Work #00: We are here, finally!
I wonder where we may go next...
“ Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans.” – John Lennon.
In the summer of 2003, when the market was still recovering from the 2002 downturn, amongst various anxious computer engineering graduates queuing at a call centre I was also waiting to be called for an interview. My turn came, after a few introductory questions the interviewer asked if I would leave the company upon finding a better job? I told my interviewer that indeed I would. I couldn’t have told a lie convincingly anyway. I got the job. For the next four months I was helping various people in North America fix their desktops or internet problems. Sometimes I received accolades, sometimes abuse but at the end of each month I also got a reasonable amount of salary. Four months later, I quit. That job was a means to an end, a way to somehow get to Bangalore later in the year, and build a career. Whatever a career meant at the time! My near time goal was the ability to earn my own bread, and save some for a rainy day. The rest wasn’t on the radar at all. The most pressing desire was to quit the call centre and never look back.
I still remember my last day when I said goodbyes. A colleague who usually sat at the far end of our aisle, who had been there for a number of years, warned me that I was making a mistake. He was confident that I would be back in no time and answer calls with them. I did not go back. Since then, I have also not really said goodbyes while leaving a workplace. I suppose, sometimes tiny experiences leave a lasting impression.
2004 began on a positive note whereby I started my software testing journey. First few years were incredibly rewarding as I embraced and enjoyed the multi-national-corp culture & perks in Bangalore (and also Hyderabad during 2006-2007).
Over the next few years up until 2009, I chased opportunities to up-skill, earn more, and grow as a software professional but did not have a clear goal. I took myopic actions to support a hobby that I rarely took seriously - you may call it writing, blogging, or a creative expression. I spoke at worldwide conferences, sometimes got paid to do so too. As I continued to hustle, I considered pursuing an MBA only to realise that I had no way to finance my education abroad, or a desire to score an enviable GMAT, or CAT. In 2010, I moved to the UK. Despite having an unconditional offer from a business school in Milan, I continued my software testing career only to rage quit a tech enterprise in 2015. By now, I had crossed a threshold of desperation to be a product manager. This wasn’t an impulsive decision, and yet, it felt such due to an emotional turmoil that left me conflicted.
For the second time, I followed my heart. What followed was no way easy and I do not recommend it. I went through some personal chaos, lost all my savings as I hadn’t really planned how I was going to support a career switch to product management! After nine months of gruesome number of rejections, in March 2016, I started as a Head of QA at a much lower salary. But, as luck would have it, this was the place where I would get the opportunity to transition into a product role in less than a year in 2017. I had finally found a job that I took complete accountability for, committed myself to, and prioritised above everything else in life. For the next five years, I turned into a sponge learning at each opportunity that I got. I interviewed almost on a monthly basis to learn how different tech companies did product management. To master the art of product management, I read books, completed numerous courses whilst also observing how other strong product managers & leaders achieved results or failed. One thing was clear, product management isn’t just a job (am sure to some it still is just a job). It is a commitment that you make as an individual, and as a professional. You are challenged in the ways you may not have imagined. You are forced to change, become humble, push yours and others boundaries, challenge stakeholders that you may intimidate or feel intimidated by. It is fun and often intense but nowhere nearly as difficult as a cardiac surgeon’s job is!
All that effort started to pay off due to which last summer I joined a product team where I was highly valued. I had achieved a thirty five percent salary raise in less than a year. I did my best work, received a top rating, and won accolades from the C-suite. It was a tough but incredibly rewarding job where I learned something new on a regular basis. I built long lasting friendships, and met collaborators who shared my curiosity. And yet, on the 25th of May 2023, along with numerous others - this opportunity ceased to exist for me.
Today, nearly two decades later since I spoke to that interviewer in Noida in 2003, I stare at a career filled with mistakes, struggles, learnings, and decisions that I sometimes reminisce over, and over, only to sit there thinking - I will eventually have a story to tell. It will all make sense in the end. This isn’t the end yet, not just yet. And that’s what brings me here!
Why this, why now?
Whilst my commitment to product management was unconditional, I ignored everything that kept me grounded in difficult times - writing. Since the pandemic hit, I pushed myself stringently with an aim to hit a personal metric of a six figure salary. Running after a $ driven metric can take you only so far…and that’s what happened in my case. I am proud of achieving a personal milestone but I hit a hard realisation that no matter how strong of a product person I might be, at the end of the day I could still be a name or a number for a business. I also learned various other lessons.
This is why I am here today, making time for something that I ignored, and refused to prioritise for a long long long time.
I ruthlessly de-prioritised my own needs.
What might I write about, and who may read?
I used to believe that if I write authentically, the reader(s) will read, and connect too. I still believe that but with a tint of nervousness as I have never written about my career, or product management on a public forum such as this before. Even if one individual who is embarking on a new journey in their career, be it in product management or otherwise, finds value - my objective is achieved.
I expect to write on different subjects as I make progress and gain experience. Readers’ feedback may also influence what I choose to write about.
And…
If you have stayed with me so far, I would love for you to subscribe - no strings or dollars attached. On odd days, I may share which book I read last. On a good day you may discover my dog’s goofy picture. On a bad day, you may hear how I miss days when the internet ran on a dial-up, and phones had no cameras or recommended popular searches.
See you on the other side.
