THE BIG IDEA

The 29-year-old who made millions on TikTok

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kat Norton had to stop traveling for her consulting job and move back in with her parents. A few months into working from home, however, she became bored. With the help of a friend, she began brainstorming side hustle ideas… Until she found the perfect one: creating bite-sized Excel lessons for TikTok.

Kat posted her first video in June 2020. When she posted her fourth, she got 100k views within days! How? All thanks to her “Excel-ent” way of conveying useful advice in a playful manner. Specifically, in that fourth video, she explained Excel’s XLOOKUP feature to DMX’s song “X Gon’ Give It to Ya”.

By October, Kat’s channel had reached 300k followers. That was a good time, she realized, to start creating online courses and selling directly to her audience. And, indeed, it was: just a few months down the line, in February 2021, she was able to quit her job and become a full-time entrepreneur.

In about a year, Kat had surpassed $ 1m in sales, and even hit an incredible milestone: taking home $ 100k in a single day. If you’re wondering what her secret is, her (Excel-non-related) advice includes the following: finding your purpose, prioritizing self-care and letting go of perfectionism.

Inspired by Kat’s story? Reply and let us know your thoughts.