Thinking Like A Generalist Makes You Unremarkable (Russell Raath)

Russell Raath is the Founder of The Ambition Company. Russell Raath was born in Zimbabwe, educated in South Africa and now lives in the United States. He spent more than a decade at Deloitte Consulting, worked in banking as a Senior Vice President at Bank of America, and then became President of Kotter International, where the business almost doubled in size during his time. In January 2021, in the middle of COVID, he left to start The Ambition Company, where he leads summits that help leadership teams turn ambition into something the market can see. He also runs a second business that helps consultants leaving corporate jobs and consulting firms build independent advisory practices of their own. In 2023 he swam from Robben Island to Cape Town in a Speedo on almost no training, and in 2026 he swam it again on his back. In this conversation, Russell explains why going solo is not an equal trade for anyone leaving a big firm, what most former big-firm consultants have to unlearn, and what that swim taught him about the excuses that keep leadership teams stuck. Expect to learn why being an employee is a form of tax, why you might not have a boss on your own but you also do not have an income, why thinking like a generalist makes you generally useful but specifically unremarkable, how saying yes to work you are not exceptional at brings on imposter syndrome, why you should describe your work in the client's language instead of your methodology, why a solo advisor should solve the problem and get out instead of chasing follow-on work, why AI cannot read a room, and how Russell plans to grow without compromising, and much more… - 0:00 Cold open 0:33 Welcome 0:49 Leaving A Big Firm In The Middle Of COVID 2:33 Two Businesses, Consultant Versus Advisor 5:26 The Tax Of Being An Employee 10:12 Why Generalists Become Unremarkable 13:52 Solve The Problem, Then Get Out 15:16 Swimming Robben Island With No Training 19:10 Where AI Fits And Where It Does Not 22:15 Growth Without Compromise 24:34 Where To Find Russell Raath - 🔗 Guest & Resources Connect with Russell Raath:   / russellraath   Website: https://russellraath.com - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... LinkedIn:   / mikulaszach   Apply to be a guest: https://consultingrainmakers.com/ Email: mikulas.zach@agenteedigital.com