Ex-Microsoft employee walked away from ₹1.9 crore salary, shares challenges of starting over

Many professionals spend years working towards a secure career at leading global companies, where financial stability, predictable career growth and lucrative salaries are often viewed as milestones of success. Christian Harms had achieved all of that while working at Microsoft in Switzerland. However, at the age of 26, he decided to leave his corporate career behind and move to Australia in pursuit of a different path.

A year after making the decision, Harms has reflected on his journey in an Instagram post, sharing the challenges he encountered while starting over and building a career outside the corporate world.

Before resigning, Harms was earning $200,000 (approx. ₹1.9 crore) annually at Microsoft in Switzerland. Looking back, he admitted that walking away from such a stable career was not an easy decision.

"Leaving Microsoft might be the dumbest thing I've ever done. The salary, the stability, the person it makes you feel like. Corporate is built to make leaving feel irrational," he wrote.

Although he believes leaving the company was the right decision for him, Harms acknowledged that self-doubt continues to be part of the journey as he adjusts to life beyond a corporate job.

Harms said he quit Microsoft to build a career creating videos for brands online. However, he admitted that his plans unfolded very differently from what he had imagined.

Looking back, he wrote that "none of it went according to plan."

According to Harms, moving to Australia marked the beginning of a completely new chapter in his life. He said he arrived without a job, without a detailed plan and had only five months to figure out his future.

He revealed that he earned his first dollar online just one week before he was scheduled to fly back home. Reflecting on that moment, he said the looming deadline accomplished what months of planning could not.

Harms also shared that he spent months building a business before stopping to ask whether the idea itself was worth pursuing.

Reflecting on that phase, he said what he initially believed was careful due diligence eventually turned out to be fear disguised as productivity. The experience, he noted, left him with months of work but little tangible progress.

He also admitted that he had expected to become a founder by now. Instead, there are days when he feels he has fallen short of the expectations he had set for himself when he left Microsoft.

Despite the setbacks, Harms said he still believes he made the right decision and continues to document the realities of leaving a stable corporate career, earning his own income and building something independently while learning through the process.

His post has drawn attention online for offering an honest account of the uncertainties that can accompany leaving a high-paying corporate job in pursuit of entrepreneurship.

Anjali Thakur is a Senior Assistant Editor with Mint, reporting on trending news, entertainment and health, with a focus on stories driving digital conversations. Her work involves spotting early signals across news cycles and social media, sharpening stories for SEO and Google Discover, and mentoring young editors in digital-first newsroom practices. She is known for turning fast-moving developments—whether news-driven or culture-led—into clear, tightly edited journalism without compromising editorial rigour.<br><br>

Before joining Mint, she was Deputy News Editor at NDTV.com, where she led the Trending section and covered viral news, breaking developments and human-interest stories. She has also worked as Chief Sub-Editor at India.com (Zee Media) and as Senior Correspondent with Exchange4media and Hindustan Times’ HT City, reporting on media, advertising, entertainment, health, lifestyle and popular culture.<br><br>

Anjali holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Miranda House, and is currently pursuing an MBA, strengthening her understanding of business strategy and digital media economics. Her writing balances newsroom discipli...