One of the major decision points in starting your own consulting business is committing to a specific date to jump ship and leave the security of your full-time job. For those who have managed this feat, you know it’s easier said than done. In fact, some experts have advised waiting as long as a year to 18 months before officially turning in a notice and making it permanent. That’s a long time to straddle the fence of a full-time career and a budding consulting practice. However, coming clean with the boss and creating a flexible work schedule may provide a feasible solution, and it may help land your first client, too.
According to a recent study conducted by Corporate Voices for Working Families, executives at Fortune 1000 companies view flexible work strategies as a good thing, even though it’s traditionally offered only on a case-by-case basis. More than 75 percent of those interviewed defined flex time as simply offering an alternate time or location arrangement; like working fewer (or non-traditional) hours, or working from home. Nearly all of the executives said that flexible hours had a “positive effect” on helping their company reach its goals.
Although most consider flex time as a way to help employees achieve a balance between their personal and professional lives, it just might be that the “positive” outlook on the concept could also be used to help an employee transition to a new career.