Akanksha Niraliya Garg

I had read about the Zeigarnik effect and its application in products. However, it only recently dawned on me that it very well explains the calm and joy writing posts on my blog has given me over the years. Many professional and personal gurus have advocated writing to bust stress and drive clarity. This psychological explanation helps reinforce it. So, I wrote a blog post about it. What else? Check out link in the comments.

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Guidewire's Umang Jain and Yoganand Ghati recently collaborated on a Medium blog post, "Organizing Work for Simplicity and Improved Collaboration," to discuss the on-premise-to-cloud journey that Guidewire is making and how program management in its cloud platform engineering team has been instrumental in enabling teams and stakeholders to deliver consistently and predictably. #GuidewireCloud #cloudcomputing #insurance #innovation #insuranceinnovation #insurtech #insurancetechnology #propertyandcasualtyinsurance #development #engineering #software

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Just finished recording a great podcast with Ankit Jain on his #HangerDX podcast. We chatted a lot about engineering metrics, their value, and how you should/shouldn't use them to drive change across your organization. It should be released soon, so make sure to check it out! #softwareengineeringinsights #engineeringmetrics #developerexperience

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From Astrologer's Whispers to Real Connections: Reclaiming Belonging in a Lonely Age Have you ever consulted an astrologer, their predictions swirling in your head, only to feel empty when your day takes a different turn? The emptiness might not be about the details themselves, but about seeking outside approval for your happiness. This same feeling can creep in even when you achieve success. Remember climbing the career ladder, landing that dream apartment, only to find yourself lost in a quiet emptiness? In India's bustling cities, it's a familiar, painful emotion. We're surrounded by people, yet there's a little loneliness at the edges of our lives. Thinking back to Mrs. Deshmukh, your friendly neighbour with the legendary Til Gur Barfi's, who brought the whole neighbourhood together with tea and friendly chats. Those evenings of shared stories and laughter, a web woven by simple human connection, feel like a distant memory in our super-connected yet broken world. We chase success with thumbs glued to screens, building online bridges that leave us feeling more alone than ever. The pressure to create a perfect online self-drowns out the whispers of our own desires. But here's the real deal, that shiny designation and fancy car can't fill the hole left by genuine connection. There's hope, though! We can rewrite this story. Let's ditch the small talk and chase deeper connections. Share your fears and worries, break free from feeling isolated in this sea of ambition. Remember the warmth of family gatherings, the joy of shared childhood games? Revive those small traditions. Pick up the phone for a real heart-to-heart conversation rather than What's Apping. Every act of connection, no matter how ordinary, how small, builds a more satisfying life. Imagine hearing back from an old friend, reliving an old laugh, and being surrounded by people who truly see us, where we belong. Isn't that what life is all about? Together, one conversation, one meal, and one act of kindness at a time, we can tear down the walls of loneliness. We can rewrite the narrative of modern society, where connection becomes the foundation of a life well lived. It's not too late, or is it? #HumanConnections #BelongingMatters #OvercomeLoneliness #RealConversations #MeaningfulRelationships #CommunityOverConnectivity #AuthenticLiving #SocialWellbeing #RedefiningSuccess #TraditionsRewoven #FightIsolation #VulnerableAndReal #KindnessRevolution #SmallActsBigImpact #ReconnectingHumanity #IndianSociety #UrbanLoneliness #DigitalDetox #QualityOverQuantity #ConnectionCures Photo by Tim Marshall on Unsplash

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Today, while discussing my current job search with my wife, we couldn't help but ponder whether or not all of these job postings are legit and how many companies are planning to hire after the election? My thoughts are companies are waiting to see how the election turns out and the rest of this is just fodder to collect resumes and candidates until after the election is completed. I'd like your feedback if youre willing to share.

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🌟Standing Firm on the Solid Ground of Trust — A Woman’s Perspective in Tech Leadership🌟 As a woman in tech leadership, I've navigated my fair share of challenges and triumphs. But one constant that has guided me through this journey is the Leadership Law of Solid Ground, which emphasizes the fundamental importance of trust and integrity in leadership. 🧱Building Trust Through Transparency: In the tech world, where innovation moves rapidly and decisions can have far-reaching implications, transparency is not just a policy—it's a practice. It means being open about processes, successes, and failures. By embracing transparency, I've found that teams feel more empowered, involved, and secure—reaffirming that their leader is someone who values honesty and open communication. Maintaining Integrity Amidst Pressure: Tech often demands quick decisions and actions. Amidst this pressure, the temptation to cut corners can be high. However, maintaining integrity means standing firm on your values, even when it’s challenging. This commitment not only sets a standard for your team but also builds a resilient foundation that can weather any storm. 🪔The Role of Vulnerability: Leadership involves strength, but it also requires vulnerability. Admitting when you don't have all the answers or acknowledging your mistakes are powerful ways to demonstrate to your team that you are human and approachable. This vulnerability helps in building a deeper trust and encourages a culture where learning from errors is seen as a stepping stone to greatness. Empowering Others: Trust is a two-way street. By trusting my team's expertise and decisions, I empower them, which in turn strengthens their trust in my leadership. This mutual trust enhances our collaboration and creativity, crucial for innovation in tech. 🎬Conclusion: To my fellow leaders, remember that our position is as much a privilege as it is a responsibility. Trust is the solid ground upon which effective leadership is built, and once it is established, it allows not just for individual success, but for collective achievement. I’d love to hear how the Law of Solid Ground has impacted your leadership journey. Please share your experiences and let’s continue to support each other in our paths to effective leadership. #lawofsolidground #servantleadership #womenoftech

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Holding my book for the first time is always a special experience – seeing the fruit of hard work and perseverance and holding it in my hand. Being the seventh book this time, it is not a new experience though, but very special indeed. Unlike my other six books which I have co-authored primarily from my professional experience domain, the topic of this new book "Smart Home Automation with IoT" is something that culminated from my childhood hobby of making electronic circuits many years back and more recently from my personal hobby of home automation and IoT. When I reinitiated my childhood hobby of electronics into home automation and IoT mostly during the COVID lockdown, I never thought of writing a book on it. But over time having designed a robust and scalable architecture for home automation and with open-source software and cheap and common hardware and using it very successfully in my home and for few others whom I helped to setup, I thought of somehow documenting this so that it can help others who are interested on this subject and want to enable smart home as DIY. Incidentally, BPB publications contacted me with the proposal of writing a book on Raspberry Pi which I expanded a bit to include home automation with IoT, where Raspberry Pi plays an important role along with the other common relays, sensors and micro-controllers. I have written this book considering the wide variety of readers who may want to learn and implement these scenarios but may not have prior experience or knowledge on this subject. The concepts are explained from the basics with step-by-step guidance on how to implement the scenarios for smart home automation with ready-to-refer circuit diagrams and code that can be directly reused. The topics covered in this book range from automatic and remote switch control to turn on or off electrical appliances, collecting environmental data through sensors and automating actions, AI-based gesture and human face detection to control appliances as well as voice chatbot-based control of home devices. I believe this book will be useful for engineering students as well as professionals and IoT enthusiasts who are interested in this subject and want to DIY on these topics. Detail ToC of the book: https://lnkd.in/gb_swjCQ For those who are interested it is available at BPB website with 15% discount (use code BPBDIPANKAR at checkout): From India: https://lnkd.in/gRdq8hAX Outside India: https://lnkd.in/gdcAYKv6 Also available at Amazon India with 10% discount: https://lnkd.in/gxUcDJFb Outside India: https://lnkd.in/gAiZDxwr #iot #smarthome #homeautomation #raspberrypi #arduino #nodemcu #sensors #esp32 #iotdiy #electronicsdiy #ai #homeautomationai #newbook

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I have known Avni for almost ten years and I am super glad (and not surprised) that her customer-focused approach remains unchanged. We were fortunate to have Avni Savant speak to our teams at G2 India. The session was inspirational, and we learned a lot from her. Avni has a wealth of experience, and we are grateful for the valuable insights she shared with us. During the session brilliantly moderated by Aravind Raj, we discussed several topics and gained a few key takeaways: ⚡ Creating an environment that supports a "fail fast" mindset fosters innovation, and consistent leadership support is essential. Interestingly, this is something that Roger Valade aligns with strongly, and we are just in the middle of an innovation sprint. :) 🧠 We explored areas where AI can be implemented to solve product use cases. Avni stressed that we don't need to reinvent the wheel; instead, we should learn from companies that have successfully adopted AI. The most doable areas for AI implementation are to improve developer productivity and summarize insights and discoveries. 📊 We discussed how squad-specific goals (OKRs) can be integrated with the company's larger goals. For example, we can analyze if improving our product's onboarding experience impacts the adoption rate, and understand if the release was successful. Avni emphasized the importance of using data to make feature iterations and prioritization decisions. 💬 We discussed the significance of product development teams being close to the customers and leveraging customer interviews, and feedback from pre-sales, sales, and support teams. 💗 Lastly, Avni highlighted the importance of self-drivenness and having a clear point of view in one's career. She noted that this proactive approach is valued and appreciated. We are truly grateful to Avni for her time and lessons!

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Take self-reflection to the next level: 1) Journal daily 2) Keep up this habit for several years 3) Upload multiple years of entries to NotebookLM 4) Ask for a summary, key themes, major moments, etc. I've been journaling for 1,808 days using Day One Journal. Journaling is nothing short of remarkable when you stack up multiple months and years. I did upload a couple years of information to NotebookLM and it was honestly so fun to explore those years with an AI agent who could immediately recall the information. Powerful way to reflect!

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Bomb on Mr. Narayana Murthy's thoughts on 70 hours work/week and work life balance!!  While I believe it's essential to prioritize health and happiness, I also feel that passionate individuals often don't subscribe to the typical concept of "work-life balance." For them, passion drives their work, and they’re willing to put in the hours because it brings them greater satisfaction and joy. That sense of fulfillment is their version of work-life balance. This passion could be anything—from excelling at their job, building their own startup, or pursuing a hobby like sports, movies, or simply enjoying life to the fullest. So why should we limit ourselves to a rigid concept of balance? Mr. Narayana Murthy's perspective likely resonates with many of us—it’s just that he framed it in terms of "work" rather than focusing on "passion," which is ultimately what drives us to work as much as we do.

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To start, I cannot thank Chaitanya Bangur and Microsoft enough for this wonderful opportunity to attend the Grace Hopper Celebration meticulously organized by AnitaB.org twice in a row.    As a mid-career professional, you might wonder what am I going to get out of the largest Women in Tech conference in the world?    I went in with a two-fold goal, mindful networking and giving back.    There is a reason I call out mindful alongside networking. My goal wasn't to come out of the conference with n random LinkedIn connections with folks I don't know and that don't know me. I came out of the conference with barely ~15ish connections. However, if you ask me about these beautiful people I met, I do have a story to tell with most of them. Be it the mindset shift conversations with Namrata, to product domain expertise chats with Yasmin or bonding over the similarities in Asian culture with Miami and so many more, I left feeling energized and inspired by the journeys of these unconventional women I met.    Giving back, is something which is extremely personal and close to my heart and it stems from the approaches and mindsets I wish, I would have known when I graduated. From hosting brain dates to give students a safe space to share anything and everything they are facing in their career journey's to spending an hour in a wrong line(in my defence, that's most of us at GHC 😅) chatting with Aditee and Aishwrya about breaking free from the herd mentality and staying authentic to our inner voice, gave me the satisfaction of trying to bring in some calm in the chaos and learn so much more from this fresh talent coming into the workforce.    To sum it all, it's never a one size fit's all approach at GHC, and everyone is looking to get different things out of the conference. If you plan on attending, try and have your crystal clear "why's" in place to not be overwhelmed by all the incredible experiences at GHC! #GHC #GHC24 #GraceHopperCelebration24 #WomenInTech

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I rarely post about negative experiences, but my recent interaction with Wakefit has been beyond frustrating. Here’s what happened: I placed an order with Wakefit on November 30th and requested a delayed delivery for December 15th since I was traveling internationally. Wakefit assured me via email that this would be accommodated. However, despite my clear communication and multiple follow-ups through chats, emails, and calls over the past week, the estimated delivery date was changed to January 7, 2025! The customer care team has been ineffective and seems disconnected from the logistics team. Their responses are generic, with repeated promises of escalation and 24–48 hour resolutions—none of which have materialized. This leaves me wondering: Am I supposed to sleep on the floor until January 7th? It’s deeply disappointing to see a brand I trusted fail so miserably in delivering on their promises. I expected better from Wakefit, especially given the numerous glowing recommendations I’ve seen. Customers shouldn’t have to chase a company for basic service, let alone while on vacation. If you’re considering purchasing from Wakefit, think twice. Hoping Wakefit addresses this issue seriously and improves their processes to avoid such experiences for others. #Wakefit #FrustratedCustomer #ServiceMatters Wakefit Support Wakefit

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Came to realization that we should start using UI as a TEACHING instrument first and foremost, as customers are not the domain experts - companies/projects are! What can the UI teach / convey? - Methodologies - Best known methods - Vocabulary - Process and systems integration and improvement models to name a few…

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Joshua has once again delivered amazing value to the TPM Community in the form of his 2nd edition Technical Program Management Handbook. (He also launched the amazing cross-industry-cutting TPM Summit event with a few other equally awesome co-leads: Josie Gillan, Zhanat Abylkassym, plus Josh's wife as an honorary TPM.) But let's look back at the book. Here's a glimpse of how his book delivers the WOW factor: First off, it is very comprehensive: from career paths to hard skills to soft skills and beyond. It truly is a handbook, ie a guide to doing the job really well. My full-length review will focus on the things that make his book unique among other TPM books: 1️⃣ A pragmatic deconstruction of Emotional Intelligence as a TPM 2️⃣ A section dedicated to TPM's Driving Clarity. This really sets an amazing context for the book. 3️⃣ System Design and Architecture. He really puts the T in TPM. 4️⃣ Using Generative AI as a TPM. Understanding this will help keep your skills relevant. TLDR: Should you get this book? Only if you're a TPM wanting to get better at TPM-ing. So...yes. But I'm excited to be writing a full review of his book in an upcoming newsletter post (🔗 link to newsletter in comments). Josh’s TPM Handbook: https://a.co/d/hgNzMNP

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I recently read an article about Intuit's CEO addressing layoffs: https://lnkd.in/d83WN6yc 💡 It highlights a crucial point: staying relevant through continuous learning and skill development. Here are my key takeaways: * Learn, learn, learn: Keep expanding your knowledge through courses, reading, and curiosity. * Invest in High-Demand Skills: Focus on skills like AI, data analytics, and digital marketing. * Adaptability and Flexibility: Be open to change and willing to take on new challenges. * Focus on Personal Development: Develop soft skills like leadership and communication. As leaders, let's encourage our teams to prioritize growth and create an environment where continuous improvement is the norm. This will help us navigate future challenges and seize new opportunities. #LifelongLearning #SkillDevelopment #ProfessionalGrowth #Leadership #Adaptability #learning #AI

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Pleasantly surprised by the relevance of traditionally engineering-focused topics at AssetMark's Wealth Management Executive Forum 2024! Key takeaways: 1. Every organization, regardless of industry, needs a well-defined and purpose-driven data strategy, whether by partnering with the right tech company or building the expertise in-house. 2. It's increasingly important for leadership and management to have some level of engineering skills and, at the very least, a technically accurate intuitive understanding of the implications of applying Machine Learning techniques.

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Mindset180 and my dear friends, Nidhi Sharma and Michael Patrick Callahan who are great Agile coaches are heading to Los Angeles for a public class on professional communication, which is intended for managers or anyone looking to improve workplace communication. If you are interested - OR - know anyone who might be interested, please share this with them. Here's the link with all the info: https://lnkd.in/gG5qiYBj if you're going to attend, DM me for a code I can share with you. #agile #communication #agilemanagement #professionalcommunication #management

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In this week's Future Founders & Leaders Bootcamp session, I gained valuable insights into leadership, startup culture, and the importance of strategic planning. The experience was enlightening and helped me better understand the nuances of building and leading a successful team. From Subbu Rama's Session on Lean Startup Methodology, I learnt: Budgeting Essentials: Proper allocation and monitoring of funds are crucial for a startup's survival and growth. Maintaining Burn Cash: Always have a reserve of cash to sustain the business during tough times and unforeseen circumstances. No Titles in Startups: Focus on roles and responsibilities rather than titles to foster a collaborative and flexible work environment. Pivoting Quickly: Be prepared to change direction based on customer feedback and market conditions. Minimum Viable Product (MVP): Start with a basic version of your product to validate assumptions and iterate based on real-world data. Colleen A. Blake's Session was extremely informative on: Importance of HR: HR plays a vital role in creating a positive workplace culture and ensuring compliance with regulations. Team Development: Investing in team development enhances employee engagement, productivity, and retention. Onboarding Process: A well-structured onboarding process helps new hires integrate smoothly and understand the company's vision and values. Continuous Learning: Encourage continuous learning and development to keep the team updated with industry trends and skills. Conflict Resolution: Effective conflict resolution strategies are essential to maintaining a harmonious work environment. Excited to apply these principles and drive impactful change! 🚀 #Leadership #TeamDevelopment #Startup #HRSignificance #bootcamp #career #humanresources #Talent

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