My Building in Public Newsletter March 2021

This is my personal building in public newsletter where I share my highlights, lessons and things I look forward to each month.

My Building in Public Newsletter March 2021

My Building in Public Newsletter March 2021

February 2021 started as one of the most stressful times of my life since I’d gone through a personal trauma at the end of January. I was still reeling from the loss and pain, and the community I built in January was my anchor. I am extremely grateful for the people in my On Deck No Code Fellowship since they became the rock for me that I didn’t know I needed, and I held on to them. After the first week, it became easy, and February turned out to be one of the best months of my life. I shipped many projects, connected with many new people, and built stronger relationships. Here are a few highlights from my month.

✨ Highlights

Cupid On Deck

A random 3 am idea became a community project. I teamed up with Whit and Ash from BadUnicorn.vc to build a Valentine’s Day messenger for our On Deck community called Cupid On Deck. It was a bubble app, complete with nautical humor and sappy templates. It was a big hit, and it was so much fun building it and launching it in a very tight deadline of two days. It’s not a public project, but you can see the demo here:

The Notionette

This is a magazine that’s completely hosted on Notion. 11 women from all over the world worked on this project, and we are all proud of this. It is a quarterly offering and includes beautifully designed, diverse pieces from women with rich backgrounds and experiences. We launched the first issue on Valentine’s.

Global Build Weekend

For the first time in its history, On Deck organized a hackathon-esque event called the Global Build Weekend that brought together members from all Fellowships, including alumni, who worked together in teams to ship a project in a weekend. It was one of the most exciting, delightful group experiences I’ve ever been a part of. It was also so well organized and managed. I keep thinking about how lucky I am to be a part of this vibrant community. I can’t wait for the next Global Build Weekend.

Applying in Public

So much is my love for On Deck that I applied for a job there even before my Fellowship got done. And what’s more, I applied for the job in public, in the spirit of building in public. It was one of the most stressful experiences of my life to put up the tweet announcing my intention to apply. But I am glad I did, and I will do it all over again. I even documented my process so others might do it too.

Clubhouse Appearances

I participated in my first few Clubhouse rooms as a speaker this month. The most exciting one was the event I did with KP and Robbie Crabtree, also a former lawyer and currently the Program Director of the Performative Speaking Fellowship at On Deck. We spoke about building, shipping, and pitching projects.

Winning the Best Pitch Award

I participated in the Global Build Weekend alone and built and shipped a legal-tech project called Nyaaya over the weekend. Interestingly, I was going through my interviews and written assignments for the On Deck job during the same weekend. I don’t make it easy for myself to reduce stress… But I know I perform my best under extreme pressure. I am grateful for the experience. I was selected for the next rounds of interviews. I also went to the finals of the Global Build Weekend and won the Best Pitch Award there.

🎓 Lessons

Collaboration is Exciting When You Find Your Tribe

An exciting lesson I learned about myself is just how much I love working with people who share similar ambitions and interests as me. I have struggled to find a tribe so far in my life, but I believe I am finally home. This part of my life, my community, the environment, everything is now helping me bring out the best in myself.

Twitter Growth

I created my Twitter account in 2010 but didn’t begin using it properly until late 2020, a full decade later. I didn’t know how to use the platform, and I struggled to make it work initially. But I think I am finally learning to be comfortable using it and being myself. I’m grateful to have found my tribe too, which helps follow and engage with interesting content consistently.

Putting Yourself Out There is Stressful But Fruitful

My apply-in-public journey reminded me that putting myself out there and being honest and devoted to what I truly want always yields serendipitous results. Whether it was finding my tribe, being part of the future of education, or landing my dream job, it all happened because of being honest and transparent and making myself show up every single day.

Jumping on the Clubhouse Bandwagon

I realized that I like Clubhouse. I can’t say I completely understand how it is meant to be used. But I can see why it is an excellent tool for disseminating ideas in the 2020s.

Standing Up is a Choice

I started the month with personal trauma and multiple things going wrong in my personal life. I chose to stand up and confront each of them, and while it took a toll on me, I realized that when life tries to push you down, refusing to fall was a choice. I didn't let my personal situation affect my work, shipped multiple projects, sent my newsletter each week, released four brand new Notion templates, and contributed to the Fellowship at On Deck. I learned that I will always have a choice to remain standing after the storm.

Adjusting to PST timings

I continued to invert my days and work in PST-friendly timings this month. My body seems to have adjusted well, and I feel much better with the new schedule, but I still need to get used to this better. I didn’t think that I would ever change my lifestyle so drastically, but I learned that I could.

🚀 Looking Forward

Capstone at ODNC

March is the last month at the On Deck No Code Fellowship, and we will spend the last few weeks focusing on our capstone projects. I look forward to the last few days and also launching my capstone project.

100DaysofNoCode Demo

My friend and ODNC Fellow Max Haining runs 100DaysofNoCode, a community that fosters no-code education and learning. He chose me as one of the presenters for Demo Day, an event where no-code enthusiasts present their projects to a panel of judges. I’m excited about it and look forward to the event and meeting new people there.

Starting a New Job

I GOT THE JOB AT ON DECK! I’m excited to start working soon and get to know the whole team better. I have so many ideas, and I can’t wait to begin working with the team.

Clubhouse

I am also participating as a speaker in a few Clubhouse and podcast events this month. I am excited about interacting with more people about my journey so far and learn from everyone there.

Haircut

My hair’s grown really long again, and I think I’m going to get it cut this month. I look forward to having shorter hair that does not take 2 hours to wash and dry each time.

Brownie recovery

One of the stray dogs I take care of seems to have developed a skin condition and has grown thinner. I ordered medicines for her, and I’m administering skin treatment and feeding her slightly more than earlier. I am waiting for her full recovery this month.
Vensy Krishna

Written by

Vensy Krishna

No-code operator and educator.

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