Consulting is not about the slides.It is about what happens when the room goes quiet, when all your plans break down, when your client expects clarity and you are still figuring things out. It is about navigating politics without losing your head, delivering under pressure without missing your weekends, and developing the confidence to speak up before you feel fully formed.
Beyond Slides is a rare, unflinchingly honest guide to making it in consulting without burning out, selling out, or faking it. It blends real stories, battle-tested lessons, sharp insight, and 39 practical exercises to help you build the habits, instincts, and mindset that actually matter over the long haul.
Written for ambitious consultants - whether you are just breaking in or already deep in the trenches, at MBB (McKinsey, BCG, Bain), Big 4 (Deloitte, EY, KPMG, PwC), tech company, or tier-2 player - this is the book no one hands you at the start, but every consultant eventually needs.
What if everything they taught you was only half the story?
What makes this book different
Every chapter includes three practical exercises designed to help you internalize the rules, test your thinking, and upgrade the way you operate. Beyond Slides provides you with the clarity, confidence, and edge that you won't find in your firm’s onboarding deck.
Inside the book, you will learn how to: - Apply the hands-on exercises to build the habits that top consultants rely on - Decode the unspoken rules that drive project staffing, promotions, and influence - Navigate toxic clients, vague managers, and strict deadlines - Deliver value before you are told what to do - Think long-term, even in a culture obsessed with short-term wins - Make yourself irreplaceable without losing yourself in the process
This is the book that will show you how to build the kind of career most consultants burn out before they ever find.
If you are ready to stop surviving consulting and start owning it, grab your copy of Beyond Slides now.
I really liked this book. It's broken down in digestible but interesting chapters, with a mix of stories and theory that help the reader understand the points Maurizio is making.
The exercises at the end of the chapter help one self-reflect, and that was a nice addition to a book like this. It's good to be asked certain questions that is difficult to ask oneself in the day to day of these types of job (I'm in sales, but found the topics very relevant).
A great book, with several actionable and pragmatic insights and written in a style that is both easy to digest and light-hearted. The exercise sections at the end of each chapter make it easier to correlate observations and insights with one's own experiences.