Late last year, I had recorded a podcast with Vani Kola of Kalaari Capital. We discussed many different topics – what make a good PM, decision-making frameworks, the Indian gaming market and much much more. The episode is now out. Enjoy!
Rethinking the Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
The MVP is dead. The Minimum Viable Product philosophy has become corrupted. We have misunderstood its intent and diluted its core elements over the years. What we are left with is a superficial term, often thrown around in conversations around product building, with little to no understanding of the underlying principles. Sometimes the way to…
Transitioning into Product Management
To say that I have followed an unconventional path to becoming a product manager is a little bit of an understatement. Engineering → Writing → Game Design → General Management → Product Management So one of the most frequent questions I get asked is: “how do I transition to a product management role?”. And while…
Career Choices in the Wisdom Economy
One of the most significant problems that the next generation will have to deal with is one created by extremely long life spans: People who live longer will have to work longer Staying in the same career over 60-70 years won’t be possible Many types of jobs will get wiped out Decisions made at a…
We Are Not Doing OK
Over Sunday brunch I finally admitted to a friend that I was not doing OK. And then he admitted back to me that neither was he. The most common question that friends and acquaintances have asked each other over the last 9 months has been – how are you doing? How is everything going? And…
The Unbearable Lightness of The Undoing
To say that I was stoked about The Undoing is an understatement. David E Kelley is a master storyteller whose work I have been enjoying since my teenage years (I am a sucker for a good legal drama). Nicole Kidman is on a tear when it comes to picking great TV shows and characters tailor-made…
Difficulty Curves in Games – Lessons for Product Builders
A young girl wakes up in a daze. “Where is everyone?” She walks out of her room and searches her house. Her family is missing. She can hear some noise outside. She can also smell smoke. She picks up her dada’s old wooden sword and walks out of her house. The entire village is burning….
The Fire Born
This is the second in a series of character origin stories from the Mahabharat. They never gave her a name. She was her kingdom’s princess. She was her father’s daughter. She was the colour of dusk. Panchali. Draupadi. Krishna. She was born out of a sacrificial fire. So was her brother. He knew his purpose….
The Bird Prince
This is the first in a series of character origin stories from the Mahabharat. A young prince and his father, the king, are locked up in the deepest dungeon of their own palace. They have been utterly defeated by the enemy – their kingdom in shambles. The prince’s elder sister is to be married to…
38 Lessons over 38 Years
No sudden wisdom has dawned on me. No life-altering epiphanies. Birthdays come and birthdays go. This will be just another day and the start of another year. But looking back is important. Weighing my current beliefs and recording them seemed important (especially given how this year has shaped up for the world). At 76, I…
Exit Cost in Products
A lot has been written about defensibility and moats in businesses. Strategists talk about barriers to entry (resources, patentable technology and processes, expertise, capital) in certain businesses and why it is usually difficult for new entrants to disrupt incumbents. But one of the lesser-explored areas of defensibility is building products which have a high exit…
The Product Managers of the Mahabharat
Over a meeting, someone recently asked me to describe the archetype of a product leader. While I answered the question, a broader thought stayed with me. What are the various archetypes of product managers? An archetype is a powerful storytelling device – making it easier for readers to identify and understand a concept. And PMs…