Working on issues that matter. Solving problems. Building relationships. Gaining exposure to many different clients/sectors/business issues.

Client service - so life/work balance can be challenging... especially if traveling allot. More "advising" vs. "doing."

Show-up to the client when they show-up. Series of meeting and interviews with different client members throughout the day to push on key questions and syndicate findings. Analysis of data and building of final presentation in between meetings. Lots of problem solving sessions with your team throughout the day. Leave the client site when they leave - likely having to catch-up on emails later that evening.

MBA is a prerequisite at most firms, or prior consulting/banking/accounting experience at another firm. Though look for the consulting positions in the sector/city that matters to you: there are everything from huge global firms to small, niche, local firms.

Learn quickly. Be comfortable with making decisions with imperfect information - need to be OK with uncertainty. Enjoy working with others, and embrace leadership opportunities. Try to buildup a toolkit of both hard (finance, modeling, presentation, communication) and soft skills (client management, team leadership).