{"id":32572,"date":"2026-07-14T22:32:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T22:32:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/?p=32572"},"modified":"2026-07-14T22:32:44","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T22:32:44","slug":"the-dumbest-thing-ive-done-former-microsoft-employee-on-quitting-his-rs-1-9-crore-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/?p=32572","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;The dumbest thing I&#8217;ve done&#8217;: Former Microsoft employee on quitting his Rs 1.9 crore job"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-132393993,imgsize-127048,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/39the-dumbest-thing-i39ve-done39-former-microsoft-employee-on-quitting-his-rs-19-crore-job.jpg\" alt=\"'The dumbest thing I've done': Former Microsoft employee on quitting his Rs 1.9 crore job\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Quitting a secure, well-paying job has become a popular topic on social media, with many creators talking about choosing passion over a corporate career. But behind those bold decisions are stories that are often far less glamorous.<!-- --> One such account is now drawing attention online after a former Microsoft employee shared how leaving his dream job brought uncertainty, setbacks, and constant self-doubt instead of instant success.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"3\"\/>Christian Harms, who previously worked at Microsoft in Switzerland, has spoken candidly about his journey after leaving a job that paid $200,000 a year, around Rs 1.9 crore. In a video, he reflected on the difficult months that followed and the lessons he learned while trying to build a new career from scratch.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"7\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>\u201cThe dumbest thing I&#8217;ve done\u201d<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"9\"\/>Harms shared his experience in a video titled My Museum of Failures as a 27-year-old who quit his dream job.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"11\"\/>Looking back at his decision, he admitted that leaving Microsoft may have been the \u201cdumbest thing I&#8217;ve done.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"13\"\/>Explaining why, he said the hardest part was not just giving up a high salary. It was also walking away from the stability and identity that came with the job.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"15\"\/>\u201cCorporate life is designed to make leaving feel stupid,\u201d he said.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>He added that although \u201cself-doubt still feels suffocating\u201d on some days, he still believes he made the right decision.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"20\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Starting over in a new country<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"22\"\/>After leaving Microsoft at the age of 26, Harms moved to Australia without a fixed plan. He gave himself five months to figure out his next step and spent that time creating content, working with brands and exploring online opportunities.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"24\"\/>However, things did not unfold the way he had hoped.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"26\"\/>\u201cI thought I&#8217;d be a founder by now,\u201d he said, adding that there are days when he feels he is failing the version of himself that chose to take the leap.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"29\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"cdatainfo modify_cdata_list_style id-r-component \" data-pos=\"30\">\n<h2>The deadline that finally pushed him<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"31\"\/>Harms also spoke about the moment he earned his first dollar online.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"33\"\/>According to him, it happened just one week before he was due to fly back home.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"35\"\/>Reflecting on that experience, he said, \u201cThe deadline did what months of planning couldn&#8217;t.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"38\"\/>He also admitted, \u201cI only move when my back is against the wall. I hate that.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"40\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>The biggest lesson from his journey<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"42\"\/>Looking back, Harms said one of his biggest mistakes was spending too much time working on an idea before questioning whether it was worth pursuing in the first place.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"45\"\/>\u201cI spent months building a business before asking if I should build it at all,\u201d he said.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"47\"\/>He explained that what he called due diligence later felt like \u201cfear with a to-do list,\u201d leaving him with months of directionless work and little to show for it.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"49\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Social media reacts<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"51\"\/>Harms said he is documenting his journey on Instagram to show people what leaving a stable corporate career really looks like.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"53\"\/>Many users appreciated his honesty and encouraged him to continue.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"55\"\/>One user commented, \u201cYou&#8217;re gonna get there brother.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"57\"\/>Another wrote, \u201cSounds brave to me.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"59\"\/>A third added, \u201cIt gets hard at times but it&#8217;s great that you followed your intuition and went for it anyway.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"61\"\/><span class=\"strong\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">Disclaimer: This article is based on a viral social media post and publicly available comments. Individual experiences and opinions may vary. The Times of India has not independently verified the claims made by the individual featured in the video.<\/span><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"63\"\/><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"64\"\/><span class=\"strong\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">Thumb image: Instagram <\/span> <span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"67\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/etimes\/trending\/the-dumbest-thing-ive-done-former-microsoft-employee-on-quitting-his-rs-1-9-crore-job\/articleshow\/132393858.cms\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Quitting a secure, well-paying job has become a popular topic on social media, with many creators talking about choosing passion over a corporate career. But behind those bold decisions are stories that are often far less glamorous. One such account is now drawing attention online after a former Microsoft employee shared how leaving his dream&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32573,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life-style"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=32572"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32572\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/32573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=32572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=32572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saharanews.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=32572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}