The sales cycle for consulting can be long, so it is easiest if you start planning for your consulting career while you are still working. That means extra work on evenings and weekends for planning, marketing, and developing your profile

—not necessarily starting consulting assignments. If you do start doing consulting work while you are still employed, make sure you are not breaking any rules or obligations with your current employer.
All the following things are easily done while you are still working and will help to kick-start your consulting career.

1. Decide on your niche
Before you even start consulting, you need to decide on your specialty and understand the market. There is no sense consulting in an area where you can’t make a living.
If you are a one-person consulting company, you shouldn’t and probably can’t do everything. So what areas do you have both an interest and background in to begin consulting? It may only be one aspect of what you do in your day job. Since credibility is important in consulting, it must be something you can justify and support based on your past work experience. If you can’t show expertise and experience in your consulting niche, you won’t be able to sell your services to others.
When deciding on your niche, research the competition, talk to potential customers, and get an idea about what you are up against and whether you can compete and get your share of the business. This is basically market research and is an essential first step.

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