When I talk to my friends in consulting (across all firms and types of consulting), it amuses me that the early career mistakes we have made and witnessed are eerily similar across the board. I want to share four of them to help you avoid the most common mistakes and possibly course correct if you realize that you are heading down the wrong path.
1. Overcommitting to too many things
Consulting is sometimes like Disney World where there are simply too many interesting and fun experiences and only so much time available. Between genuine interest in multiple opportunities and FOMO (fear of missing out) anxiety, it is easy to get channeled into too many responsibilities beyond one’s bandwidth. That can be a real danger because something has to give. Either everything lowers in quality or you drop the ball on some responsibilities in order to give attention to the more urgent or important ones. Having a reputation for being mediocre or a poor performer in any area (even more trivial activities like virtual happy hour planning) can stain your reputation and scuttle future opportunities.
