Woman who started her career with ₹4,500 call centre job now earns ₹3 lakh a month: ‘Learn new skills, try…’

A woman has revealed how she managed to increase her monthly income from just ₹4,500 to as much as ₹3 lakh. Jyotishree, who describes herself as a freelance social media manager, shared her career journey in an Instagram reel, explaining how she began working at a young age to help her family through a financial crisis.

In the video, which has now garnered massive attention on social media, Jyotishree explains that she joined a part-time call centre at the age of 16, shortly after completing school.

Recalling the beginning of her career, she said: “At the age of 16, my family was going through a financial crisis.”

Started working before receiving Class 12 results

Jyotishree said she began her professional journey even before receiving her Class 12 examination results. Her first salary was ₹4,500 per month.

Alongside her job, she continued her college education and later moved to another part-time call centre role, where her monthly salary increased to ₹5,500.

As she neared the completion of her graduation, she transitioned into a full-time position, working Australian shifts at a call centre for around ₹8,000 per month.

She later joined another company and worked US night shifts, increasing her monthly income to approximately ₹12,500.

“I continued that job for around six months. I had to leave because the distance from that office to my place was a lot,” she explained, adding that the long commute was a bigger challenge than the night shifts themselves.

After leaving her previous role, Jyotishree joined another organisation, accepting a similar salary package because the office was closer to her home and offered a better working environment.

Looking back, she admitted that she knew little about salary negotiations at the time.

“Back then, I did not know negotiation. I did not know anything. So I said yes to that opportunity,” she said.

She remained with the company for five years, and by the time she resigned, her salary had risen to ₹28,000 per month.

Freelancing transformed her income

While still employed, Jyotishree began freelancing on the side. She initially worked as a content writer before gradually transitioning into social media marketing.

“When I left that company, I did it for freelancing and with freelancing, I had already started earning 40 or 50 thousand per month,” she said.

Over the next five years, she expanded her freelance work and eventually built what she describes as an agency.

Today, her monthly income ranges between ₹2.5 lakh and ₹3 lakh.

‘Learn new skills and try different things’

Reflecting on her career growth, Jyotishree credited continuous learning and skill development for her success.

“And if I had been in the traditional job that I was doing, or if I had simply switched companies, it would have been impossible to reach such an income level because I learned new skills,” she said.

She concluded her video with a message for people who feel stuck in their careers.

“If you are someone who is feeling stuck, I urge you to learn new skills, try different things and you never know what you can find out that can change your life.”

(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. Livemint has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)