A YouTuber who was once an investment banker now earns more than $1 million.

Nischa Shah, a personal finance YouTuber, left her high-paying job in investment banking to focus on creating content full-time, and her decision turned out to be profitable.

Despite earning well over £200,000 ($256,000) as an associate director at Crédit Agricole in 2022 after working in banking for a decade, Shah was not content with her career, as she revealed in an interview with CNBC Make It.

"Nine years into her corporate journey, she realized that her work was not fulfilling, challenging, or intellectually stimulating. She wanted to help others while being paid, and her role in banking was assisting corporations and sovereign governments."

Two-and-a-half years ago, she hit rock bottom and decided to use a Law of Attraction planner to reevaluate her life.

"She mentioned that she was considering altering the trajectory of her life and that the Law of Attraction planner contained prompts such as 'What would you do if money was not a concern?'"

Shah discovered her love for simplifying complex financial information and making it understandable to all. She had previously assisted her parents in avoiding a £14,000 tax bill by catching an oversight made by their accountant during the sale of their home.

"Having knowledge in personal finance can significantly affect the money you earn," she stated.

Since December 2021, Shah has been creating YouTube videos on personal finance and self-development and currently boasts over 1 million subscribers.

Despite being due for a six-figure bonus in March, she left her investment banking job in January due to her success.

Shah's YouTube videos, courses, products, corporate talks, and brand partnerships have resulted in her earning over $1 million, making the risk worth it.

"I'm now making more than I used to in banking because I stopped chasing money and instead focused on my passion and what I enjoy, which has resulted in surpassing my previous earnings."

Shah walked through CNBC Make It, detailing how she grew her YouTube channel and prepared to leave her investment banking job.

'It took 11 months to get to 1,000 subscribers'

Shah's videos cover a range of topics, including "Money Habits Keeping You Poor," "7 Passive Income Ideas," and "How to invest your first $1000." These videos receive between 100,000 to 9 million views.

In 2021, Shah's YouTube account was not her primary focus, as she viewed it as a side hustle.

In September 2022, one video of Shah's daily life as an investment banker gained 50,000 subscribers and earned £3,000. From June 2022 onwards, Shah started posting twice a week, every week.

"Shah stated that it took him 11 months to reach 1,000 subscribers and two months to reach 100,000, which he found astonishing. He explained that this experience demonstrated the power of compounding, as he did not know when his next break would occur."

Shah states that her audience comprises a significant number of young adults, women, and individuals who might not have received financial education.

She said, "When I speak to the camera, I imagine it's like I'm conversing with my 22 or 23-year-old self."

"Many young professionals are at a stage in their careers where they have started earning money but are not yet confident in managing their finances. They seek guidance on how to invest their savings, increase their wealth, and establish a plan to quit their unfulfilling jobs."

Shah recognized a chance to establish herself as a reliable authority on the topic, thanks to her banking background and accounting credentials, amidst the prevalence of misleading financial information on social media.

"Incorrect advice is being given on TikTok and Instagram, which is unfortunate because it could cost someone as much as £7 if they receive incorrect advice about shampoo or lip gloss, but the consequences of incorrect advice about finance could be even more severe, potentially costing someone their life savings."

Use your day job to fund your side hustle

Shah suggests that having a steady income from a day job can speed up the growth of your side business.

It's crucial to have both a steady income and a job that offers learning opportunities without negative consequences, especially if you come from a less affluent family, she emphasized.

If there's no backup income, the consequences of setting up a business could be dire, as Shah explains.

She stated that if one has income from their day job while simultaneously building a business on the side, they are working from a creative perspective rather than a place of financial necessity.

"Operating from a place of stress can significantly affect your success in the entrepreneurial world."

At the beginning of her YouTube career, Shah utilized her income from investment banking to purchase a £1,000 camera.

She advised continuing to explore side hustles or businesses alongside a day job for security, freedom or creativity, building an emergency fund, and providing extra cash to help side businesses succeed.

Shah constructed an emergency fund to sustain her for at least nine months following her job resignation. The fund doesn't need to cover extravagant holidays, clothing, or accessories; it only needs to cover her living expenses.

If she waited to quit only after accumulating significant earnings from YouTube, it would have taken longer to make the transition.

"I had to fully commit to the opportunity, as it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance, and I had my emergency fund to protect me. At the same time, I was at a crossroads in my life. For the past nine years, I had been following a familiar path, but it hadn't brought me happiness. It was time for me to take control of my life and seize this opportunity."

CNBC Make It verified Shah's salary through her contract and tax form, but the exact figure will not be disclosed due to privacy reasons. Additionally, her YouTube earnings from May 2023 to May 2024 were also verified by CNBC Make It using bank statements.

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