same thing.

Many experienced professionals leave leadership roles with incredible expertise. But when they start their consulting business, they follow a very familiar pattern.

They land a few clients through their network.

They subcontract with more established consultants.

They put together a quick website. And suddenly they are “in business.”

For a while, it works.

Until it doesn’t.

The referrals slow down.

The work starts to feel reactive.

The website looks more like an online resume than a strategic brand. And the deeper realization hits: you did not leave your leadership career to have less control over your careers, time, impact, and earning potential.

That is exactly why I was excited to have my client Sara Guttman on Consulting Matters.

Sara approached her consulting business differently. She wanted to start her business right the first time, not after years of expensive trial and error. And her story shows what becomes possible when you combine strong expertise with strategic positioning from the beginning.

Why Many Consultants Accidentally Build the Wrong Business

One of the biggest traps consultants fall into early is positioning themselves as service providers for hire instead of strategic partners.

They offer tasks instead of transformation.

They respond to requests instead of shaping outcomes.

They describe what they do instead of clearly articulating the strategic value they bring.

The problem is that once your business is built around service delivery, it becomes very difficult to reposition yourself later. Your pricing, your marketing, your offers, and even your confidence start to reinforce that lower-level role.

This is why the concept of strategic partner positioning resonated so strongly with Sara when she first encountered my work.

Before she ever reached out to me, she had been listening to the Consulting Matters podcast for months. She was already thinking about whether consulting might be the next step in her career, but she was still evaluating the risk and the direction.

What caught her attention was the idea that consultants do not have to build their businesses around task execution. They can build them around strategic partnership instead.

As Sara explained:

“And because I mean, I was also thinking about efficiency and time and that it sounded not only the more impactful route, but the more efficient route.”

That realization was a major reason she joined my Impact & Income Accelerator.

The program was designed to help consultants and coaches move from tactical service delivery into strategic partner positioning so they can increase both their impact and their income. Even though Sara was earlier in her consulting journey than many participants, she recognized that this strategic positioning was something she wanted from the very beginning.

Sara’s Expertise Before Becoming a Consultant

Before launching her consulting business, Sara spent nearly a decade as the event and rentals director at a Boulder community center.

In that role, she oversaw event spaces that hosted everything from nonprofit galas and corporate meetings to weddings and community gatherings.

Over time, she began to see something that many organizations overlook: event space is not just a facility. It can be a strategic asset.

Instead of treating rentals as a basic operational function, Sara saw how a well-run rentals department could generate meaningful revenue and strengthen the organization’s connection to the broader community.

That insight became the foundation for her consulting work.

But the idea of starting a consulting business did not come from ambition alone. It came from the market itself.

People began reaching out to her for advice.

“Both within the Boulder community and within the JCC community that saying, we heard you have a really smooth operation, know, a very successful and effective rentals department at the Boulder JCC. Could I pick your ear? Could I ask you some questions? And so that's where the seed came from.”

This is a pattern I see all the time.

Your consulting business often begins when others start asking for your thinking, not just your labor.

Why Sara Took a Strategic Approach to Starting Her Business

One of the things I appreciated most about Sara’s approach was that she did not assume her expertise automatically translated into knowing how to build a consulting business.

Instead, she adopted a beginner’s mindset.

“I have a beginner's mindset when it comes to starting a business, which is a a different ball of wax.”

That perspective made her open to strategy.

She knew she had valuable experience. But she also knew that building a consulting business required decisions around positioning, messaging, offers, and market alignment that she had never had to make before.

That is exactly why she chose to join the Impact & Income Accelerator before launching her consulting practice and why she chose to work with me after to build out her branding, messaging, and positioning. 

She wanted to test the idea of consulting, explore the strategic partner path, and develop clarity about how she would position her expertise in the market.

Why Strategic Partner Positioning Matters Early

One of the most interesting moments in our conversation was when Sara explained why she wanted to pursue the strategic partner path instead of starting as a service provider.

For many consultants, the instinct is to begin by doing what feels most familiar. They replicate their previous job responsibilities as freelance services.

Sara considered that path. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized she wanted something different.

Strategic partnership offered a way to create deeper impact while also building a more sustainable business model.

It meant focusing on helping organizations think differently, not just execute tasks.

It meant shaping solutions instead of simply delivering them.

And it meant building a consulting business around insight and transformation, not just activity.

That clarity shaped the entire direction of her brand positioning.

The Role of Brand Positioning in Building the Right Business

When we began working together more closely, Sara had a long list of possible directions her consulting work could take.

She could have focused on event software implementation.
She could have specialized in venue pricing strategies.
She could have consulted on facility improvements.
She could have offered operational support.

This kind of idea overload is incredibly common for experts who are starting a consulting business.

As Sara put it:

“I just felt very overwhelmed in terms of which, what direction do I go? I need another set of eyes. I need another brain on this.”

That is exactly what brand positioning is designed to solve.

Instead of trying to pursue every possible idea, we clarified:

• who she serves
• the strategic problem she solves
• the perspective that differentiates her
• and the role she wants to play as a consultant

Once those pieces became clear, everything else... messaging, offers, website content, and marketing... became much easier to build.

Moving From Analysis Paralysis to Action

Another part of Sara’s journey that I think many consultants will relate to is the period of analysis before taking action.

She had been thinking about consulting for quite some time. Listening to the podcast. Reflecting on possibilities. Evaluating risks.

But what ultimately helped her move forward was a simple reframe.

“And so once I realized it was a win-win, I was like, well, go for it.”

That shift matters.

Starting a consulting business does not have to be treated like a permanent identity decision. It can be an intentional experiment backed by strategy and support.

Once Sara saw it that way, the scale tipped.

She committed to the process and began building her consulting brand with clarity and direction.

Building a Consulting Business You Actually Want

One of the most important questions consultants should ask themselves is not just What will people buy?

It is also:

What kind of business do I want to run?

Sara began thinking carefully about the type of work she wanted to do day to day.

She wanted interaction, collaboration, and strategic thinking... not just isolated solo work.

As she described it:

“What do I want the hours of my day to look like and what my actual work life will look like in this new business”

That question helped ensure that the business she was building aligned with both her expertise and her personality.

Because the right consulting business is not just the one the market responds to.

It is the one you can sustainably grow into.

The Real Secret to Starting the Right Business

If there is one lesson from Sara’s story, it is this:

Starting the right consulting business is not about luck.

It is about strategy.

It is about giving yourself permission to admit what you do not know, surrounding yourself with the right support, and taking the time to clarify your positioning before you start stacking tactics on top of confusion.

Sara summarized this mindset beautifully:

“you don't have to know everything.”

And that is true.

But you do need the courage to begin, the humility to learn, and the strategy to build something intentionally.

When those elements come together, you do not just start a consulting business.

You start the right one.

Next Steps

1. Have you been listening to the podcast or watching these videos on the blog and, like Sara, wondering when the right time might be to take the leap?
Take Sara’s story as your sign. You do not have to know everything before you begin, but you do need the right strategy and support around you. Book a discovery call and let’s talk about what it would look like to start your consulting or coaching business the right way.

2. Have you already started your consulting or coaching business, but built it around services you thought people might buy in the short term instead of a strategy that supports the life and career you actually want?
If your business feels reactive, unclear, or too dependent on tactics that may not last through industry and economic changes, it may be time to reposition. Check out my services to learn how I help purpose-driven consultants and coaches build brands and businesses designed for lasting impact and income. 

3. Is something holding you back from launching the consulting or coaching business you have always wanted?
You are not alone. Visibility, self-doubt, and uncertainty can keep even the most capable experts stuck. Get the proven strategies you need to move past the discomfort of being visible so you can confidently pursue the clients, impact, and income you are ready for. Listen to my free training, Turn Your Marketing Angst into a Superpower.

Other articles you may enjoy:

• The Trust Factor: Why Brand Clarity Matters for Consultants and Coaches with Dr. J.B. Adams
• The 3 Types of Expertise Every Consultant and Coach Needs to Name and Claim
• Five Brand Positioning Lessons I Learned by Tearing My Process Apart
• The Brand Messaging Process Consultants Need for Clarity and Confidence