Moving from consultant to executive has been a thrill ride for this IT leader. I was 18 years into a successful career as a project management consultant when someone in my network told me about a 6-month contract to put in a new credit card system at Universal Studios Theme Park in Hollywood. Eight years later, I'm still there. It was the first time I was ever tempted to hang up my consulting hat, and I've never regretted it. Who says a consultant can't become a top manager? Rules are just guidelines-a dotted line around the box, not a solid one. LESSONS FROM THE CONSULTING LIFE A consultant who works with lots of different industries and projects has to learn the lay of the land quickly, in order to spot opportunities. I remember working on one project where the CIO had missed multiple deadlines, and he knew it. So he went out to lunch on Friday before the system was supposed to launch, and he just 79