Thanks for the insights, that’s an interesting story. I was thinking of becoming an independent consultant when you actually meant joining a consultancy business. That does sound like a great shortcut to understand a new industry.
I, indeed, meant becoming an independent consultant (or through one's company company), see the "Consulting" section in my reply here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37315111
Joining a consultancy business, unless specialized in the sector you want to enter, might be counterproductive because you lose control over what projects and problems you work on, and what sectors you work in. You definitely get exposed to many, though, which is nice.
I have avoided in my replies the famous bliss of ignorance that comes from not knowing much about a field. There are many founders who built a product for a sector or industry they knew little about and many of them said that had they known how hard it would be, they probably wouldn't have started. They were not aware of the Gods of Supermarket Aisles or the ways of the Golf Lawn Cartels and jumped with both feet. Being an outsider has its pros and cons.
