I Quit My Big Tech Job and Made $100,000 in Income in 5 Months

In February, Jean Kang left a $300,000 job in Big Tech to become a solopreneur.
Kang leveraged his LinkedIn brand and coaching to generate $100,000 in revenue in five months.
She also leads a six-week cohort to help aspiring program managers land jobs at $4,000 per person.

This essay as told is based on a conversation with Jean Kanga 31-year-old former senior program manager in San Francisco. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I fell into Big Tech because I wanted to be surrounded by innovation and see the rise of Silicon Valley with my own eyes. Over the past decade, I’ve held seven roles at startups and dream companies like Meta, Pinterest, Intuit, and LinkedIn.

I didn’t know what I wanted to do for the first five years of my career, so I moved from sales to account management, customer success, and program management.

When I had the opportunity to leave with three months’ salary, I decided to forgo my final salary of over $300,000 per year. I took this as a sign to bet on myself as a full-time solopreneur; it was the best decision I ever made.

I was extremely nervous about leaving the stability and comfort of Big Tech behind

In addition to salary, I left behind many of the social and technological perks I’d had in all my roles, from free food to gym memberships and massages.

Luckily, I had a wonderful husband who supported me unconditionally – emotionally and financially with bills and health insurance – and I had accumulated over six figures in savings over the past 10 years. I stopped in February.

I am now a career coach, founder and creator of a manager program. I help program managers land fulfilling roles and share practical career, business, and life advice on LinkedIn, in my newsletter, and on Instagram.

I exceeded six figures in turnover in July

I had a goal of reaching $100,000 by the end of the year, but now, nine months later, I’ve more than replaced my tech salary.

Three key strategies helped me cross six figures in revenue in less than six months.

I launched a six-week cohort to help 10 aspiring and current program managers land their next roles, going 1:1 to the group, bringing in a third of my current income.
I monetized my LinkedIn brand to land several four-figure brand deals with companies like Notion, Gamma, and Glassdoor.
I have received several thousand dollars from affiliates – promoted through my LinkedIn posts by brand sponsors – and royalties from my LinkedIn Learning courses.

My first month out of the gate was one of my biggest

I prepared for my cohort launch several weeks in advance while working 9-5, nurturing my leads, and generating a warm pipeline of 150+ people on a waitlist.

My first launch was successful thanks to my personal brand. By posting five days a week for two years on LinkedIn, I grew my LinkedIn followers to over 70,000 and my newsletter subscribers to over 10,000.

My most viral posts were about overcoming imposter syndrome, the differences between project, program, and product managers, and workplace experiences.

The next two months were not as lucrative, comparatively

My cohort was my highest offering at $4,000, so after launching it, my only ways of generating income were sponsored posts and 1:1 coaching.

Seeing such huge growth in my first month and starting over was a big adjustment. I felt motivated to pursue different sources of income leveraging my skills and experiences, so I wasn’t worried.

I became an entrepreneur to learn, grow and see what I could do. Earning more than I initially expected was just a bonus.

Over the past two months, my business income has increased again

I landed a few fully inbound individual clients for career coaching, and had my biggest month landing brand sponsorships.

Brand deals alone generated over 50% of my total income. By the end of this year, I plan to hit six figures from brand deals alone.

The future looks incredibly bright

Money is great, but the best part is living the life I’ve always dreamed of: earning a living on my terms.

There are days when I work more in Big Tech than before – not because I have to, but because I want to. The difference is that I can design my ideal life, which involves not working outside of normal hours, spending weekends with my husband, and taking vacations whenever I want without feeling guilty. I have never been more productive and had such a flexible schedule.

Even though I grew up a lot in Big Tech, my internal satisfaction is greater now as a solopreneur. I will never close the door on returning to Big Tech, but for now, I plan to live in the present and seize every opportunity.

Have you left a job in Big Tech and want to share your story? Email Lauryn Haas at [email protected].