Hanging Out a Shingle That Will Last.

An informal survey of independent communication consultants finds that they focus on a variety of communication disciplines and come to entrepreneurship from many different backgrounds. Many external drivers, such as layoffs, reductions in job responsibility and leadership changes, steer communicators to entrepreneurship as a means of gaining increased flexibility and more personal control. The list of reasons consultants give for not making the entrepreneurial leap sooner is long and emotional: loss of benefits, fear of business development marketing or networking, loss of the social interaction found in an office environment, lack of contacts and consulting skills, and an uncertain economy.