A high-flying corporate worker has revealed he has no regrets after ditching his $500,000-a-year job to pursue a career in comedy.
Kurt Sterling, 35, said he felt more fulfilled than ever before despite earning significantly less money than when he was a management consultant.
‘It’s just so much better. It’s just fantastic. I really enjoy it. I probably work as hard but I’m doing it because I want to,’ he told Daily Mail Australia.
Mr Sterling was pulling 18-hour long days with a company that was set up so that he would be available to them 24/7.
The 35-year-old admitted there were perks – such as travelling the globe and living in a luxurious Sydney apartment that had 270 degree views of the cityscape.
Mr Sterling claimed the paychecks were simply not enough with the unrelenting lifestyle straining his relationships and leaving him with a sense of disconnect.
‘I describe it as a deal with the devil. I give you all the time that I have and in exchange you show me the world,’ he said.
Mr Sterling grew up in NSW’s Central Coast region and didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life as a teenager.
Kurt Sterling, 35, quit his globe-trotting corporate career, rejecting $500,000 salary job offers, to pursue his passion in comedy
His management consulting role saw him travel to 15 different countries and live in a Sydney apartment with 270 degree views of the city
In high school, he excelled in math and economics and landed himself a scholarship in actuarial studies at the University of New South Wales.
However, while interning, Kurt found the job ‘boring’ as he would go ‘weeks and weeks’ without talking to people.
Mr Sterling made the transition to a management consultant job on ‘pure spontaneity’.
‘I found this job in management consulting after the firm came to the campus and were talking to students there,’ he said.
‘I didn’t really understand what it was, but I understood that it was an office job where you get to solve big problems, work for big companies, travel and talk to people.
‘I wanted to do business stuff, whatever that meant, and I knew I wanted to talk to people all day’.
Mr Sterling said the role was ‘all encompassing’ and often felt like he was ‘stuck in a washing machine’ with working and traveling to work becoming his whole life.
After 12 years, Mr Sterling had the realisation that he was not in the industry he truly wanted to be in.
‘Covid hit which meant that the travel was gone, and so all the kind of cool stuff, and the things that made you feel good about was gone and all of a sudden, it’s a bad deal for me,’ he said.
‘I felt disconnected and dissatisfied. I didn’t want office speak, I really missed real human interaction.
‘I also felt like I had no common experiences with friends or family and my twenties were given over to a corporate world.’
In 2022, Mr Sterling made the bold move of quitting his high-paying job to pursue his dream in comedy.
He made his Edinburgh Festival Fringe debut with his stand-up show, ‘Corporate Chronicles’.
The comedian has now brought the show back to his home shores for Sydney Fringe Comedy – which runs between September 18 to 20.
Kurt told Daily Mail Australia he feels the most fulfilled in his life and gigs almost every night
Mr Sterling said the move was a ‘very strategic decision’ and argued that stand-up comedy and consulting were ‘the same thing’.
‘We would do strategy projects for companies and we’d say to them, “here’s what we think your strengths are, and therefore, here’s what we think you should do”,’ he said.
‘When I thought about it, I realised I had three things. I’ve got a lot of stories, because I’ve done so much travelling. I feel very comfortable speaking in front of people, because I’ve done it every day for the last 12 years.
‘I’m also good with like formulas and patterns, things like that, because of my master degree.
‘I think when you combine those three things, the only answer is stand-up comedy. That’s the only thing I can think of that combines all three of them.’
Now, Kurt explained he has found a career path that is truly fulfilling and would never go back to the job he once had.
‘I’m doing it because I’m excited about the new joke, or I’m excited about getting on stage, or I’m excited about creating something,’ he said.
‘I really enjoy every day, and to the point where I feel like I’ve lost track of days.
‘I have found success in entertaining and making people laugh, and this is what makes me truly happy. Any pressure is internal ambition instead of outside stress.’
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