You also have to understand deadlines. If it's worth hiring a consultant to do, it's worth doing in a hurry. That creates a sense of urgency that drives all good consultants. You have to deliver your best on time. Consulting firms try to ensure they hire professionals with appropriate focus and discipline through their hiring processes.
Every consulting firm has relentless pressure to replace projects as they're completed.
This creates a sales pressure unfamiliar to professionals in nonsales corporate jobs. If you want to move up the career ladder in consulting, you'll have to learn to sell. You always need to be on the lookout for the next project. Because you're high-priced talent being paid by the project, you're expected to demonstrate the value you're providing every minute. You might be accustomed to reading your newspaper at your desk early in the morning as a corporate employee, but don't try it as a consultant at a client site.