I was 21 when I wanted to become a product manager. I was a software engineer in Chennai, India, working for a company that manufactured HVAC systems. As a fresh college graduate, I wanted to understand how what I was working on was making a difference to the world! One…

Loosely based on facts from a “friend’s” professional life — Sheela was dazzled by Brotonic, a Silicon Valley company that promised to change the world. Brotonic didn’t specifically say “..for the better”. Just, change the world. Its employees used the word “excited” a lot, especially in the context of office perks like free beer, the fußball (fooseball) tables, and the…

One of them is illustrated — After reading several books on writing, these are the ones that fundamentally improved my writing. 1. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott This is a classic, and is one of the funniest books I’ve read on the subject of writing. It is warm, big-hearted, practical, and entirely original in terms of the content and style. Her insights…

and the Curse of Knowledge bias. — A couple of years ago, I interviewed for a product manager position at a Silicon Valley company. I didn’t get the job, but it is till date one of the best PM interviews I have attended. My interviewer asked me this deceptively simple question, and it shifted my perspective on…

I’ve always been an avid reader, believing in the transformative power of books. Yet, as I journeyed through countless pages, I found my life largely unchanged. This conundrum led me to a profound realization, one that Maria Popova beautifully encapsulates: “Information without transformation is merely trivia.” It’s the application of…

a meditation you can practice — America tells you to build your brand. To plan. To control everything. Your finances, your body, your life. Even your morning coffee has to be at the precise temperature, and have the right dairy content. Hollywood movies glorify this type of hyper-control. Hyper-individualism. There are people who charge thousands of…

Perspectives from two of my favorite authors — The author Pico Iyer, in his book, Autumn Light, makes this incredible observation “We’re so convinced we’re moving forwards, when all I seem to do is go round and round with the seasons, certainly no wiser, and often only more sure of how much I cannot know. …

Because we get caught in a rut and forget our dreams — I am a product manager in a San Francisco based tech company. I dream up ideal user experiences for my customers. However, I have forgotten what my ideal world would be like. …

Things that product management books won’t tell you — I have been a product manager in large Silicon Valley tech companies for the last 6 years, and I now lead of team of product managers. As someone who has gone through the grind of failure, bad performance reviews, reading PM books, listening to podcasts, talking to PMs, and thinking…