Hi, I’m Soundarya Balasubramani a.k.a Pooja 💫
By title, I’m an author, course creator, consultant, and ex-product manager at Salesforce.
By nature, I’m a curious person with a playful heart and an imaginative mind.
Why curious maverick? I came across the word maverick for the first time when I was 16. I thought, That’s a cool word! and chose to name my blog Curious Maverick. Little did I know that I would grow into the title as if it were my second name. Now, calling myself a maverick gives me the courage to break out of the mold. It gives me the strength to be independent. Also, did I mention it’s a cool word?
By the way, this website is my baby. Thank you for showering my baby with your attention.
Now, now, now
Below is a list of current top-of-mind projects & musings. Most of them.
Write & publish my second book, and do this entire process in public.
Launch my course on mindful planning, and earn a stable source of $$ from it.
Get my O1B Outstanding Visa & gain creative freedom as an immigrant.
Nurture my relationships: grow my inner circle & organize events in my community.
Nurture my hobbies: rockclimbing, singing & playing the 
, and fusion dancing.
Nurture myself: get 8 hours of sleep, meditate, & read every day.
My mission statements
These are my north stars guiding me through life. They are subject to change, just as stars do in the night sky.
Become one of the best non-fiction writers of my generation.
Build communities & products centered around lifelong learning.
Help immigrants gain creative autonomy & freedom.
Give back most of what I have to solve the problems of today.
Live a life of balance.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re looking for a quick answer: then I’ll just say that I’m a writer, consultant, and course creator.
Willing to spend an extra minute? Great!
The world loves labels. The moment we hear someone is an engineer or designer or lawyer, we have an interpretation of what that means in our minds. Suddenly, that person goes from a stranger to someone boxed in our minds. I understand the need for labels. It reduces cognitive overload. But, I don’t want that to limit me (or anyone). We all have a thousand dimensions to ourselves, and I’d rather slowly show mine to a stranger than let them box me into one. So in conclusion, what do I do? I spend my days mostly writing out my thoughts, talking to interesting people, brainstorming systems to set up, and engaging in my hobbies.
Short answer: Because the answer to the question, What do I want my legacy to be? had nothing to do with Salesforce or what I did there.
Long answer: Please check the answer under Rarely Asked Questions for “Why did you not quit Salesforce sooner?”
I’ve written a comprehensive guide talking about how you can prepare and ace your product management interview. Plus, it’s got some fun visuals! Check it out.
You’ve got this — go kickass!
I published a book, Admitted, back in 2020 which is the only all-in-one guide in the market aimed at helping study abroad aspirants like you. Nothing I say here will remotely equal the value you will get from reading the book. So check it out and get your copy today!
I hope you get into your dream university 😀
A little bit of talent, a lot of luck, and good timing.
My book, Admitted, was never supposed to be a book. I began working on a 10-page PDF for study abroad aspirants with my junior from undergrad, Saikishore Raju. As we began working on the guide, we realized the need for and lack of a comprehensive guide in the market for study abroad aspirants. We thought, why don’t we add a few more topics in here?
With time, the book simply grew and took a life of its own. The illustration below is a great depiction of how it went from a shack to a skyscraper.
If you’re interested in reading the full story of what happened, check out this short book I published in 2021.
You can always email me at hi@curiousmaverick.com. I try my best to respond to all emails, but sadly cannot guarantee it.
This site is my second brain — so there’s a good change your question is already answered in an article / guide on here! Use the “search bar” on the top right to search for the keywords.
Rarely Asked Questions
My involuntary, System 1 response to this question: Because it helps me think clearly, and I’m good at it.
My thoughtful, System 2 response to this question: Hmm. I began writing in 2013 because I was reading a lot about physics and astronomy, and wanted to express my thoughts somewhere. Perhaps someone told me, “Hey, why don’t you start a blog?” I don’t know. My memory is hazy. In fact, my first ever article published was on the Higgs-Boson particle. I even had a joke in there somewhere that goes: “A Higgs-Boson walks into a church. The priest shouts, “We don’t allow Higgs bosons in here!” The Higgs-Boson responds, “But without me, how can you have mass?”” Lol. I was funnier back then.
Since then, the topics I wrote about have traversed many domains. Astronomy. Physics. Technology. Journalistic writing. Career. Education. Psychology. Neuroscience. Productivity.
My writing reflects my interest closely. So you can say I’ve been quite the dilettante the past decade.
Now I write because… I don’t know how else to live my life. Writing is a form of catharsis and expression for me. In a crude sense, writing is like pooping. Just like my body needs to poop, so does my mind. Otherwise, I feel stuck, mentally. Also, I’ve recognized over the years that I have talent for writing, and want to hone that as much as I can to create a positive impact =)
Some sample text.
Because… I’m an immigrant.
More so, I’m an immigrant who likes to dip her hands in too much stuff.
I wanted to quit Salesforce more than 1.5 years before I actually quit (in October 2021). But, I couldn’t. As an immigrant on an H1B visa, I can only stay in the United States if I’m sponsored by an employer. It felt like I was being shackled, creatively. It would take me a long essay to describe the mental struggles I went through trying to come to terms with this.
Let’s just say that I spent 2020 grappling with this reality, and working on my first book.
Thankfully, I went from feeling shackled to approaching this as a problem and asking myself, “How do I quit and still legally stay in the United States?”
I pursued a few routes, and one of them worked.
Soon, I will publish a longer piece on exactly what happened, and how other immigrants can do what I did.
Whenever I hear people talking about productivity, they have one of two sentiments:
- They hate the idea and think productivity has turned people into robots who are never really present.
- They love the idea and are always in search of new techniques to make themselves more productive.
Usually, there are more people who belong to the former than the latter.
The productivity-haters are not wrong in some of their claims. But, they sadly are missing the point. So let me share a few highlights,
- Productivity simply means producing the desired outcome. It does not just apply to work. If you go to a party to socialize and spend the entire time thinking about your assignment, that’s an unproductive party!
- I think of productivity in all aspects of my life, not just the one people call “work.” I think of it from the point of view of three spheres: me and my personal growth, my people and relationships, and my work and contribution.
- To me, being productive is = being intentional with how I spend my time and focusing on the task at hand.
- Looking for ways to increase productivity simply means looking for ways to spend time on what matters most, and doing it efficiently.
So, the people who hate the idea of productivity are sadly the ones missing out on ways to increase meaning and joy.
I wrote an in-depth guide explaining a new planning framework I built in 2021, called The Life Garden, along with guidance on how to implement it on Notion. Check it out! 🙂
Great question!
Please email me at hi@curiousmaverick.com with the subject “An Interesting Idea: .” 🙂
Let’s start a conversation
Timeline of my life (25 years)
Columbia University, NY (First Day)
She is crying uncontrollably in the dingy basement of an apartment in New York, alone. She begins grad school.
Columbia University, NY
She receives an internship offer from Salesforce. She’s growing faster than she expected in her new life. She has a small but close circle of friends.
Columbia University, NY (Last Day)
She finishes grad school. She entered thinking she’ll be a consultant. She graduated as a Product Manager. She thinks, “I’m set.”
Bellevue, Washington
9 months at Salesforce and she can’t wait to leave. She tried hard to become a freelance journalist. She feels lost, lacks clarity.
San Francisco, California
She lands in San Francisco. She uprooted and upended her life from Bellevue, WA based on a hunch. She doesn’t know anyone in San Francisco. She starts over.
Admitted
She publishes her first book. This is the pinnacle of her writing career. Mentally, she’s never been more depressed.
San Francisco, California
She moves into a community house in San Francisco. This changes her life for the next 10 months, for the better.
More Time Everyday
She launches her first course after months of hard-work. Mentally, she’s doing so much better.
Oakland, California
She quits her job at Salesforce. She moves into a new community house. But before she could embrace the new life, work for her second cohort begins.
Happyness 🙂
The second cohort of her course ends. She finally enters her new life. She’s the happiest she’s ever been 🙂
