I had a conversation with Chuck English recently that’s been sitting with me, and I think it’s important enough to share with all of you who are navigating this transition from school employee to entrepreneur.
Here’s the truth bomb: Social media is not real.
I know, I know—you’ve probably heard this before. But let me tell you why it matters specifically for those of us who’ve left the school world to hang our own shingle.
The Comparison Trap
When you’re in the thick of building your consulting business, it’s natural to look around and see what others are doing. You scroll through LinkedIn and see another education consultant posting about their latest big contract. You check Instagram and find someone celebrating their fifth school partnership this month. You read a Twitter thread from a former administrator who seems to have it all figured out, complete with a perfectly branded website and a waiting list of clients.
And then you look at your own situation—maybe you’re still figuring out your pricing, or you just had a proposal rejected, or you haven’t landed a client in three weeks—and you think: What am I doing wrong?
Here’s what you need to hear: They might not be doing better than you. They might not be doing more than you. They might be in the exact same place as you.
The Curation Game
Social media is a highlight reel. It’s a carefully curated window into someone’s professional life. When I post about a successful workshop presentation or a new client, you’re not seeing the three proposals that got turned down that same month. You’re not seeing the nights I spent questioning my pricing strategy or wondering if I should launch a new product.
The consultant who posts about their packed calendar? They’re probably not posting about the cancellation they got last week or the invoice that’s 60 days overdue. The person celebrating their “best quarter yet”? They’re likely not sharing that they’re still figuring out their retirement contributions or that they took a financial hit to invest in a marketing system that hasn’t paid off yet.
The Reality for New Consultants
This is particularly important for those of us who are new to entrepreneurship but not new to education. After 28 years in schools, I had credibility in my field—but I was starting from scratch as a business owner. And in those early months (honestly, even now), it’s easy to look at other consultants’ social media presence and feel like you’re falling behind.
But here’s what I’ve learned: Most of us are doing roughly the same amount of work and are in roughly the same place. The main difference is that some people post about it on social media, and some people don’t.
The person with the polished LinkedIn presence and regular posts might have one client. You might have one client. The difference isn’t in the business success—it’s in the social media strategy.
Why This Matters
I’m sharing this because I don’t want you to get discouraged. I don’t want you comparing your internal reality—with all its doubts, setbacks, and learning curves—to someone else’s external presentation. That’s not a fair fight, and it’s not an accurate comparison.
When you’ve spent decades in the structured environment of schools, with clear metrics of success and regular feedback, the ambiguity of entrepreneurship can be disorienting. Adding the distortion of social media comparison on top of that? It’s a recipe for unnecessary self-doubt.
The Bottom Line
As you build your business serving schools, remember this: Social media is smoke and mirrors. It’s strategic. It’s curated. It’s often more about building a brand than reflecting day-to-day reality.
That consultant who seems to have it all together? They’re probably figuring it out just like you are. They’re just posting about their wins and keeping their struggles private—which is a perfectly valid social media strategy, but it’s not the whole story.
So keep doing your work. Keep building your relationships. Keep learning the business side of this new career. And if you find yourself scrolling through social media and feeling inadequate? Close the app and get back to the actual work of building your business.
Because that’s what’s real. That’s what matters. And that’s where your focus belongs.