The Roadmap to Your First $250k Year as a Solo Consultant

This isn’t theory. This is the playbook I followed and refined over years of running a solo consulting practice.

Phase 1: Foundation (Months 1-3)

Get your structure in place. LLC, bank account, insurance, basic contract. Don’t overthink this - refer to the Structure pillar for the weekend setup guide.

Set your initial rate. If you’re coming from a salaried role, take your total compensation, divide by 1,500 (not 2,080 - you won’t bill every hour), and add 30% for overhead and profit. That’s your starting hourly rate.

Phase 2: First Clients (Months 3-6)

Your first clients will come from your network. Not from a website, not from social media, not from cold outreach. Tell everyone you know what you’re doing.

The goal here isn’t revenue optimization - it’s reps. Get client work under your belt. Refine your process. Learn what you’re actually selling.

Phase 3: Refinement (Months 6-12)

By now you’ve done enough work to know your value. Start raising rates. Begin shifting from hourly to project-based where it makes sense.

Build a simple pipeline: who’s a prospect, who’s in conversation, who’s a current client, who’s a past client who might return.

Phase 4: Scale Without Staff (Year 2+)

At this point, you’re optimizing. Better clients, higher rates, more efficient delivery. The path to $250k isn’t more hours - it’s better positioning and tighter operations.