d further, “but what do you do?” she asked.

After a few minutes of discussion and explanation, she said, “Oh, you teach adults!” That was, in part what I did then, and happily, nearly twelve years later that is still what I do. I am a trainer, speaker, leader, writer and

In our business lives we wear many hats. We often think of our job title as the way to describe our work. In fact, in any social situation, the question, “So what do you do?” will come up early in any conversation with a new person. How do we respond to this question? Invariably, we respond with our job title and the name of our organization. “I’m the Finance Manager at ABC Corp. Sometimes the conversation progresses beyond that, but often, that is all we have to say to describe our work.

And that is often how we think about it as well. Finance Manager. Chef. Staff Pharmacist. Marketing Director. Salesperson. Clerk. Janitor. Principal. Supervisor. Welder. Seldom though is any job as simple as a job title might suggest. We play a variety of roles, and do a variety of things within the scope of that job – whatever that job is.

Some people will answer that “So what do you do?” question with, “I’m a consultant.” I remember when my grandmother asked me about my new job at Chevron, and I answered with “I’m a training consultant.” Grandma wasn’t satisfied with that answer, so she probed further, “but what do you do?” she asked.

After a few minutes of discussion and explanation, she said, “Oh, you teach adults!” That was, in part what I did then, and happily, nearly twelve years later that is still what I do. I am a trainer, speaker, leader, writer and m

bly, we respond with our job title and the name of our organization. “I’m the Finance Manager at ABC Corp. Sometimes the conversation progresses beyond that, but often, that is all we have to say to describe our work.

And that is often how we think about it as well. Finance Manager. Chef. Staff Pharmacist. Marketing Director. Salesperson. Clerk. Janitor. Principal. Supervisor. Welder. Seldom though is any job as simple as a job title might suggest. We play a variety of roles, and do a variety of things within the scope of that job – whatever that job is.

Some people will answer that “So what do you do?” question with, “I’m a consultant.” I remember when my grandmother asked me about my new job at Chevron, and I answered with “I’m a training consultant.” Grandma wasn’t satisfied with that answer, so she probed further, “but what do you do?” she asked.

After a few minutes of discussion and explanation, she said, “Oh, you teach adults!” That was, in part what I did then, and happily, nearly twelve years later that is still what I do. I am a trainer, speaker, leader, writer and

nce Manager. Chef. Staff Pharmacist. Marketing Director. Salesperson. Clerk. Janitor. Principal. Supervisor. Welder. Seldom though is any job as simple as a job title might suggest. We play a variety of roles, and do a variety of things within the scope of that job – whatever that job is.

Some people will answer that “So what do you do?” question with, “I’m a consultant.” I remember when my grandmother asked me about my new job at Chevron, and I answered with “I’m a training consultant.” Grandma wasn’t satisfied with that answer, so she probed further, “but what do you do?” she asked.

After a few minutes of discussion and explanation, she said, “Oh, you teach adults!” That was, in part what I did then, and happily, nearly twelve years later that is still what I do. I am a trainer, speaker, leader, writer and

that job is.

Some people will answer that “So what do you do?” question with, “I’m a consultant.” I remember when my grandmother asked me about my new job at Chevron, and I answered with “I’m a training consultant.” Grandma wasn’t satisfied with that answer, so she probed further, “but what do you do?” she asked.

After a few minutes of discussion and explanation, she said, “Oh, you teach adults!” That was, in part what I did then, and happily, nearly twelve years later that is still what I do. I am a trainer, speaker, leader, writer and

d further, “but what do you do?” she asked.

After a few minutes of discussion and explanation, she said, “Oh, you teach adults!” That was, in part what I did then, and happily, nearly twelve years later that is still what I do. I am a trainer, speaker, leader, writer and more. But most of all, I am a consultant. It may seem logical that I am a consultant, but you might not realize that it is very likely that in at least part of your work, or in other areas of your life, you are too.

Consulting is a big word – not in letters or syllables – but in scope. Consultants can play many valid roles, and therefore many roles that people play at work can be looked at as consulting.

Some of the Roles

Technical expert Mentor Coach Lecturer Trainer Facilitator Advisor Subject Matter expert

…are all roles that consultants can hold. Any role where you have (or want to have) influence, but don’t necessarily have authority, is a consulting role. If you have an expertise that your organization needs, you have an opportunity to leverage that expertise to greater value by thinking of yourself as a consultant.

Why it Matters

Why does it make sense for many of us to think of ourselves as consultants, and not just by our job title? There are several reasons, and they all relate to your viewpoint, your contribution and your future.

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