Embracing a Different Kind of ??? Sunrise: My Break from the Usual.

After nearly 2- weeks of digital detox, I am now opening my laptop to share some interesting updates with y'all!

Think of a professional journey as a scenic ??? and long road trip. Constantly accelerating, changing lanes, but rarely hitting the brakes just to enjoy the view. Career inertia is tough to overcome, and that decisive moment to press pause often slips by - it happened to me multiple times. I have been in motion for 20 years, leaving a job for another "job." I am sure many of you can relate to that feeling. Was it all about just another job? No! And you can see in my career progression that I have often been breaking the pattern.

I have shifted my specialty in design and role many times; after being a manager for years at Brainvisa, I decided to go back closer to the craft ?? and opted to play an IC role at Infosys and bounced back as a design leader with a much deeper and more empathetic point of view.

I systematically moved from service-focused organizations like Infosys to more product-oriented organizations like Persistent Systems, Cisco, and eventually Microsoft. After 4 years of wide-ranging experience at Microsoft, I had the opportunity to work for some other amazing teams and companies, but they were too similar to what I was already doing at Microsoft. So, I listened to my gut and opted for the most interesting opportunity of all - Freshworks, a much nimbler and fiery ?? organization with a startup culture that was a stark contrast to my experience at Microsoft.

So, you see, I have been making shifts, but they all were confined to a certain range. Nothing as big as what it did at the start of my career - I came from a small town and studied in non-English mediums, and most likely, I was bound to opt for some standard job popular at that time - like a bank employee or a teacher in school. By chance, I got exposed to the world of computers ?? and despite all adversity, I never let it vanish from my sight; I did side hustles along with my college studies so I could join computer classes, I took any and every job related to computers - be it designing a wedding card, assembling a computer on demand, teaching computer basics to someone, learned programming and networking and went deeper into design to ensure that I escaped the fate of the standard job of that time. It worked, and here I am...

Now again, after 20 wonderful years on this career highway, I've finally decided to park the car ?? and step out to enjoy the vista for some time before I warm the engine again to drive on a different path. November marked the end of my incredible journey at Freshworks. These past weeks: no emails ??, no meetings ??, no deadlines ?. Just family ??????, friends ??, music ??, books ??, the majestic mountains of Mahabaleshwar, and the amazing weather of Pune. Truth be told, mountains > meetings :)

A Heartfelt Thank You to Freshworks! ??

Joining Freshworks was a conscious choice. A design-first culture, a fast-paced environment, and proximity to decision-making and business were what I sought, and boy, did Freshworks deliver on that - 110%!

I'm walking away richer in experience, skills, and memories. A huge shoutout to everyone who's been a part of this journey.

To my fantastic design team: You've truly been incredible! Your constant trust and solid support have enabled me to lead at my best. Our time together has been filled with mutual learning ??, growth ??, and plenty of achievements ??. I'm extremely proud of each one of you. Always remember, each of you is a rockstar in your own special way – never stop shining! What will I miss the most about Freshworks? Without a doubt, it's all of you ?? – the best design team out there.

Now, a special mention goes to my peers in design, product management, engineering, marketing, and customer success teams. Thank you for the seamless collaboration ?? and for all the great work we've shipped together.

And, of course, to the leaders who've been my guiding stars ?:

Immense gratitude to Girish Mathrubootham and Prakash Ramamurthy for steering this ship ??. Girish has brought his bold vision for Indian SaaS to life on the world stage, known today as Freshworks, and Prakash's seasoned leadership has fueled Freshworks' impressive journey forward. Big thanks to both of you!

Huge shoutout to Srivatsan Venkatesan , the leader I had the privilege of working closely with. I see Sri as a Leader 360 – a product expert ??, a people person ??, a master communicator ???, and a source of infectious energy ?. No task was ever boring or insignificant with Sri involved in it. It was a partnership that I’ll cherish forever. I've learned a tremendous amount working alongside him. Thanks a ton, Sri!

FAQ: What's Next?

The burning question, right? For now, I'm still soaking up the serenity of the mountains ??? and the charm of unhurried days.

I will also utilize this time and mind-space to zero in on what's next and what excites me the most. There might be many paths, but I know I must choose one. Is it going to be easy; hell no! Would I have doubts - absolutely. But frankly, I would be worried if the path was easy - that's one thing I know I'm not looking for.

In the interim, I plan to engage more on LinkedIn and ??, sharing insights and contributing to the design community that has given me so much.

So, here's to more music ??, mountains ??, and making memories with friends and family!

Cheers! ??

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