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Update: Yesterday was my last working day at @getlokalapp . What a rollercoaster ride it has been!
A
on my journey.
A
on my journey.
2/ I joined Lokal when it had less than 100 downloads and today it has close to 5M downloads. Having almost zero knowledge of building an android app, somehow @Janilokal and @vipulc_ trusted me to be their first employee.
3/ From not knowing what onboarding meant, to building news, ads and jobs products. From not knowing how to look at data to learning how to write SQL queries as a side project to building the analytics team. I had years worth of learning in a few months.
4/ We were just 4 guys working from a cramped co-working. Burning the midnight oil. Pulling night outs almost every Saturday night to meet the weekly release deadline. I don't think there was any night when we were not the last folks working in that coworking. Fun times!
5/ We had a super agile team. For months, we made releases which were decided on Saturday and released on next Friday. I was the PM and the UI/UX designer. Hence getting approval took no time. 
From there to having a quarterly roadmap, we have come a long way!
From there to having a quarterly roadmap, we have come a long way!
6/ We would randomly come up with ideas and execute them within hours. I remember when Atal Bihariji died, we made a release within 2 hours. That inventory is still used today and is even generating revenue for us now.
7/ I was the first UI/UX Designer, the first PM, the first one to start marketing, sales and data analysis. Where else would one get to do all these than in an early-stage startup? If you are looking for a steep learning curve, I highly recommend joining an early-stage startup!
8/ I consider myself lucky enough to have the opportunity to build the product and design team. It's such a satisfying feeling when you know you could help people grow in their career. I would feel proud whenever anyone gave a compliment to my team members.
9/ My first talk in Blr was by Garen on NBU. The next time I attended a design conf was a year later when I was a part of the panel discussing NBU. And this week, @kanikareads gave a talk on culture & design. Honestly, I felt proud of listening to her than my panel discussion.
10/ Over the past 2.5 years, I have committed a lot of mistakes. Made releases with a bug that affected 40% users, made a release which increased the team's load rather than decreasing it and a few more errors. But there are days you win and there are days you learn.
11/ I remember celebrating 5Kdownloads, 10K DAU and then 100K DAU. The journey wasn't easy, but worth every bit of it.
It was easier to crack 100K DAU than 10K DAU. 0â 1 is tougher than 1â 10.
It was easier to crack 100K DAU than 10K DAU. 0â 1 is tougher than 1â 10.
12/ After a point the user count becomes a number. But when you hear stories of how your product is impacting users' life, you understand you are not building for the numbers. You are building for the people.
13/ People from a remote village in Guntur sell vegetables based on the prices mentioned in your app. Thousands of unemployed youth found jobs through your product. A small farmer in Tamil Nadu uses your app to sell his harvest during the lockdown.
14/A lost boy is found in Karimnagar within hours because 1000s of people shared the news from your app. So many roads have been fixed because of citizen journalism. People facilitate your team members when they go for user research.
15/ You call a power user for research and Karimnagar's ACP invites you for discussing the app. Stories like these push you harder. Numbers will be chased, but how much you affect people's lives gives you satisfaction about your work.
16/ Today when I said, Lokal is downloaded by 5M people, it means it created an impact on at least 5M lives, however small that impact may be.
17/ If everything is so rosy then why did I quit?
Because I was running a marathon at a sprint's pace. I need a break now.
Because I was running a marathon at a sprint's pace. I need a break now.
18/ I wish Jani and Vipul all the best! I envy their grit. Losing is not an option for them. And that strengthens my belief that Lokal will be huge. Jani and Vipul will pull off any challenge. Cannot find a better co-founder pair!
19/ What's next?
à€à€żà€Čà„à€à€!
Read, write, learn, unlearn, experiment with product ideas, explore design in detail, watch movies and most importantly learn how to relax.
If you want to talk about product, design, philosophy, cinema, music or life in general, let's grab a chai!
à€à€żà€Čà„à€à€!
Read, write, learn, unlearn, experiment with product ideas, explore design in detail, watch movies and most importantly learn how to relax.
If you want to talk about product, design, philosophy, cinema, music or life in general, let's grab a chai!
