Left my job at TCS [8LPA], and today I got paid 11.5L from consulting startups
A year ago, I was working at TCS, making 12LPA(4 years workex) but something inside me felt unsatisfied with this. I was following job security, a “safe” career path but no good pay. I tried to switch jobs and I was not able to get even my resume shortlisted.
I remember when I told my friends I was leaving TCS to explore consulting with startups. I wanted to do consulting because I couldn't find a job and I knew I could sell myself pretty well because I had worked on good projects at TCS.
I realized that growth wasn't going to come from just clocking in my timesheet. I started by offering my services on freelancing platforms and reached out to friends in smaller startups. My first few gigs were very small, some I even worked for free, but they helped me build my portfolio and grow my confidence.
The income didn’t come instantly. My first few months were slow, but I kept pushing. I started getting more interesting projects, from designing scalable systems to improving app performance for growing companies. And with each project, I learned more about what I wanted to focus on, which clients I enjoyed working with, and how I could provide real value.
Finally, today I crossed my goal. I’ve made 11.5L in consulting income from a seed stage startup where the system I built saved them over 50L in 2 months. I finally get to work on interesting technologies, solve complex problems, and be my own boss.
Of course, it wasn’t easy. There were moments when I thought about returning to the safety of a full-time job. I used to get so much anxiety that I used to puke at night and my wife had to console me. My relatives still look down at me but this time when I got a Skoda Kushaq, they got really confused.
If you're feeling stuck or questioning whether the “safe” path is right for you, trust yourself.If you build your expertise, be patient, and put in the work, the opportunities will come. The money will follow, but more importantly, you’ll find work that you enjoy.
Talking product sense with Ridhi
9 min AI interview5 questions
Great man! Would love if you could share few pointers-
- What was your role in TCS when you left?
- How did you find gigs? How did you present your IP work(TCS) in the online platforms? Did you have anything on github to showcase as portfolio?
- For someone who wants to do something similar, can you navigate in detail all the steps?
P.S - I think a lot of folks would be interested in that. So you could make a GV post out of it
- SE
- Upwork and I reached out to network. Worked for free. Yes, built new projects ans put in GitHub and deployed it.
Steps I followed:
- While at TCS (3-4 months prep):
- Built 2 solid GitHub projects showing microservices architecture
- Saved extra 6 months runway
- Networked with ex-colleagues
- Created technical blog series on Medium
- First month after leaving:
- Set up proprietorship
- Started with 2 fixed price projects (₹50k each)
- Regular posts about Java/Spring performance tips
- Growth phase:
- Moved to monthly retainers (1L+ per client)
- Now working with 3 startups simultaneously
- Specialize in fintech infrastructure
Get first client before quitting. Excolleagues at startups are your best bet.
🙌🙌 Solid mere bhai Solid🙌 A personal but related question - how much months of emergency fund did you keep before starting consulting? Also, is your better half managing the home and making it heaven, or also going out for some other job also?
Which technology used? And where did you find it?
I have skills across various frameworks to be honest. I would recommend if you want to get started, you should look into react native, but if you’re looking at something that has demand and people are going to pay a lot for it then consider native iOS app development.
Personally, the kind of consulting I do is framework diagnostic. I try to help start-ups build high-performance systems.
Any website where we can find authentic freelancing jobs
Kahin pahuchne ke liye kahin se nikalna bahut zaruri hai kudos man!
Yes sir. Thank you so much
Great to see man, kudos. I failed at consulting and freelance full time, very difficult with Indian clients for something as subjective and misunderstood.
I guess software is much more objective and clear cut that ways. Wonder if there are other domains/niches worth exploring as an external consultant.
Yeah software is much more objective, and hence very easy to communicate your value proposition
