I remember quite vividly being called into a meeting with my guidance counsellor to discuss my future career goals during my last year of high school. Like most 18-year-olds, I had no clue what I wanted to do and just assumed I’d figure it out when I was older. 

For Sharukh Shah, that wasn’t the case. Shah had a very structured, methodical career path already planned for himself at a very young age. He would become a chartered accountant, join a major firm and then work himself into a senior position. Twenty years later, Shah was exactly where he had wanted to be, but still found himself facing a career crossroads: continue to climb the corporate ladder or follow the path unknown. He chose the latter and hasn’t looked back since.

Managing a career crisis

For Shah, choosing a career in accounting made sense. He explains, “Accounting is typically an analytical and risk-averse profession. It’s very easy to follow a very traditional career path and not deviate from it. When I first considered leaving my firm, the only other option that came to mind was pursuing a CFO position somewhere else.” But after a bit of reflection, Shah realized that a traditional move wasn’t going to fix the problems he had been dealing with. After years spent supporting someone else’s vision and strategy, he was aware that his motivation had started to fade. Without a clear option in front of him, Shah admits that a close friend helped him take the first step toward considering self-employment.

Shah describes a conversation that set everything in motion. “I had resigned from my position in 2020 and had picked up a couple of short-term contracts to tide me over while I was trying to figure things out. I was enjoying working in client service again, and one of my close friends suggested that I incorporate myself and put the contract under the corporation. I considered it but didn’t know if I would actually commit. But my friend was familiar with the process and actually did it for me to remove that first barrier. Before I knew it, I suddenly had the ability to become my own boss.” Being incorporated didn’t necessarily eliminate all of the feelings of self doubt, but over the next several months, Shah acquired projects from a handful of new clients and started to gain confidence that he could do this type of work on his own without necessarily needing the backing of a large firm.

Understanding the highs and lows of self-employment

Although Shah was able to get some wins early on in the process, self-employment can be both scary and exciting at the same time. Shah found himself managing a series of ups and downs: “The transition allowed me to focus on my passion for working directly with clients to enhance their financial practices in a variety of ways. I also discovered a series of tax and cash benefits of being incorporated, and I had a lot more time on my hands since I wasn’t dealing with workplace politics anymore. On the flip side, I still had to overcome a bit of imposter syndrome and become more comfortable with not knowing what the future held for me and my business.” Shah managed these feelings by having a growth mindset and staying committed to his business model, which leaned on his strengths and focused on the type of work he found most rewarding. After some initial failures, Shah became better equipped to move forward and learn from them. “I had to become comfortable with failing to some degree. I remember investing in some marketing strategies to grow my business that really didn’t work out. It was frustrating, both personally and financially, but I wouldn’t have learned if I didn’t try it. You can’t expect everything to be a win, and that’s actually okay.”

Discovering a new passion for mental health awareness and advocacy

Another unexpected outcome of Shah’s transition was pursuing meaningful work in the mental health space by founding Bipolar Empath. “My work with Bipolar Empath isn’t something I had necessarily planned, but it allowed me to share my personal story as an accountant managing my own mental health to help other finance professionals who often struggle with the same issues. I’ve been speaking at conferences and events and have also started running workshops as my way of talking about something that often isn’t addressed in my field of work.” Shah found a sense of freedom in this work, as he didn’t need to censor his message to align with his employer. He was only answering to himself when it came to how much, or how little, he wanted to share, and he was comfortable accepting any potential ramifications that came with that. Shah continues, “I did have moments of concern that clients may not be comfortable with how open I am about my own mental health, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised that it’s actually allowed me to form much more powerful relationships with them.”

Advice to others considering a change

While venturing out on your own isn’t for everyone, Shah does believe there is value in challenging yourself to consider an alternative to traditional employment. “Very early on in the process, I made a point of asking myself how I would feel five years from now if I stayed the course and didn’t try to make it on my own. The first two words that came to mind were disappointment and regret. That alone helped me understand how important it was for me to give it a try, no matter what the outcome.” And if you’re not ready to make a full-time commitment, Shah has some thoughts: “Understand that pursuing a different path doesn’t necessarily need to be an ‘all in’ scenario. It can mean pursuing part-time work, continuing education or even a volunteer opportunity. It’s really about understanding your own personal passions and goals, and allowing yourself to pursue them, before you let your own doubts and fears talk you out of it.” Shah follows this advice on a daily basis and feels infinitely more fulfilled as a result.





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