A Learning a Day

I shared this post on LinkedIn yesterday. It was a collection of hard-won lessons I’ve written about over the years – it felt fitting to share both the update and the compilation here.

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After nearly a decade, yesterday was my last day at LinkedIn.

I’m grateful for the ride – for the chance to work on a problem I’d been chasing since college, for every member whose feedback kept us grounded especially when they were going through the pain of job seeking, and for the many colleagues who left a mark that goes well beyond work.

A few hard-won lessons I’ll be taking with me:
(1) Problem managers, not product managers. When you’re attempting to build product, everything is downstream of deeply understanding the user’s acute pain.

(2) Throwing an LLM at a problem typically just creates new problems. You have to deeply understand how the system should behave for every user problem – and then measure it and iterate. Everyone says it’s about the evals. It’s not. It’s about the eval loop.

(3) “Shit umbrella*.” The role you play as a leader that the team will appreciate the most is blocking the noise and overhead and ensuring the team has absolute clarity on what they can deprioritize and ignore. (*H/T: Kaitlin for coining a term that will live rent-free in my head)

(4) Unexpected work best friends. People will surprise you if you let them. One of my closest friendships came from someone I’d had a significant disagreement with. When in doubt, have the uncomfortable conversation and leave room for people to change. Including yourself.

(5) Hard day calls. Of all the gifts a job can give you, the biggest might be this – a few people you can call at the end of a hard day and just work through problems together.

For what’s next on all things Careers, do follow Patrick, Emily, and Hari.

I’ll share more about what’s next in a few weeks. For now, just grateful.

PS: No more feature introduction videos from me – you’re welcome. :-)

Aditya Agarwal, former Dropbox CTO and early engineer at Facebook, shared his emotions after using Claude Code over a weekend in a thoughtful post.

Every engineer who has spent time with Claude Code since the release of Opus 4.5 has come to the same conclusion – it doesn’t make sense for humans to write code after this. And it is also abundantly clear that we’re going to be creativity constrained vs. execution constrained.

It got me thinking about human computers – the kind you see in movies like Hidden Figures. These were people who used to do the job of computers. They would compute challenging problems by hand.

Computers completely replaced them. And the idea that there would be a human playing the role of a computer is now quaint.

The same is going to happen to many aspects of/tasks within knowledge work – starting with software engineering. So, a software engineer in 2028 will be doing things very differently from a software engineer in 2018. This is clear.

LLMs do many tasks very well and they’re getting better at longer and more complex tasks at a rapid clip.

It might take time for many to accept this reality.

But it is real.

And we’re going to be better off attempting to figure out how jobs, organizations and careers should evolve, and what comes next.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 16

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Olympic National Park is a fascinating place. It contains three distinct ecosystems: temperate rainforest, a beautiful rugged coastline, and glaciated mountains. There are very few places in the world that combine all three.

The rainforests within the park collectively form the largest temperate rainforest in the world, with annual rainfall of almost 12 feet – one of the highest in the US.

Crescent Lake is stunning thanks to just how clear it is.

There are beautiful old sulfuric hot springs. The forests in which you hike feel like they could easily be 1,000 years old. The trees really feel like old growth trees and they transport you instantly to a different ecosystem.

There’s so much water flowing around the park. And every spot is just picturesque.

The National Park property at Kalaloch Lodge along the coast is stunning in its simplicity, look, and prime location. The tide pools at the beaches are lovely too.

The park truly transports you because of just how lush and pretty the landscape is.

Extremely beautiful. And special.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 15

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Death Valley National Park is the largest national park outside of Alaska, covering 5,270 square miles. It is larger than many states in the US.

This is a fascinating place. It recorded the highest temperature ever on earth. Badwater Basin is the lowest point in North America at 282 feet below sea level. And it receives less rainfall than the Sahara Desert. This was Badwater Basin after some unexpected rain.

We spent two days in the park. And it was like being on another planet.

The valley was one of the filming locations for Tatooine in Star Wars. That made the place a bit extra special for us.

Throughout our time in the park, we felt like we were in an otherworldly location. It was hard to spot anything that is living. And that adds to the out-of-this-world experience.

The National Park Lodge at Furnace Creek is the center point for most of the activities around the area. It almost feels like a throwback in the middle of the desert.

It isn’t candidly the kind of place we would want to keep going back to. We love trees. And the sheer absence of them made us miss them more (and we went here right after 2 days at Joshua Tree National Park).

But it’s definitely one of those places that is worth visiting in a lifetime. Just to appreciate how unique it is.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 14

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The trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its name aren’t trees at all. They’re a species of the yucca plant, similar to orchids.

They’re fascinating because they grow just 1 to 3 inches per year and have a lifespan of nearly 150 years. And they give the park its unique look.

The look like cousins of cacti – who seem to glow in the morning sunrise.

Most of the park is designated wilderness. And the stony terrain makes it a really fun place for casual rock climbing. Our kids had an absolute blast.

This was definitely a park where we missed trees. But it made for a unique and fascinating desert experience.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 13

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The Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve is the largest and oldest national park in Maharashtra, covering 625 sq km. It is home to one of India’s most thriving tiger populations with over 90 tigers – one of the highest densities in India.

The name “Tadoba” comes from a local tribal god “Taru.” Legend holds that Taru was a village chief who was killed in an encounter with a tiger. He was deified, and a shrine dedicated to him now exists beneath a large tree on the banks of Tadoba Lake. “Andhari” refers to the Andhari River that meanders through the forest.

Beyond tigers, the reserve is home to Indian leopards, sloth bears, gaur, wild dogs, marsh crocodiles, Indian pythons, and around 280 species of birds. Summer temperatures can reach 47°C (117°F). And it was once used as hunting grounds before being declared a national park in 1955.

We were fortunate to see a collection of birds and animals like…

A painted stork

A peacock

A crocodile

A sloth bear

A “changeable Hawk Eagle”

However, after a first tiger safari at the beautiful Nagarhole National Park where we didn’t see a tiger, we were hopeful our second attempt at Tadoba would be more successful.

And we hit the jackpot in our first attempt.

A female tiger named Chanda spent an entire hour with us just hanging out. She relaxed, yawned, ate some herbs because she wasn’t feeling well. Walked through the foliage. Marked her territory. Chuffed. Hung out near a water body.

One of the most epic experiences. One that we’ll never forget.

We also got to see her father, Chhota Matka – also called CM. He was just recovering from a deadly fight with another male tiger who had challenged his territory and severely injured him. So he spent his time sunbathing and relaxing by a stream. He’s massive and a famous tiger in these parts.

We didn’t catch any other glimpses of this majestic cat after that first attempt. But that hour of sighting remained the highlight.

Having had the opportunity now to see lions in the wild as well, you just realize that tigers – both in terms of their size and their incredible fur – are truly the most charismatic of mega cats.

It was an unforgettable experience through this iconic forest reserve.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 12

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Nagarhole National Park – also known as “Kabini” – sits on the banks of the Kabini River, with Bandipur National Park on the opposite side. It makes for a picturesque setting – dense forest, water, and one of the highest tiger concentrations in India.

We stayed at the Jungle Lodge, maintained by the park authorities and transformed from its British hunting-era origins. A fitting evolution. The food felt home cooked and delicious — a small thing that added to the warmth of the stay.

As this was pre-DSLR, I don’t have too many photos and none that do justice to the beauty of the forest.

The rangers who took us on safari had experience across different parks in the country. They could speak to both the vegetation and the animals and birds with equal ease. That kind of knowledge makes a difference.

Safaris are controlled and run through the Jungle Lodge, with fewer than 20 vehicles going out each slot. No overcrowding, no convoy of jeeps jostling for position. It made the whole experience feel more magical – just the forest and the possibility of what you might see.

Despite four attempts, we didn’t spot a tiger. Sometimes these things don’t go your way. But my biggest memory is looking through the mist on both days, hoping to catch sight of a big cat.

And then, for a few seconds on our last morning, a leopard crossed the road and disappeared into the bushes.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 11

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Yosemite National Park covers about 1,169 square miles. The incredible Yosemite Valley is just 1% of the entire national park. And yet it’s where most people – including me – have spent most of our time.

There are so many beautiful aspects to Yosemite National Park. Yosemite contains 20% of all of California’s plant species. The Giant Sequoias in the park are the biggest living things on the planet. You get completely transported to a different ecosystem when you walk amongst the Giant Sequoias at Mariposa Grove.

Then you make it to the stunning Yosemite Valley. It is home to Yosemite Falls, North America’s tallest waterfall, cascading 2,425 feet.

The incredible El Capitan is a breathtaking wall of granite. It takes on a whole different meaning after you see Alex Honnold climb it without ropes in “Free Solo.”

There is the Bridalveil falls – misty and magical.

There are beautiful viewpoints like Glacier Point from where you appreciate the beauty of “Half Dome.”

You can go over the other side to Tuolumne Meadows and experience a beautiful meadow high up that provides water for most of Central California.

Once you get out of the valley, you do occasionally see wildlife. This mama bear was out for a feed with her babies.

Yosemite has been a land of wonders for us. We first went there about 5 years ago and do our best to visit every year. A pilgrimage of sorts that reminds us of how awe-inspiring nature can be.

Yosemite Valley is the perfect place for bikes – with almost 12 miles of bike trails. The massive granite mountains all around you, the beautiful trees, the streams, the gentle Merced River with many spots around it to hang out and dip your toes in its beautiful water, and the stunning Mirror Lake in early spring and summer are all highlights.

Then there are beautiful hikes. The Mist Trail up to Vernal Falls, for example. And obviously much longer hikes like Half Dome and the rest of the Sierra Nevada.

The most stunning part about Yosemite, especially in the spring and summer, is the flow of water. If you visit anytime between April and June, when the waterfalls are running in full flow, it is without question one of the most beautiful places in the world. This is what it can looks like from “Tunnel View” on a sunny day in early summer.

It is one of my favorite places in the world. And I think it took me a few years to write this post simply because I wasn’t sure I’d find the words to do it justice.

It is no wonder that it was the first land protected by the US government. It is an incredibly special place and deserving of that honor.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 10

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Manuel Antonio National Park in Costa Rica is the smallest national park in the country – about 1,685 acres, roughly twice the size of Central Park in New York.

The most beautiful part of the national park are the beaches. They form a beautiful shape when seen from the sky. The UV rays and sun are particularly strong, so generous amounts of sunscreen are a must.

But the beaches themselves are pristine with beautiful warm waters and a joy to spend time in.

From a wildlife perspective, there’s a guided walk that lasts about 45 minutes. We saw a few insects, lizards, monkeys, crabs, and got a nice backward view of a sloth fast asleep.

However, it was, in all honesty, a bit underwhelming. We saw more animals outside the national park than within. For example, we saw the following during a mangrove boat ride.

A pygmy kingfisher

A basilisk or “Jesus Christ” lizard

A young Boa

A spectacled cayman

So, there’s a lot to take in and around Manuel Antonio National Park – just not in the National Park itself.

#OurWorldIsAwesome – Edition 9

I’ve been behind on this series featuring natural beauty (usually focused on National Parks) and I thought I’d catch up on the backlog over the next two weeks.

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Singalila National Park is a small but stunning national park that straddles the border of India and Nepal. We went on a week-long trek covering 80kms along this national park about 14 years ago. And it remains a very memorable experience.

This one, unlike many others, I don’t have many photos of because the photos from the phone 15 years ago was low res. They looked like this.

There are three things that I remember from this trek.

The first is that it’s one of the rare places on earth where you’re surrounded by some of the world’s tallest peaks. Including Mount Everest and Mount Kanchenjunga. Mount Kanchenjunga famously looks like a sleeping Buddha.

And, in theory, you’re meant to see something like this (H/T: Tripadvisor photos from a similar trek).

However, we were mostly out of luck. Because all we saw was a lot of mist. The conditions were foggy almost throughout.

But the trekking itself had an ethereal feel. We were in the mountains with beautiful vegetation around us. We’d stop for food at the various villages and simple night stops.

The rainfall was torrential when it poured. When it first rained, everybody who thought they’d be okay with rain jackets just got completely drenched. We had to wrap ourselves in plastic cover-alls after that to escape the torrential rain and dry our shoes at night.

And the third and final memory was from our longest trek day. We’d walked 12-14 kms before stopping for lunch. We were famished – only to realize we were in such a remote area that lunch was just boiled potatoes with a salt dip.

It still ranks among the most satisfying meals of my life. And it is a story we keep retelling in conversations with our kids – when you’re hungry – really hungry, anything edible tastes delicious.

It was a rare experience to spend our time in the Himalayas for a week – one with nature. It brings fond memories to this day.