The Great Switch
Understanding yourself, and having the courage to change course when necessary
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A common question I often get asked is “Why are you pursuing a career in Product Management?” This question is justifiable! On LinkedIn, my past experience showcases professional software engineering experience, leadership efforts with national Computer Science education nonprofits, GitHub projects, etc.
It wasn’t an overnight decision. In fact, I thought I wanted to become a Software Engineer since high school. I later realized what I truly loved: building products through understanding others.
In my very first newsletter article, you will learn about the importance of knowing yourself in order to help you create the career you love.
Origins
In 7th grade, my mother signed me up for a Code.org bootcamp. I fell in love with the art of coding because it felt like writing a piece of poetry. So I self-taught myself programming on Codecademy since then. Coding video games, websites, data visualizations etc. became the normal on weekends in high school.
When I got to college, I slowly realized how little I understand about the world of Computer Science. This motivated me to learn at a greater velocity, despite struggling at first (I remember getting 4/50 on my first midterm!)
I was fortunate to intern twice at a Big 5 bank, and realized first-hand the complexities that software engineering entailed. You need to constantly learn company specific frameworks, push lines of code building a foreign tool, and ultimately code something someone else told you to do. I, personally, don’t operate that way, but I was afraid to admit that.
I saw myself transport away from my childhood computer desk programming a role-playing video game and into millions of lines deep inside the depths of legacy codebases. No longer did I build what I loved. Ultimately, I felt unhappy and couldn’t understand why. I needed change, but didn’t know where to start.
The Power of the Internet
The summer of my last software engineering internship in college marked the beginning of something new. I remember stumbling upon a YouTube video that showed an Asian woman sharing her career journey in tech. She worked at a tech company as a product manager. What is a product manager?? I googled the job title, and found uncanny resemblances to my experiences as former Executive Director of my mental health nonprofit, Magnify Wellness.
Magnifying Change
To be great as a Product Manager, you need to have the ability to understand people and translate concepts across different functions at the company. Being curious about how technology works is an awesome bonus. At Magnify Wellness, I did just that. Essentially, I performed a need analysis on 200+ youth ages 15-19 on the state of their mental health amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the anonymous survey, nearly half of respondents felt an increased sense of dread and worry, but simultaneously had no idea where to find support.
TDLR I built the Magnify Wellness mobile app by watching YouTube tutorials on React Native and then subsequently assembled an incredible team to create free initiatives that “magnify” affordable, quality emotional support. As our team grew to 80+ volunteers across the globe, I learned very fast that the mind of a typical developer works very differently than my design and business team members. Unlike programming, this job of translating product requirements and concepts to different team members felt intellectually stimulating rather than draining.
Overall, I serendipitously realized that I enjoy the Why and What of technology rather than How.
Point of Inflection
Noticing the contrast of my energy levels and emotions between being a software engineer and leading Magnify Wellness compelled me to learn even more about the field of Product Management. I took a couple informative LinkedIn Learning courses with my 6 month free trial of premium (thank goodness for student discounts) and made a decision. The cost of me despising my future career is way worse than taking the risk of trying a whole new career path I’m not familiar with. Fast forward to Summer 2023, I completed a life-changing Product Management internship at a startup!
Honestly, I wish I could tell my past self that taking this risk of saying no to software engineering and saying yes to new experiences was worth it.
If you feel like you resonate with the art of a Product Manager just like me, I highly encourage you to check out the resources below. But, if you are unsure, check out this diagram:
How to discover your passion
I still love to code, but I decided I would rather work at an intersection of fields (UX, business, & tech) than work with only one piece of the puzzle. Now, this is NOT meant to discourage someone to enter the software engineering profession. Rather, I want readers to make conscious career decisions by first understanding the basic principle of knowing yourself.
Knowing yourself means noticing when you feel energized, and taking action towards optimizing for those opportunities. I took note of how different I felt with Magnify Wellness versus professional software engineering. Being honest about my strengths felt scary because I had no idea what the future looked like, but self-honesty might save you in the future. This great switch enabled me to love my career.
Here are some actionable steps to help you find a career you love, if you feel lost:
List what volunteering jobs/internships/research positions you participated in. What were some common threads (responsibilities and emotions you felt)? Take note, and reflect on what you personally desire to feel in a given job function.
I personally wanted to feel like I had ownership over a project. Product Management established that emotion for me.
Schedule coffee chats with people in other fields that you might be interested in
But how do I know what fields I’m interested in if I don’t have any experience? Simple. Watch YouTube videos, browse forums, etc. on real people working in the job to see if anything they say resonates with you!
Talk to trusted mentors or advisors who personally know your strengths. Sometimes, we don’t know our own limitations and strengths and need others to help us.
Best resources to get started on your PM journey
Landing an APM role guide from real PM’s
Breaking into PM webinar, a personalized simple guide on what a PM really does and how to become one
Make sure to follow me on LinkedIn to keep up with even more career hacks!
This is so helpful as someone transitioning from cs to pm as well. Thank you for providing the resources too!! Really appreciate how much you give back to others in the industry💌💌