Ashima Atul

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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I am excited to share the latest blog, co-authored by myself, Junhwi Kim and Vyas Sekar, detailing how we managed to successfully localized and improved LLM by combining Fine-Tuning and RAG. https://lnkd.in/gKDkgGPq

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𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝟭𝟬𝘅 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝟭,𝟬𝟬𝟬𝘅 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹. Naval Ravikant (via Erik Jorgenson) sums it up perfectly: "𝘈 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘱, 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘧 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘥𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘭 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵, 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦." It’s a reminder that leverage matters more than brute force. The right idea, the right execution, and the right person can redefine what’s possible. Do you agree that inputs don’t match outputs in software? Have you ever met or worked with a “10x engineer”?

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The fast way to impress your boss, or get fired fast: use these words in your emails or meetings :-) : h/t T.K. Rengarajan https://lnkd.in/gJWMSG6Z

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"Your main job is to make your product win." I think this should apply to any product that your company makes. I also like what he says following this statement about what is NOT your main job. I will summarize here: "Your main job is not to make your manager happy, it is not to make execs happy." Also, note, this main job doesn't only apply to PMs, but also to senior Engineering Managers, Tech Leads, and Designers. #makeyourproductwin #leadership

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I just logged out of my Elastic Path laptop for the last time, just over a half decade since Grant Deken and I founded Unstack (Acquired by Elastic Path). This is truly the end of an era for me, having defined a big part of my identity for the entirety of the 2020s and a full 10% of my life. This New Year will mark a new beginning for me in so many ways. It was thrilling to venture into entrepreneurship again, this time with a great friend by my side through the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Unstack was a labor of love. With a small, but highly talented and dedicated team (all of whom I now consider dear friends), we poured our hearts and souls into the product, and we made something pretty special. Building Unstack (now Elastic Path Studio) has defined this decade for me thus far. As 2024 comes to an end, I find a strange sense of melancholic, yet sanguine closure knowing that I'm leaving my baby behind, but optimistically looking forward to the next big thing. I assume this is what it feels like to send your kid off to college! I want to thank everyone who came on the journey with us and made it possible to build our dream. To all our investors, especially Kunal Tandon, Stew Bradley, George Kassabgi, you have been true partners and great supporters. I wish any startup founders the opportunity to work with investors of your caliber. Thank you for believing in our vision. Riccardo La Rosa, Harry Chemko, Jamus Driscoll, and Bryan House, thank you for believing in Grant & me, the Unstack product, and our team, and for the opportunity to assimilate it into the Elastic Path ecosystem. I think EP has an incredible suite of products, an exceptional team, and a bright future. I'm rooting for you all, and I know 2025 will be a big year for EP! And finally, thanks to the entire team who helped us build Unstack/Studio over the past half decade, as well as the broader product team at Elastic Path, whom I've had the opportunity to work alongside for the last couple years. It's too long of a list to mention everyone here, but you all know who you are, and if I haven't already, I hope to speak to you each personally to thank you. I appreciate all the time we had together, and I hope our paths cross again some day! Thanks for reading. Here's to a Happy New Year, and an exceptional 2025! 💥 That's all for now - stay tuned for updates!

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GenZ won't accept "orders" without a clear "why". They want to make decisions by themselves and have a sense of achievement. Leading by frameworks is the way! Here are the 5 essential components every framework should have: 1. Clear "Why" Every decision has an objective to achieve. If the decision isn’t aiming in that direction, it is probably the wrong call. 2. Constraints Encourage out-of-the-box thinking while providing necessary limits to guide your team. 3. Accessible Data Sources Docs, metrics, spreadsheets, anything that can help them finding information. 4. Examples Share past decisions that followed the framework to help your team navigate new situations 5. Feedback Channel No framework is perfect! Everything requires refinement. Provide a way for feedback. #DecisionMaking #Empowerment #LeadershipSkills #LeadingGenZ

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🌟 From IC to Leader - Learning to Empower, Not Pressure 🌟 Moving from an individual contributor (IC) role to managing a team has been a bigger transition than I anticipated. As an IC, I thrived on solving problems quickly and setting high standards. But as a manager, I realized this approach was creating pressure on my team to work to the same expectations, sometimes without the same resources or experiences. Here’s how I’m shifting my approach to lead more effectively: 1. Involving the Team in Goal-Setting: Rather than setting targets based on my personal past performance, I find ways for my team to establish goals. This allows each person to feel ownership and stay motivated without unnecessary pressure. 2. Celebrating Progress, Not Perfection: I’ve started to recognize progress and small wins along the way, not just the final outcomes. Acknowledging milestones in long-term projects shows my team that growth is a journey, not a race to an end point. 3. Supporting, Not Solving: When a team member encounters a challenge, instead of offering a solution immediately, I ask questions like, “What steps would you take here?” or “How would you solve this?” It empowers them to think critically and builds their confidence. Other areas where small changes can bring big impact. 1. Modeling Work-Life Balance: I’m activaley working on demonstrating healthy boundaries—like stepping away from emails after hours or taking necessary breaks. Setting this example reassures the team that they’re not expected to be “always on” to be successful. 2. Delegating Ownership, Not Just Tasks: I’ve started assigning entire projects based on individual strengths, rather than just single tasks. Full ownership makes each member feel trusted and responsible for the outcome, while I focus on guiding and supporting the overall strategy. Each of these changes has been valuable in helping me transition from being a problem-solver to an enabler. Leadership is about empowering others, and I’m grateful for the lessons learned along the way. How do you manage such challenges on your team? #Leadership #EmpoweringTeams #MiddleManagement #GrowthMindset #Teamwork #LinkedInCommunity

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🍜Anybody up for some ramen? I am excited to share that I am back in the garage, building again (it’s actually a house in the Berkeley Hills). We are taking the wraps off of Supercog AI, a new startup focused on solving Application Integration using LLM powered agents. My co-founder in this new venture is a great friend of mine (and a former co-founder partner), Alex Osborne. Alex and I have worked around the application integration space for a long time, and we are unrealistically excited about applying the GenAI stack to this problem. Not many people relish the task to get some bits to move from system A to system B. But it’s a critical job to be done, and that’s led to a lot of brittle scripts, a myriad of inflexible “no code” tools, and a lot of hand crafted SQL. But the power of the Large Language Model, trained on a huge corpus of information, offers a remarkable tool to solve this problem. The LLM you use today already knows the APIs of hundreds of popular systems. It knows the SQL dialects of every major database. It understands the semantics and data schemas of many popular SaaS systems. It understands much of the specific domain in which your business operates. I like to call the AI revolution “the last platform shift”. That may turn out to be hyperbole, but I definitely believe we are in the very early stages of seeing what this new stack can enable. I know we are hardly the first folks to claim that “amazing stuff is coming!”. But this is why Alex and I have decided to focus on a real and hard problem. If we can prove that LLMs can power a new way to solve this problem, it will be the first successful *new* approach in 15 years.. We will have much more to share about this new platform soon. In the meantime, if you’re interested in getting a peek - or even better if you have application or data integration tasks that you would like some help with - please reach out because we want to help. #genai #startups #backinthegarage

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What can we learn from Apple calculator and other announcements? Product and Marketing matters - a well designed and built product, demoed in the proper way is like magic. https://lnkd.in/gHbqxc26  https://lnkd.in/gieg3btq https://lnkd.in/g8JDkTku There is no new AI.  Handwriting recognition has been good and around for a while. This a creative use of it. We have also been able to have formulas and smart inference for a long time. It never gets old to mix the right fundamentals in computer science, product and marketing to build great products.

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A successful systems design and delivery strategy begins by assuming that change is likely the only constant. Be adaptable, or fail.

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AI Appreciation Day is here and I am thrilled to share the excitement it brings us as we reflect on the transformative impact AI has on our daily lives and work. AI for us, is not just a buzzword—it's the heartbeat of innovation, driving us to new heights and redefining possibilities. At Smytten Pulse, we leverage AI to understand our consumers better, personalize experiences, and deliver insights that fuel informed decisions. What excites me most about AI is its ability to learn and evolve. It’s like having a team member that never stops growing! With every interaction and data point, our AI systems become smarter, more intuitive, and more aligned with our goals. This dynamic capability empowers us to stay ahead of trends and continuously improve our offerings. 🚀 One of the most rewarding aspects of my role is witnessing the synergy between our talented engineers and AI. The collaboration fosters creativity, problem-solving, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. Together, we are not just building technology; we are shaping the future. On this AI Appreciation Day, I want to extend my gratitude to our team at Smytten Pulse and the incredible AI community. Let’s continue to push boundaries, embrace challenges, and unlock the full potential of AI. Here’s to a future where AI and human ingenuity go hand in hand! 🙌 https://pulse.smytten.com/ Smytten Pulse #AIAppreciationDay #AIInnovation #EngineeringExcellence #SmyttenPulse #FutureForward

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𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 📈 Simply tracking makes you want to improve. “𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥.” — William Thomson Kelvin, Physicist and Mathematician 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀: Consistent review of key indicators at regular cadences isn’t just routine—it’s essential. Keep reminding your team how metrics tie back to business outcomes. Relevance and consistency breed success. 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Tracking your work is great, but the why behind it is even more important. Connect your daily actions to their broader impact. Your efforts mean more when they’re tied to real outcomes. Remember, beyond business metrics, there’s always something else to measure for improvement—how often you ship, product performance, bug counts, and quality. But don’t pick metrics just to stroke your ego. Good metrics always have counter-metrics to check balance. Avoid easy wins that don’t truly move the needle. 💪 True impact isn’t just checking boxes—it’s the most satisfying achievement for you and your team. And nothing boosts morale like shared success. 🎯 #TeamSuccess

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A powerful team is never just a collection of individuals. There is extraordinary value in connections and relationships that are built over time. But how do you quantify these nuanced and dynamic traits? Here are some ideas: ✨ DORA Metrics: While primarily leveraged for assessing software delivery performance, DORA Metrics can offer insights into team efficiency and collaboration. Metrics like deployment frequency and lead time for changes are indirect indicators of how well a team operates together. 🌟 Net Promoter Score (NPS): Going beyond customer satisfaction, internally, NPS can be adapted to gauge team members' satisfaction and willingness to recommend their team to others. It captures engagement, morale, and overall sentiment within the team. ♻️ Feedback loops: How often is the team giving feedback to others? Tracking data points like these over time, and especially showing how changing the team impacts the data can tell a compelling story. It might give a clear voice to a nuanced understanding of the impact of changing the team when there are concerns for doing so. As a leader what metrics do you track to help you understand how change impacts a team?

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In my opinion, GPT-4o advancement technology will redefine the interview process with its live, real-time capabilities especially with latency enhancement where interviews conducted effortlessly, providing instant insights and intelligent responses. This is gonna increase efficiency, accuracy, and a personalized experience for both candidates and interviewers, reshaping the hiring process as we know it

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Crisis doesn’t create leaders—𝗶𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 When everything’s on fire, the best leaders don’t just fix the problem—they manage the panic. My years as an engineer and manager at Amazon taught me a thing or two (or a million?) about how to stay calm during high severity incidents. Here’s how to keep your cool when it feels like things are on fire: 1️⃣ 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿: Ground decisions in data and resist the urge to react emotionally. Emotional reactions add fuel to the fire—facts will guide you out. 2️⃣ 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 & 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆: In times of crisis, silence breeds confusion. Keep your team updated with short, actionable updates to maintain clarity. Include timelines, customer impact, and next steps. 3️⃣ 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗥𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗹𝘆: Not everything can be solved at once. Identify the biggest impact areas and tackle them first. Write out a list of questions you need to answer, prioritize based on impact, and start from the top. 4️⃣ 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲: Don’t hesitate to engage and bring in additional support. Trust your team to handle key pieces of the incident. High-pressure moments are when autonomy shines. Leading through high-severity incidents isn't just about technical expertise—it's about maintaining composure under pressure. Calm leadership inspires trust, clarity, and results. Stay calm, lead strong, and watch your team follow suit. 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: How do you think about leading thru stressful times? Tell me in the comments. ⤵ ---- ♻️ Repost and share these leadership tips ➕ Follow me, Ashley VanderWel, for more 📲 Book an anonymous coaching session

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We had an opportunity to rework one of the key foundational components at Patreon, a distributed task engine. It powers various product features, including email, ML, and moderation. Here’s how we tackled it. https://lnkd.in/guvTS4Nu

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