You know your consulting business is ready to scale when you’re consistently delivering great work but your revenue, time, and capacity no longer rise with your effort. When clients love what you deliver and your calendar stays full, yet you still feel capped or financially underwhelmed, that tension is the real indicator, not hitting a specific revenue target or waiting for perfect systems. A quick gut check is to look at your day: if you regularly choose between client delivery and business growth, if your pricing doesn’t match the value you create, or if you keep landing at the same revenue ceiling no matter what you adjust, you’re not forcing growth too soon. You’re experiencing founder-dependence, where the business relies on you for every win and can’t expand without stretching you further. Scaling isn’t about being busier; it’s about building repeatable systems, processes, and structure that protect your energy while increasing output. If you feel maxed, stuck, or like you’ve outgrown your current model, that’s the business showing you it’s ready to grow smarter.