Kelly Sun: I Left a ~$290K Consulting Career to Start Over Online

At Boston Consulting Group, Kelly Sun was one of the youngest managers globally. Her compensation was approaching $290,000 including bonus. Her promotion timeline was accelerated. On paper, everything was working. 

But the job came with a different reality: 55-70 hour weeks, constant travel, and days packed with meetings where one client request could erase an entire evening. 

So after nearly six years, she left. 

Today, Kelly runs her career education platform @kellycareermode, coaching professionals, creating digital products, and partnering with brands, a path she didn’t even plan before leaving consulting. 

We sat down with Kelly to talk about consulting hours, compensation jumps inside BCG, the financial math behind leaving a stable career, and how her first creator income started at $100 per post. 

⬇️Read the full interview below ⬇️

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You moved from being one of the youngest managers globally at BCG to building your own platform full-time. What does your day-to-day look like now?

It’s been quite an amazing shift. I joined BCG right after undergrad in 2018, and until I left in 2024 it had been my only full-time job.

Consulting hours are intense, typically 55–70 hours per week. As a Project Leader, I often had 5–7 hours of meetings every day, while juggling emails, deadlines, travel, and urgent client requests. One new request could easily derail your entire evening. I also didn’t feel like I had much control over my schedule. Making personal plans Monday through Wednesday was almost impossible. Now my day-to-day looks completely different. 

As a creator and entrepreneur, my schedule is very flexible in terms of both hours and location. I usually work a little bit every day Monday through Sunday, but the hours are meaningfully lower.

My time is split between:

• Content ideation and filming
• Working with editors
• Emailing brands and agencies
• 1:1 career coaching
• Speaking engagements and events
• Building digital products

Technically, even watching content for inspiration counts as work now. Some people wonder how I operate without structure, but this style actually suits my personality very well. 

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You had early exposure to finance through capital markets internships. What made you choose consulting instead?

During my internship in sales & trading at Goldman Sachs, I realized the work felt very transactional. A lot of the day was spent tied to a Bloomberg Terminal.

Consulting appealed to me for three main reasons.

First, skill development. Consulting pushes both analytical and communication skills very aggressively. You’re building models, working with messy data, managing stakeholders, and presenting ideas constantly.

Second, variety in the work. One project could involve pricing a new cookie launch, another could involve due diligence for a private equity acquisition, and another could involve organizational transformation with AI. Every project looks different.

Third, career optionality. Consulting exit opportunities are broad, including strategy, operations, startups, product roles, corporate leadership. Sales & trading tends to funnel you into trading or investing roles. I wanted more flexibility. 

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As you moved from intern to consultant to manager, how did your compensation change?

Compensation at BCG changes dramatically after your first promotion. After moving from Associate to Consultant, compensation essentially doubles.

Here are rough ranges:

Associate (entry level)
Base: ~$100–115K
Bonus: ~10–20%

Consultant
Base: ~$200–220K
Bonus: ~15–25%

Project Leader (manager)
Base: ~$225–250K
Bonus: ~25–50%

My first-year Project Leader base salary was around $220K, and total compensation with bonus was closer to $290K. Interestingly, Associates and Consultants actually do very similar work. Consultants tend to own larger workstreams, but both roles are heavily responsible for deliverables. Project Leader is where you start managing teams and overseeing projects. More senior levels like Principal or Partner can see base salaries climb to $350K+, with even larger bonuses.

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You’ve spoken about treating your career like a system. When did you realize that approach was necessary?

Early in consulting I realized that performing well required being very intentional about skill development. At BCG, feedback is extremely structured. Your performance is scored across categories like:

• Problem solving
• Communication
• Client engagement
• Practicality
• Team collaboration
  
  

I treated those categories almost like a system.

I would ask very directly:
Where are my gaps?
How far am I from expectations?
What exactly do I need to improve?

I was also very transparent with my managers that I wanted to promote at the earliest windows possible. Being clear about my goals made it easier to get targeted feedback and support.

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Leaving BCG meant stepping away from a predictable income. What financial clarity did you need before making that decision?

This was definitely a major decision. But it also made sense because many consultants leave after 2–3 years, and I had already stayed for almost six. What gave me financial comfort were a few things.

First, BCG pays three months of base salary after you leave, even if you exit without another job.

Second, I had built enough savings to sustain a comfortable lifestyle for quite some time. If needed, I also knew I could return to corporate roles or work as a consultant or contractor. And I had chosen not to pursue an MBA, which would have meant roughly $200K+ in tuition plus potentially $500K in lost income from not working.

Interestingly, I didn’t plan to become a content creator. I started posting about consulting and career strategy online, and some early posts gained traction. My account @kellycareermode didn’t even exist while I was at BCG.

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How quickly did you start earning money from content?

I created the account around May 2024. Within the first month, I started receiving requests for 1:1 coaching at $100 per hour. I also did some small collaborations for consulting prep platforms, about $100 per story post.

By month three, startups and UGC companies started reaching out. Those collaborations ranged from $150–$600 per post.

Today, I work on four- and five-figure partnerships, including one multi-video campaign that totaled $17,500. Individual videos now often range between $2,000–$3,000. I expect income to grow significantly once my digital products launch.

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Looking back, how has your understanding of ambition changed?

Earlier in my career, I used to feel like if I wasn’t pushing until burnout, I wasn’t achieving anything. I no longer feel that way. It’s completely okay to work at a comfortable pace, to have periods of intense work and periods of slower work.

Consulting was an incredible training ground. It pushed me to grow quickly, handle pressure, and build strong professional skills. But it also comes with real lifestyle tradeoffs.

Now I feel that because I took that hard path early, life actually feels much easier. I’m comfortable making decisions quickly, handling ambiguity, and switching into high-productivity mode when needed.

But consulting is not the only path to success. There are many ways to build a meaningful career without that level of grind.

Follow Kelly’s Journey ✨

From $100 consulting prep posts to $17,500 brand campaigns, Kelly is building a platform focused on helping professionals navigate consulting, promotions, and career strategy.

Check out our Instagram collaborator post with Kelly here.

Follow Kelly:
Instagram: @kellycareermode
TikTok: @kellycareermode