A subscriber asked me what they should spend on with their first paycheck as a consultant, and I’ve never been asked this question before! I thought it would be pretty interesting to answer, so I broke it down in a video!
Please keep in mind that I ALWAYS recommend analyzing your current financial situation FIRST whether it be dependents, loans, savings, and financial goals, then budgeting how much of your paycheck goes to them, and maximizing your tax deductibles. This video is for after all of that, what should you spend money on that would make your consulting life easier!
Did you know, in consulting, it is possible to not always be working on a client project? We call that on the bench or on the beach as some firms call it.
You still get paid (for most firms), but don’t you wonder what you should be doing or how to kill time? Here is a list!
If this still confuses you, make sure to check out my staffing video on my YouTube channel!
What have you done on the bench?
Follow me on Instagram at @christine.innovates for more! I go over technology consulting, technology, consulting, careers, and also my own personal stories and narratives as a young working professional!
Deniz reached out to me as a sophomore in college doing a consulting internship. This is also her first internship as well, so she didn’t know what she needed to do to navigate the waters! She hopes to get that return offer for her junior year summer, so we sat down to talk about all the tips and answer her questions!
Deniz reached out to me as a sophomore in college doing a consulting internship. This is also her first internship as well, so she didn’t know what she needed to do to navigate the waters! She hopes to get that return offer for her junior year summer, so we sat down to talk about all the tips and answer her questions!
If you are interested in consulting, chances are, the travel that comes with the job appeals to you! How can you best utilize your credit cards to get the benefits, points, and earn it all for your own personal gain? While consulting firms pay for your travels, you may or may not be able to use your own credit cards (and later get reimbursed) so you could get your personal points and use the perks!
I’ve been a huge fan of the Chase Ultimate Rewards credit card ecosystem, so check it out!
Yet another success story! I wanted to share to you all of the success stories Technology Consulting Community is having!
For anyone who wants to work on their experiences and skills to land a tech consulting opportunity, we have one!
TCC’s pro bono consulting program is looking for a few people to help us end the project strong! If you’re looking for something to do to get real tech consulting experiences and skills within the next 2-3 months, this is for you! Deadline for this is Sunday, July 11!
The client is a non-profit based in LA: Kaimore, and we’ve been doing a huge revamp of their website, fundraising/social media, Salesforce, and data systems (Phase 2, so make sure to apply to be considered for that in September)!
If you have either of these two preferred experiences:
• Preferred experience in executing SEO marketing campaigns, ideally Google Ads and/or Tiktok, and generating reporting for key search metrics • Someone with a lot of experience working with WordPress websites
Anyone interested must be able to commit 4-6 hours a week and join in on calls with PST time zone as that’s where the client is based in. If any of you resonate with this, fill out the application, DM me, and we’ll set up an interview! We have looked through the applications of those who already applied to the program and will also be reaching out to those who are qualified for an interview!
If you are interested in a career in technology consulting, make sure to join Technology Consulting Community’s Facebook group, Clubhouse, and Discord server to join the discussions on how to launch and grow your career in technology consulting! We also have free events, programs, activities, and workshops.
Finally back in the office! After a pandemic that has made us permanently work from home, we returned back to the office. I do want to note that even back before the pandemic, my life actually didn’t change that much since we were already working from home and only going into the office when needed. Since I’m the office champion, I made it so I went in twice a week for morale, but otherwise not much has changed other than not going to the client site as frequent.
In addition, the COVID restrictions have also changed since the time of this recording (back in June), but the procedure was reflective of how it was like then and not now.
Manal Meer studied biology and psychology in University of Toronto and then an MBA at McMaster University where she discovered consulting during an internship. Recently pivoting into technology consulting at Ernst & Young in Canada as a Strategy & Technology Transformation Consultant, she walks us through her journey, is an MBA worth it, how she pivoted herself, and even how it’s like and some tips she has for those starting their jobs in a virtual or remote setting!
Follow Along! In today’s video, we go through a real mock interview with Kevin on an interviewee led tech case interview! It is good to do this with a partner as this may be a bit hard being very interactive, but make sure your partner knows what goes into an interviewee led tech case interview and is equipped to answer your questions.
You probably expected PowerPoint and Excel, right? Here are the skills I found the most important and also one of the hardest to learn because it requires experience and practice. That’s the beauty of consulting is that you’ll always be learning and adapting!
Don’t be overwhelmed if you’re trying to get into consulting and realize you don’t have any of this or even exposure to sharpen these skills! You most likely have already worked on this, you just need to transfer those experiences over.
You can learn situational awareness by sometimes literally observing in internships or the dynamic and reading the room at your jobs and internships or simply asking your manager or mentor what would you do in that situation. It’s something that comes with time and there is no one right answer for everything, but you’ll get it!
For storytelling, think about how you tell stories to your friends about what happened last week or convincing your parents to let you get a dog. 😂
Thinking on your feet is something easily found everywhere! If someone asked you for directions or if you worked at a restaurant or in retail, how would you respond or if a teacher cold called you, what would you do?
These are all essential skills, but it’s important to know that as we evolve, so do the skills! Just keep sharpening them and don’t stop learning!
Follow me on Instagram at @christine.innovates for more! I go over technology consulting, technology, consulting, careers, and also my own personal stories and narratives as a young working professional!
Christine Y Wong 