What happens when you follow all the “right steps” — study hard, land your dream tech jobs at Uber and Loom, rise into leadership — and then realize the ladder you’re climbing starts to feel like a trap? That’s exactly where my guest today, Sravanti Balaji , found herself. She had done everything “right” — earned a computer science degree, software engineer at Uber, engineering management at Loom — only to discover that the role she worked so hard for wasn’t actually the life she wanted. So she did the bravest thing: she stepped away, without a plan B. In our conversation, Sravanti shares what it felt like to walk away from a prestigious tech role, to sit in the discomfort of not knowing , and how pregnancy with twins forced her into a deeper surrender than any career pivot ever could. We talk about ambition, identity, and the strange guilt of “doing nothing” when, in fact, your body is creating two entire human beings. What followed during her post-partum period was a pivot from shipping code to whipping up mango-chai protein bars (yum!) during her kids’ 2-hour nap window under her new brand, Samsara Nutrition, an Indian-inspired healthy snack brand. Along the way she discovered that A/B testing is great for app funnels and recipes, but “move fast and break things” doesn’t quite work when the FDA is involved. Timestamps 00:00 – Introduction to Sravanti’s story 02:16 – Leaving the “gold star” tech path 05:26 – Why engineering management wasn’t the dream 08:10 – The courage to quit without a plan B 09:16 – A detour into San Francisco politics 15:27 – Pregnancy with twins and forced rest 21:14 – Redefining success through motherhood 24:37 – Identity beyond titles and prestige 25:07 – The spark behind Samsara Nutrition 29:31 – Joy, ambition, and building a CPG brand solo 33:38 – Skills from tech that help (and those left behind) 37:22 – Building with intentionality vs “move fast and break things” 39:28 – Finding community in entrepreneurship and motherhood 43:52 – Surprising connections through Substack and TikTok 44:05 – Rapid reflections: home, skills, and proud moments 47:00 – What she’s trying to do less of 48:05 – Advice for anyone ready to pivot 49:14 – Where to find Sravanti online About the Guest – Sravanti Balaji Sravanti Balaji is the founder of Samsara Nutrition , a wellness snack brand inspired by the flavors and rituals of her Indian heritage. Before launching Samsara, she worked as a software engineer at Uber and in growth at Loom, building products for millions of users. Her biggest pivot came after becoming a twin mom in 2024, when she traded debugging code for recipe testing, blending her love of food, health, and design into a new chapter of entrepreneurship. She now writes and speaks about the messy, magical overlap of motherhood, ambition, and building something from scratch. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alliecanton.substack.com
