The New Business of Consulting

3 Dollars and Sense

The harder I work the luckier I get!

Samuel Goldwyn

Another rainy day; another miserable commute home. Kelly had experienced this same drive from home to work and back again five days a week for more than 20 years. The trip that used to be a pleasant 20-minute jaunt had more than doubled to 40–60 minutes each way, every day. Daily she experienced gridlock and careless, angry drivers who darted in and out of congested traffic at more than 20 miles per hour over the speed limit. It was maddening and frustrating. Road rage was real.

Reaching her 20-year anniversary with the same company in northern Virginia, or NOVA, as the locals liked to call it, was a milestone for Kelly. The 20-year mark was significant because it meant that she was vested for retirement benefits. Although far from retirement age, she did not want to spend two hours every day on this busy and dangerous road. She had toyed with the idea of consulting for the past two years, knowing that her cybersecurity expertise was in demand.

But how could she switch careers? And what would she charge? She had tried a few calculations. “Let’s see, my current salary is almost $120,000. When I divide that by 50 weeks and 40 hours per week, the answer is $60 per hour. Hey!” she thought, “I’ll be the boss, so I’ll give myself a raise! $75 per hour should do it!” Hooooonk!! “Great!” she thought, “Another crazy NOVA driver! I guess I’d better focus. The rush hour is at epic proportions today.”

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