Beyond transformation: My journey through tech, startups, art, and content creation
From early passion to tech leadership
My interest in technology sparked in early childhood. Even without access to a personal PC, I was constantly reading magazines that described the latest technological advancements. I got my first computer at the end of high school, and my journey started there. Naturally, gaming was a big part of it, but with an underpowered machine, I had to improvise, tune, and optimize—learning to swap internal components, install new operating systems, and troubleshoot issues without the internet, relying solely on trial and error and print media.
During university, I deep-dived into technology further, starting my professional journey in IT as a QA engineer in 2007. From the beginning, I was placed in lead roles, managing QA practices while closely collaborating with engineering and product teams. As projects became more complex and technology advanced rapidly, I transitioned from an individual contributor to a manager and eventually a manager of managers.
The shift from engineer to leader was smooth—being technical helped me grow teams to new heights and drive productivity. When managing large teams, including Principal-level engineers, the key to success was leading by example, understanding challenges, and fostering an environment where engineers felt challenged and motivated. The closer I worked with products and customers, the more I realized that building a product wasn’t the hard part—deciding what to build was.
Understanding customer problems, conducting user interviews and focus groups, and aligning engineering teams with real-world impact became my primary focus. When engineers understand why they build what they build, external motivation becomes unnecessary—the impact itself fuels them. This shift in mindset propelled my growth into leadership and enabled me to drive innovation across products and organizations.
Building a startup: From concept to reality
Being on the frontlines of what to build and understanding which problems are solvable in a short timeframe led me to start my own startup journey. Research, preparation, understanding product-market fit—some aspects were familiar, but others, like sales and marketing, were completely new.
This period gave me the biggest boost in experience, leadership, and execution. As a bootstrapped startup, I had to wear multiple hats, use resources efficiently, and build fast. I was fortunate to bring together incredible co-founders, and within a few weeks, we built our first Proof of Concept (PoC). Seeing technology align seamlessly into a product was exhilarating—especially when you already understand its pros and cons and can build efficiently.
Unfortunately, the war in Ukraine disrupted the project, leading to its shutdown. The key takeaway? Success requires going through every stage multiple times—experience matters. No amount of theory can replace real execution.
The artist: Finding balance through photography
Being in technology all my adult life, I needed an escape from screens. My passion became analog photography—starting with a 35mm film camera, then progressing to a 4x5 large format camera, hiking to incredible locations, developing film in the darkroom, and manually printing silver gelatin prints.
This process is deeply technical and requires immense patience and precision—qualities that also translate into engineering and leadership. Beyond the technical side, the creative process of photography taught me about storytelling, research, and presentation. Several of my photographs have been published in books, including one currently in the New York MoMA Library.
For more about my work, visit my website: https://volodymyrdemkiv.com
Ansel Adams & The intersection of art and technology
One of my inspirations is Ansel Adams, who combined technical mastery with artistic vision. His Zone System, a structured approach to exposure and development, resonates with how engineers and business leaders optimize processes—balancing precision with creativity.
A key lesson from my photography journey: Success comes from sharing your work. This realization pushed me to start writing articles, sharing my experiences, and documenting how each aspect of my life plays a crucial role in my professional career.
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Content creation & podcasting: Sharing knowledge and building community
Another creative outlet has been my podcast, where my co-host and I discuss photography and life—helping younger artists and professionals learn from our journey. The podcast, currently in Ukrainian, aims to bridge artistic and professional growth. Hopefully, advancements in GenAI translation will one day make it accessible to a larger audience.
Through podcasting, I’ve learned how conversations connect to leadership, business, and personal growth. Content creation—whether through writing, photography, or audio—allows for deeper engagement and community building, which is crucial for learning and evolving.
The core principles that drive my journey
Continuous Learning & Adaptation – Growth never stops, whether in business, fitness, or creativity. The ability to adapt and evolve is what separates those who excel from those who stagnate. In technology, staying relevant means embracing new methodologies, tools, and frameworks. In fitness, progressive overload ensures continued strength and endurance. In creativity, constant exploration and experimentation refine one's craft. Learning is not a phase; it is a lifelong commitment to improvement, and those who seek continuous growth will always find new opportunities to innovate and lead.
Discipline & Execution – The foundation for success in all areas.
Discipline is the ability to show up and put in the work, even when motivation fades. Execution is the ability to transform plans into reality, ensuring consistent progress over time. Without these two, no amount of talent, knowledge, or ambition will result in meaningful success.
In business, discipline means setting clear priorities, maintaining focus, and ensuring that every effort aligns with long-term strategic goals. Execution, on the other hand, means turning insights into action, ensuring that projects, ideas, and innovations don't remain in the conceptual phase but are built, tested, and continuously improved.
In fitness, discipline is the practice of sticking to a training regimen, prioritizing recovery, and making incremental improvements. Execution means applying progressive overload, ensuring that workouts become progressively more challenging to promote muscle growth and endurance. Without discipline, consistency falters; without execution, progress stalls.
Creativity follows similar principles. It is not enough to have a great idea; the true challenge is bringing it to life. The most successful creators aren't just the most talented but the most disciplined in their craft—continuously refining their skills, pushing past creative blocks, and consistently delivering new work. Execution in creativity means turning inspiration into projects, books, exhibitions, or content that impact an audience.
The true key to long-term success is building systems that make discipline and execution repeatable. Whether it’s an engineering team delivering high-quality software, an entrepreneur scaling a business, or an artist refining their craft, the secret is in the process, not just the outcome.
Sharing Knowledge & Building Community – Content creation isn’t just expression; it’s about making a meaningful impact and fostering connections. Sharing insights, lessons learned, and experiences helps others accelerate their own growth, avoid common pitfalls, and find new perspectives on problem-solving.
In the tech world, community-driven learning is one of the most powerful catalysts for innovation. Open-source projects, mentorship, and knowledge-sharing networks allow individuals and teams to leverage collective expertise to solve complex challenges. The same applies to content creation—whether through writing, photography, or podcasting, the more knowledge is shared, the stronger the community becomes.
Through my podcast and written content, I have seen firsthand how open conversations inspire action. Engaging with an audience creates a feedback loop of learning and refinement, where ideas evolve and grow through discussion. Sharing knowledge isn't just about teaching—it’s about building bridges between different fields, industries, and perspectives to drive continuous innovation and collaboration.
This journey—from technology leadership to startups, art, and content creation—has shaped my approach to innovation, execution, and leadership.
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