Chapter 21: Getting Started

Everything in this guide is useless until you start talking to people with real problems. Here's how to begin.

What You'll Learn

The first and only metric that matters
How to get testimonials without clients
Asking for referrals effectively
Building and sharing projects

The First Metric

Before worrying about pricing models, engagement structures, or scaling:

"The only metric is: Am I actually talking to people? Are their problems real? Are their problems at a high enough level of pain where they're willing to pay for a solution?"

What to Track Initially

Metric	Target
Conversations per week	5-10
Problems identified	Note every pain point
Follow-up actions	Send content, make intros
Content pieces created	Turn conversations into posts

Everything else comes later.

Talk to Everyone

"In 2024 I took 16 days of expert calls. It was a lot of calls."

Who to Contact

Source	How to Reach Out
Old managers	"I'm exploring consulting—what problems are you facing?"
Former coworkers	"I'd love to catch up and hear what you're working on"
LinkedIn connections	Thoughtful comments on their posts
Conference contacts	Follow up on conversations

The Ask

Don't pitch services initially. Just understand problems:

"I'm exploring consulting in AI. What challenges is your team facing right now? I'd love to help if I can, or just learn more about the space."

Every Conversation Is Practice

Every problem you hear about is potential positioning
Every question they ask is potential content
Every connection could become a referral or client

Evaluate Events Strategically

Not every meetup or conference is worth your time.

"Not all meetups are where your customers actually are... if the meetup is like different executives, like for example, I did a meetup in New York that was like mostly bankers... that does make sense because I know there's VPs of IT or people who are interested in hiring."

The Key Question

Before committing to an event, ask: Will decision-makers in my target market be present?

Event Type	Worth Attending If...
Industry meetups	Your target buyers attend
Tech meetups	You're building credibility with practitioners
Executive events	Decision-makers match your positioning
General networking	You're still exploring your market

Conference Strategy

"When I do attend conferences, I focus on finding like-minded people rather than explicitly trying to get more customers."

The explicit sales pitch rarely works. Building genuine connections does.

Prioritize People Over Presentations

"The more you attend these events, the more it becomes about meeting old friends rather than attending the talks. Most of the value happens outside the formal presentations anyway—the talks will be recorded and available on YouTube later, so I prioritize meeting as many people as possible."

The real ROI from conferences:

Conversations in hallways and after-parties
Reconnecting with past contacts
Meeting people who've seen your content
Building relationships that lead to referrals

Skip sessions to take meetings. You can watch the talks later.

Get Testimonials Early

Even without paid clients, you have people you've helped.

"If you've already helped people onboard into using AI tools, reach out. Try to get a testimonial."

How to Ask

"Hey [Name], I remember helping you with [specific thing]. How did that work out? I'm building out my consulting profile—would you be willing to write a quick testimonial about how I helped you?"

If They're Busy

Offer to write it for them:

"I know you're busy. Would it help if I drafted something based on our work together? You can edit or approve it."

What Works

Traditional	Also Effective
5 company logos	5 people's faces with quotes
Fortune 500 clients	Real people you've helped
Case studies	Screenshots of thank-you messages

Ask for Referrals

After every helpful conversation:

"Great, let me know how I can be helpful."

"Here's how you can be helpful: find me someone else with similar problems. I'll talk to them."

Why This Works

If you helped them, and they know someone with similar pain, introducing you is helping that person too.

The Script

"If you know anyone facing similar challenges with [specific area], I'd love an introduction. I'm always happy to have a conversation—even if it's just to point them in the right direction."

Referrals are the fastest path to new conversations.

Build Projects Publicly

Just build things and share them:

"I built a journaling app. I made a YouTube chapter summarizer. I built a playground where I built a text editor. As long as I started posting it, people would reach out and thank me for building this thing."

What to Build

Project Type	Purpose
Solve your own problem	Authentic, useful
Recreate something interesting	Learn and demonstrate
Build for a friend	Real use case, testimonial
Explore new technology	Show learning and expertise

You Don't Need Innovation

Build things that interest you. Share them publicly. The visibility matters more than the originality.

Copy Interesting Projects

"When you learn music you're taught to copy different musicians. You learn to read sheet music and play Mozart. But people don't do that for learning how to code or write."

The Practice

When someone builds a game with Claude Code, go make 6 different games the next day.

Find exciting projects on Twitter. Rebuild them. Document what you learned.

"You should really be thinking about copying projects the same way one studies sheet music. It's not a bad thing to copy."

The Compound Effect

The learning compounds
The projects become portfolio pieces
The process trains your skills
The sharing builds audience

Your First Content

Turn your early conversations into content:

The Process

Have conversation with someone facing a problem
Note the questions they asked
Write short post answering those questions
Share on LinkedIn/Twitter
Repeat

Early Content Ideas

"3 things I learned talking to [role] about [problem]"
"The most common question I hear about [topic]"
"Here's what surprised me about [area]"
"A simple framework for thinking about [challenge]"

When You Can't Answer

If you had a call and couldn't answer their question:

"An hour later you send a blog post or introduce them to someone who can help—you're being helpful."

Being Helpful Even Without Answers

Action	Impact
Send a relevant article	Shows you're thinking about them
Make an introduction	Builds your network value
Research and follow up	Demonstrates commitment
Admit you don't know	Builds trust through honesty

As you start helping people, you'll notice what tools you have at your disposal. The flywheel starts spinning.

Summary: The Starting Checklist

Talk to people. 5-10 conversations per week
Note problems. Track every pain point you hear
Create content. Turn conversations into posts
Get testimonials. Ask people you've helped
Ask for referrals. After every helpful interaction
Build publicly. Ship projects and share them
Copy and learn. Rebuild interesting things
Be helpful. Even when you can't solve the problem

The Flywheel Recap

Social media is a cheap sensor—use it to find what resonates
Never answer the same question twice—turn it into content
Move from hourly to retainers to value-based pricing
Structure engagements to avoid the fractional employee trap
Handle objections upfront with Loom videos and clear proposals
Scale through courses, partnerships, and managed inbound
The first metric is: are you talking to people with real pain?

The Bottom Line

"The easiest thing to do is just do good work. Everything follows from there."

But good work alone isn't enough. You need to: - Make the work visible through content - Turn conversations into opportunities - Price based on value, not time - Structure engagements for success - Build systems that scale

Start today. Talk to someone with a problem. Help them. Write about it. Repeat.

Your expertise is worth more than you think.

Connect

Follow Jason Liu for more on AI consulting:

Twitter: @jxnlco
LinkedIn: jxnl