Sharan Hegde is an Indian entrepreneur, content creator and financial influencer. He is famous for sharing financial videos titled “Sharan’s Finances” on his Instagram account.
Wiki/Biography
Sharan Hegde was born on Saturday, July 15, 1995, in Mangalore, Karnataka (28 years old; as of 2023). His zodiac sign is Cancer. From 2014 to 2018, he studied Mechanical Engineering at RV College of Engineering, Bangalore, Karnataka. He was admitted to Columbia Business School in New York to pursue a master’s degree in business administration, but dropped out in 2022. As a child, he was quiet and loved to study. Instead of playing at recess like other children, he completed his homework. He is always full of questions, which sometimes gets him into trouble. His father ran a restaurant in Mysore, where Shallan would spend his summer vacations. He loved handling money at the cash register and was curious about how money came in and out. This curiosity sparked his interest in finance. He said in an interview that, like many Indian families, his parents mainly knew how to save bank accounts, time deposits and invest in real estate. They didn’t talk much other than these topics, but always had him talking about money and saving. For them, saving money is more important than investing.
appearance
Height (approximately): 6′0″
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
Parents and siblings
There is not much information about his parents. His father is a businessman.
Sharon Heggard and her parents
He has a sister, Shreya Hedge.
Sharon Heggard and her sister
Profession
Interest in finance during college
While studying at engineering college, Sharan developed an interest in finance and saved a large amount of money during that time. He received cash gifts from his grandmother on every holiday and birthday, but instead of spending them, he kept them all in a locker. By his third year of engineering, he had saved around one lakh rupees. Since he doesn’t need to spend the money immediately, he starts thinking about ways to invest it to grow his savings. He wanted to do more than put money in savings accounts and fixed deposits, so he decided to try investing in the stock market. When Ciaran started engineering school, he dreamed of becoming a chief engineer at major car companies like Ferrari and BMW. But he soon discovered that this was impossible. He considered starting coding next, but since his sister was already doing it, he decided to try something different. Shallan’s first exposure to the business world came during his freshman year of college when he became a member of the Ashwa Racing Club. He started out as a member and rose to become the club’s chief financial officer. During a business project presentation, he realized he wanted to learn more about finance and business.
IIM rejection and next steps
In his final year of college, he sent his resume to major investment firms but soon discovered they preferred graduates from Indian Institutes of Technology or Indian Institutes of Management. So, he set his sights on IIT and worked hard to prepare for the CAT exam, achieving a score of 98%. Despite his high grades, he was not admitted to the Indian Institute of Technology. When he realized that joining an Indian Institute of Technology was out of reach, he aimed to pursue an MBA as he understood that he first needed a job. He learned that management consulting was a good route to top MBA programs. However, when he applied for such a job, he was rejected because he had not graduated from an Indian Institute of Technology.
Corporate experience
He found a job as a consultant with KPMG International Ltd. through the university’s career services and started working as an analyst in the Greater Bengaluru region in July 2018. His focus is on consulting in the BFSI and e-commerce sectors. He was not satisfied with the job, mainly because of the low pay. However, when he was given the opportunity to work on financial projects, he excelled. After working there for two years, he didn’t get a raise or promotion in 2020 due to the cost-cutting measures the company took during COVID-19. He left KPMG in November 2020 and then started volunteering at an NGO. He noticed that many people were studying abroad for MBAs, but he wanted to do something different to stand out. Sharan launched “Finance With Sharan” in January 2021, launching his career as a financial influencer. In April 2021, he joined PwC Greater Bengaluru as an associate consultant and left in January 2022.
Turn to social media platforms
He chose to create a 15-minute financial video and share it on YouTube. His first video, posted in December 2020, attracted around 400 views and 80-90 subscribers. Remarkably, the first person to follow him was his mother. In an interview, he mentioned being dissatisfied with his content due to poor video quality. He also revealed that his then-girlfriend broke up with him over the video. Additionally, he found that shooting and editing the video took up too much of his time. During the pandemic, Shallan helped his friends figure out where to invest their money. In January 2021, Sharan launched “Finance With Sharan”, launching his career as a financial influencer. When they start working, they realize they don’t quite know what to do with their money, especially things like Section 80C of the tax code. They have no interest in digging deeper to learn more. Ciaran noticed that not only his friends, but many others knew little about finance because they had never studied it in school. This inspired him to start teaching financial literacy. The extra free time during the pandemic gave him the opportunity to research more topics. He then found Ali Abdal, whose success inspired him to start his own path. Ciaran didn’t start making videos directly. First, he wrote a script. Then, while on his way back to his hometown of Mangalore, he went into his room and shot the video. As someone who is relatively introverted, getting used to being in front of the camera was difficult and took a while. When he started creating content, he was determined to make things simple, not make things complicated just because he knew the finances. His sister, even though she had no business or financial background, greatly influenced his way of thinking. Sharan’s first YouTube video suffered from poor lighting, but it was an opportunity for him to learn editing. Publishing it was difficult and took two weeks. It took him about 45 minutes to shoot a short video, including changing clothes and reshooting. He puts in 4-5 hours a week, and after that, his team (which includes his sister, who serves as the lead social media strategist and editor) handles most of the work automatically. Initially, Ciaran focused on mutual funds because he knew a lot about them. But then he realized that talking about taxes and insurance could benefit more people. He chooses topics based on available information. Rather than creating entirely new content, he focuses on breaking down existing information to make it easier for everyone to understand. After Sharan reads a lot of content, he will choose some topics that he thinks will be helpful to many people, and then decide to talk about these topics. Sharan discovered that people on Instagram like fun stuff. To make his videos entertaining, he incorporates facts, jokes, and a little drama. He often uses Bangalore words and talks about things from pop culture like superheroes to connect with the audience. Initially, he received some negative feedback, but that didn’t discourage him. He continued to improve and discovered that hard work and dedication make a difference in everything you do. His videos started to gain traction, so he kept trying new things and making his content better every day. Once Sharan had 15,000 followers on Instagram, he upgraded his gear, buying a ring light, some props and a phone holder. Even with these new tools, he still makes all his videos on his iPhone. His sister Shreya edits the video. When it comes to creating content, his main consideration is whether it can have a big impact on a lot of people and whether it’s something they can use long-term. Ciaran worked with a brand manager who played a key role in securing brand deals and handling negotiations. He has partnered with brands such as The Souled Store, Coinswitch Kuber, Slice and GoDutch, as well as working with influencers Tanya Appachu and Raj Shamani. Sharan points out how they use a strategy to create content that appeals to followers on both sides in order to get the best results from every collaboration. He has over 2.5 million subscribers on YouTube and over 2.4 million followers on Instagram. Finance with Sharan has received multiple recognitions including Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 2023, Economic Times Super Influencer 2023, Forbes Top 100 Influencers 2022 and Financial Impact of the Year 2022, 2023 who.
entrepreneur
Sharan founded 1% Club in April 2022 and serves as CEO. This exclusive club aims to help its members achieve financial freedom and join the top 1%. Through January 2024, the 1% Club is joining forces with nationally recognized content creators and educators to expand into the world of stock markets and tax planning. They launched a program called “Tax Planning Strategy” with the help of renowned chartered accountant and lawyer Rishita Motwani. The program is designed to simplify understanding of tax laws, help people plan their taxes wisely, and maximize their tax savings.
award
- 2022: Indian Cultural Brand Ambassador Award
Sharan Hegde poses with Indian Cultural Brand Ambassador Award
- 2022: Financial Influencer of the Year Award
Sharan Hegde poses with Financial Influencer of the Year Awards
Facts/Trivia
- He follows a non-vegetarian diet.
Sharan Hegde’s Instagram post about his eating habits
- In an interview, he said that he didn’t start using Instagram until he was 22 years old (in 2018). His first post on the platform was photos from a trip to Europe. He used to laugh at his friends and sister on social media, arguing that the apps had no real use.
- Even though Sharan is a millennial, he didn’t use Instagram much in the beginning. But his sister suggested he start posting videos there and linking them to YouTube. Seeing how big the audience on Instagram was, he started making videos specifically for the platform. In an interview, he talked about how his sister helps him create video content. He said in the interview,
My sister also learns from lifestyle and fashion influencers and experiments with our content. She tried to increase the views of her stories, as people generally prefer to swipe up or download directly from stories with financial content. For any influencer trying to monetize their content, knowing how many clicks or downloads a brand is getting from my stories is crucial. “
- Sharan got into mutual funds after watching YouTube videos of financial experts like CA Rachana Ranade and various brands. Later, he opened an account with Zerodha and started his investment journey.
- When he first became interested in finance, he spent a lot of time reading and watching different materials to understand the basics. As time went on, he began to read more books to gain a better grasp of the subject. When he started making money, he also learned about taxation independently rather than hiring a chartered accountant. He noticed that when he talked to others about these financial ideas, they were surprised and found it difficult to understand personal finance. This inspired him to start producing finance-related content.
- In 2022, his channel Finance with Sharan was awarded the Golden Play Button by YouTube.
Sharan Hegde poses with the YouTube Golden Button
- In 2022, he got the opportunity to speak at IIMB.
Sharan Hegde speaks at IIMB
- In 2024, he appeared on the cover of Social Ketchup magazine.
Sharan Hegde on the cover of Social Ketchup magazine
- He likes to try various adventure sports.
Sharon Hedge tries scuba diving
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education