Content @ Kurogo | LinkedIn Creator Accelerator

I just moved from Bangalore to London on a fully sponsored writing job. Here's my story so far:

Age 17: did 4 internships in a gap year before my undergrad
Age 18: started writing online on Instagram, Medium, and LinkedIn
Age 19: signed my first ghostwriting client
Age 20: graduated uni with first-class distinction
Age 21: one of the youngest members of LI's creator accelerator, got paid lakhs to write here (wild)
Age 22: beat 700+ people to get my dream job in personal branding
Age 23: dropped out of a Masters degree from KCL
Age 24: moved back to London for work

I've had quite the unconventional story. 

The fact I'm the proudest of isn't any of the "achievements" but that I did it all my way.

I write mostly to my younger self. 

My journey is an example of how your life can change if you refuse to conform and earn the right to play your own game.

Today, the clients I work with at my job are multi-millionaires dominating their industries. I'm lucky I get paid to learn from them everyday.

If you'd like to get in touch with me, email me at varunkhadri@gmail.com.

Varun Khadri

I manifested moving to London at 24.

I started telling friends and family I was planning to move back months before my company agreed to sponsor my work visa.

When they said they'd be open to it in my annual review, the first thing I did was give notice to my landlord and decide I wanted to move back home to save on rent, to financially prepare for how expensive London is.

Then, for the next few months, I nagged my manager each month to get the long sponsorship process started.

UKVI kept changing the immigration rules so at one point it wasn't looking too promising.

I asked myself: "what do I need to do to make myself important enough to make my employer jump through all the hurdles in front of us, how can I work so hard and prove myself beyond a doubt to such an extent that they finally give me what I want"?

I was getting more and more determined.
I was also getting more delusional.

I set my laptop wallpaper to the London skyline as a visual reminder at the start of each day to remind myself of the end goal.

There was simply no other option in my head than to make this work.

I remember starting to look for flats and flatmates in the city the second we submitted my visa application.

Whenever I met new people and they asked me about myself, I'd casually say "I work in marketing, it's a remote job but I'm moving to London soon for it".

8 months after that first conversation with my manager about this, we finally made it happen.

Unhinged self belief + relentless action ➡️ whatever you're manifesting coming true.

Writer at Kurogo | We’ve built 350+ leading personal brands | LinkedIn Creator Accelerator alumni

My daily non-negotiables:

- 3 min meditation
- 5 mins of reading
- 5k steps
- 1 LinkedIn post
- Phoning family
- Tracking my calories
- 2.5L of water

None of these are particularly big.

People usually aim for 10k steps or 10 pages a day.

But these are my minimums I can do even on bad days, weekends, and on vacation.

Consistency > intensity for me.

Happy Women’s Day to all the women who raised me, shaped me, and tolerated me ❤️

Writer at Kurogo | We’ve built 350+ leading personal brands | LinkedIn Creator Accelerator

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At 22, I walked into a hospital and got told I had high cholesterol during a routine health checkup.

This was a wake up call and I needed it.

Back then, I was:

- Overweight
- Drinking & smoking every other day
- In a bad relationship
- Miserable freelancing
- About to do a degree I knew was wrong

At 25, I’m:

- In decent shape
- Have no vices
- Love my own company
- Working a job I love
- Living in London

No 22 year old should have high cholesterol.

But I’m glad I did, because I’d never be here today without that wake up call 3 years ago.

100 years ago, even the richest people in the world had no hot showers, died from a simple infection (no antibiotics), and took 5 days to get to NYC from London - by ship.

The average life today is miles better than the best life just a few decades ago.

An EXTREMELY underrated skill if you're a young person looking to maximise professional growth:

Learn how to be presentable.

"Can I put this person in front of clients"?

That's what every leader is secretly asking themselves while hiring you (or not).

This means:

- What you wear
- How polished you sound
- How much you speak
- Your LinkedIn headline
- How experienced you SEEM
- What you post online

It all matters. A lot.

Having an audience gives you unparalleled confidence.

I have less than 20k followers here, yet I know that:

- I’ll never struggle to get a job again 
- If I start a business, the first couple of leads will be easy
- 80% of the connection requests I send are instantly accepted
- It’s easier to make new friends because people trust you faster
- I can monetise my audience and make extra income whenever I want

A personal brand makes EVERY aspect of your life easier.

2.5 years ago, on the first day of my job, my boss Sam G. Winsbury politely told me everything I'd learnt until then was wrong.

I'd written blogs, worked at multiple agencies, and had been ghostwriting for years at that point.

But I had to learn how LinkedIn copywriting in particular, works at the highest level.

It was humbling. But also a really fun process.

True mastery is impossible if you're not willing to accept that you'll always be a student of the game.

I recently wrote a guide for new content writers who joined our team, a guide to content writing at Kurogo - Personal Branding Agency.

I haven't got it all figured out by any means, but it's a full circle moment to be able to pass on what I've learnt from the best.

Long way to go, but nice to look back on how far I've come :)

P.S. 
Hit me with your weekend plans in the comments 💬

All the best people I know are a little obsessive.

They associate their identity with what they do.

Their job isn’t just clocking in and clocking out, it becomes who they ARE.

Their health isn’t just their another asset to them, they’re addicted to being in shape.

When they’re trying to grow in one aspect of their life, they get obsessed with improving it and happily have tunnel vision and sacrifice everything else.

This isn’t advice, I’m not advocating for mad obsession. I’m not even saying it’s healthy.

Just saying that the people I admire and the people at the top, are usually not the most balanced.

I've been writing for a long time so very little rattles me anymore but this made me want to ragequit.

Kurogo - Personal Branding Agency turned 5 last week 🥳

It's been such a pleasure being here for half that time.

I've worked with many different agencies in my short career based all over the world.

Nothing comes close to the way we're run.

2026 is a big, big year for us (record months already).

Excited for where the personal branding industry is going, and happy we're the face of it 🏆

Two years ago, the current version of my life was my dream.

Now it’s normal.

And I still catch myself thinking about what’s next… what’s missing… what I haven’t cracked yet.

That’s the trap.

We’re wired to measure the gap, not the gain.

But pause for a second.

You’re probably standing in a chapter you once hoped you’d reach.

The client you wanted,
The confidence you were building,
The skills you doubted you’d ever master,
The conversations you were once too intimidated to have.

Progress doesn’t feel like a big deal when you’re inside it.

It feels messy.
Too small.
Too slow.
Uneventful.

Until you zoom out.

I’m not where I want to be yet.

But I’m closer than I’ve ever been.
And that counts.

Yes I have places I still want to go, but where I am now isn't so bad after all.

I’ve been ghostwriting for the last 5 years. Over this period I’ve got thousands of versions of the same question: how do you start? A good friend asked me this a few days ago, this is what I said to her (simplest possible way to get started) 👇

Something nobody likes to hear but I need to say:

Instead of asking for free value from others, leverage the internet to create opportunities for yourself.

When I started creating content, I didn’t ask anyone for feedback or handouts.

When I was trying to get my dream job, I didn’t ask anyone for referrals or tips.

When I wanted to move to the UK, I didn’t text random people who had a work visa for advice or hacks.

Even when I wanted to start therapy, I just looked up different therapists and platforms on google maps.

Whatever I wanted to do, I just started.

I asked GPT, I spoke to personal connections about their experience, I watched tutorials and YouTube videos.

I’m not against helping people.

I’m just saying there’s so much free info out there today that you don’t have to rely on a stranger’s kindness to go after what you want.

Feb ‘26 recap (my most honest one yet):

1. Sometimes I forget just how beautiful London really is.

2. Getting to be at OT during our first unbeaten run for years was special.

3. Lifting consistently for the first time in my life, baby steps but can see progress already.

4. My biggest motivation to be active physically is so that I can eat like this.

5. Being around people who push me and have high standards inspires me like nothing else.

6. I have enough friends but sometimes I find it so calming to get in a pint alone.

7. There’s nothing that makes Londoners happier than sunlight (did I just call myself that!?)

8. I’ve had insomnia for years so used to take melatonin. I quit, now only get 5 hours a night on average sadly.

9. Nature (the moon, the stars, trees, sunsets) soothe me like nothing else ever can.

10. Indian food will always, ALWAYS be my favourite cuisine in the whole wide world.

How was Feb for you?

I published my first LinkedIn post 6 years ago.

9 things that happened since then:

- Graduated with first-class distinction
- Got into the best unis in the world for post-grad
- LinkedIn paid me to write here every day
- Made $25k in my 2nd year freelancing in India
- Beat 700 people to get my dream job
- Got a sponsored work visa 
- Moved to London
- Built an audience of almost 20k of you
- Made friends I'll keep for the rest of my life

NONE of this would've happened if I didn't force myself to put my work out there.

If you don't know how to leverage your personal brand to attract opportunities, clients, and leads...

Start here (link in comments)

13 things I never ever regret doing:

Being kind when I have reason not to be.
Going on a walk.
Going on a run.
Travelling to new places.
Waking up early to write.
Staying up late to write.
Having a pint with a good friend.
Going to bed on time.
Drinking more water.
Playing more sports.
Calling my grandma.
Lifting harder.
Eating fruits.

A supremely underrated skill to succeed at work as a 20-something:

Emotional equilibrium.

Nobody wants to hire or promote someone whom they can't trust to hold it together.

Can you show up as your best self at work even when life gets messy, other people get on your nerves, or you're just having a bad day, week, or month?

I'm not saying you need to bury your emotions completely and put on a happy face regardless of what's going on in your personal life.

After all, we're only human.

I'm just saying - the people who are given exciting new opportunities are the ones who are trusted the most.

If the powers don't have the confidence that you have your shit together, you're doomed.

It's okay to be emotional, but it's more important to come back to baseline quickly (at least in the workplace).

The right companies will always take a chance on people with potential.

When I started my job, the company was hiring for a full-time, remote role.
But they ended up hiring me part-time, in the same city (London).

I was an incoming Masters student and could only work 20 hours a week.

Then, 2 weeks into the job, I dropped out and told them I was moving back home.

Since it was supposed to be a remote role anyway - they were fine with it.

I kept the part-time job, and since I no longer had visa restrictions, went full-time a couple of months later.

Then a year later, when I wanted them to sponsor my work visa and move back to the UK…

They eventually agreed.

Mind you - this was also a remote role with occasional in-person stuff, and sponsoring a work visa in the UK is no cheap endeavour, I was ALSO only the 2nd person they’d ever sponsored, and the first writer ever.

So I really had no business getting my way.

But they took a bet on me anyway.

Sure, one could argue I’d earned it.

But in other ways, I also got lucky, I was fortunate that the people in charge were good at spotting potential and great at taking care of their people.

Takeaway: it’s easier to get what you want when you make yourself indispensable at the right organisation.

Weekly review ⤵️

- Win: I’m finally STARTING to feel settled in London, I have a group for every sport I play, am meeting new people every now and then, and have a solid routine. 

- Loss: Had to cancel a fair few sports games this week because I was just too tired after work to do anything. Lost a good chunk of change as a result. Need to be better with money moving forward.

- Learning: It’s completely okay to spend a Saturday rotting in bed and catching up on chores every now and then. I finished a whole season of a show in one day for the first time ever (I usually never binge anything).

If you correctly guess which show it was, I’ll answer any question you have (via DM) 😇

📷 - worked from a place near St. Paul’s this Wednesday!

Ghostwriter for health & wellness founders | I share insights to help you live a happier life ✨

WHO I AM:
Hi, I’m Irene! 

WHAT I DO:
I’m a Content Writer at Kurogo. I help founders and CEOs become industry leaders through personal branding.

MY NEWSLETTER:
I write a weekly newsletter. Every Sunday at 9 AM EST, you’ll discover a proven strategy to boost your happiness. Think of it as your weekly dose of happiness. 😋

www.thehappinessdiary.com

Feel free to subscribe. 🫶

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The Battle

Varun Khadri

Irene Chu

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The Battle

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Irene Chu

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Varun Khadri's LinkedIn Performance

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