Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Douglas Brown, Founder of Halo Consulting, LLC., located in Chicago, IL, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Halo Consulting is a certified minority-owned boutique search firm based in Chicago. Our team brings together the best practices gained from traditional retained executive search firms with the scrappy, cost-conscious approach you would expect from a boutique.

We partner with high-growth startups and pre-IPO technology companies across GTM, HR, and Product functions at the emerging leader level and above. In addition, we host monthly virtual roundtable events where we invite a diverse set of executives to discuss trending topics in their industries.

In early August, we began producing “The Halo Series,” where we feature Thought Leaders in a 1:1 setting as they discuss trending topics and insights in their industry. The Halo Series uncovers what keeps executives up at night as the ever-changing market continues to adapt.

Tell us about yourself

In the beginning, I was laid off from my employer due to COVID-19. I founded Halo Consulting in April 2020 as a bootstrapped start-up we knew failure to live up to our potential was not an option – you have to be willing to put it all on the line.

Motivation truly comes from within, I've always been self-motivated, and it has come naturally to work hard and put in the time. Not only are we laying the foundation for the future, but we are also providing stability and career growth for Halo employees as well.

One of my favorite quotes is by Peter Thiel, "Brillant thinking is rare, but courage is in even shorter supply than genius."

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My notable achievement was founding Halo Consulting at the beginning of the pandemic in April 2020, which is recognized as a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE).

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Truly taking the time to unplug and rest.

This is something I've always struggled with throughout my professional career. However, this year my fiancè and I are getting married in November of this year, so we are looking forward to taking some time away from work.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

The message I'd like to share with aspiring entrepreneurs is based on four main points:

  1. There will never be a perfect time to start your business. Founding a business at the start of the pandemic was ambitious, and today we are stronger than ever and growing.
  2. My personal mantra: “keep showing up, and everything will take care of itself.” We recently launched Halo International and began featuring The Halo Series on the YouTube channel (halo consulting).
  3. “Get Comfortable with being Uncomfortable” – if you’re not uncomfortable, you are not growing.
  4. My favorite Halo value, "Insist on the Highest Standards,": Our standards are high – sometimes they seem unreasonably so. Internally, we each strive to continually raise the bar for ourselves and drive our teammates to deliver the highest quality. Externally, we set standards that are higher than our clients’ or candidates’, so we are always playing offense. We don’t wait to be told what the standards are. We set them ourselves and coach clients and candidates while simultaneously absorbing and adapting to feedback from both.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://haloconsulting.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haloconsulting1/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HALOConsulting_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglasbrown5/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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