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Take Calculated Risks, Not Chances

Leadership
Career Growth
Transitioning into a New Management Role
Working with Product Teams
Team Management
Managing Stress and Burnout

23 December, 2021

Sumesh Narayanan

Sumesh Narayanan

Head of Product at Thoughtexchange

Sumesh Narayanan, Head of Product at Thoughtexchange, talks about his humble beginnings while sharing his journey of staying afloat during the turning point of his life.

Hard Times in Building a Strong Career

I originate from India, where I had quite humble beginnings. However, I did not back out on taking calculated risks. After a bachelor's degree in engineering, I started working and eventually moved to the United States job. However, when I felt my career was becoming stagnant, I came back to my home country. This was one of the most calculated risks in different aspects of my career.

Clawing Your Way Into Success

As I came back to my origin, I pursued an MBA from one of the top colleges, which I believed would open new doors for me.

We did have ample campus opportunities that I could have taken, but then, I joined a startup, which had less than 1M ARR during that time. However, that step proved to be beneficial for me as I could learn about the art of product management.

The question is: how did I keep myself motivated and afloat amidst such a crisis?

I evaluated some of the worst-case scenarios and assessed whether I could handle those. Something will always drive you, and the vision of being an MBA grad to do something out of the box is always wonderful. I always had the vision of what I wanted to be while dreaming about it every now and then pushed me to do better things.

The key is to make sure that the struggles that I went through did not look like struggles, rather looking at the bright side is the basis of it.

Believe in Yourself

  • Hard work and calculated risks are important. Push your boundaries and try to find out something new to get done with.

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