When we step through a career transition, we usually focus on what we're leaving behind or where we want to land next. We rarely pause to ask: what did this season actually give me?

In this episode, Naya looks back across her non-linear chapters from banking and remote operations to product management, growth, startup incubation, and founding GigSecure.

She explores why no chapter is wasted, how unexpected detours expand your range, and why reinvention doesn't mean starting your capabilities from zero.

Listen now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and share your key takeaway.

For a long time, Naya thought she needed a new career whenever she felt stuck or unfulfilled.

But moving from banking to remote operations, product management, growth, and startup incubation revealed a deeper lesson: changing your job title doesn't automatically change how you operate.

In this episode, Naya explores the difference between changing your career and changing your operating system, how to view your past experiences as data, and why building systems around your values is what actually creates room to live.

Join the conversation and reflect on what kind of life you want your work to support.

What if your career isn't the ultimate destination, but simply the sandbox where your true self is developed? After a multi-month break, Naya returns to unpack why fitting into a single professional title is a trap and how mining your past experiences across banking, remote operations, and startup incubation reveals your real core identity.

Tune in to redefine success beyond your job title and learn how to align high ambition with rest, faith, and intentional stewardship.

Listen now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and share your key takeaway.

Not every résumé fits on paper.

In this reflective episode, Naya explores how proof, process, and storytelling form the foundation of your modern résumé one that evolves with every lesson, pivot, and product you build.

Because in the end, you are the product.

Timestamps

• 00:00 – 00:30 — Introduction: “You are the product.”

• 00:30 – 01:00 — The story of being laid off and discovering the power of documentation.

• 01:00 – 02:00 — Point 1: Your proof is your portfolio.

• 02:00 – 02:30 — Point 2: Your process is your brand.

• 02:30 – 03:30 — Point 3: Your story is your strategy.

• 03:30 – 05:00 — Product thinking as iteration, not restarting.

• 05:00 – End — Closing reflections + call to action to audit your proof.

Key Takeaways

• Your résumé isn’t a document; it’s your proof in motion.

• Proof builds trust faster than credentials.

• Your process — how you communicate, plan, and execute — is your real brand.

• Storytelling helps you connect your past to your next pivot.

• You’re not behind; you’re just iterating.

Key Links:

• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Free Smart PM Career Roadmap⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Build Without Permission – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Side Hustle Stories – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Proof & Practice Bundle
• Subscribe to the newsletter
• DM me on LinkedIn about PMaaS

This week, Naya shares her story of pivoting from banking to tech, and the three truths that helped her rebuild with clarity. If you’ve ever wondered if it’s too late to start again, this one’s for you. Spoiler: It’s not. You’re not behind, you’re just iterating.

Timestamps:

• 0:00 – 1:00 — Intro: What inspired this episode and the myth of “too late.”

• 1:00 – 1:30 — My layoff story: From banking to blank slate.

• 1:30 – 2:30 — Discovering tech and realizing I’d been doing “product thinking” all along.

• 2:30 – 4:30 — Three truths about pivoting: redeeming your past, choosing curiosity, and building clarity through action.

• 4:30 – 6:00 — Encouragement for anyone feeling behind.

• 6:00 – End — Call to action and community invites.

Key Takeaways:

• Your past experience is data, not detour.

• Curiosity can be a valid reason to change direction.

• Start small; clarity comes from doing.

• You’re not late. You’re iterating.

Key Links:

• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Free Smart PM Career Roadmap⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Build Without Permission – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Side Hustle Stories – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Proof & Practice Bundle
• Subscribe to the newsletter
• DM me on LinkedIn about PMaaS

Summary:
In this episode, Naya redefines what personal branding means for product managers and creatives. It’s not about logos or aesthetics — it’s about proof. She shares how documenting in real time, building in public, and aligning every creative outlet to a purpose has shaped her brand as a product builder.

Key Takeaways:

• Branding = the proof you leave behind.

• Progress > perfection.

• Build a brand that functions, not just exists.

• Every piece of work you share is a micro-proof.

  Timestamps:

  • 00:00 – 01:10 → The question: “If your brand disappeared tomorrow, what proof would remain?”

  • 01:10 – 02:45 → Why branding isn’t design, it’s data.

  • 02:45 – 03:20 → Early lessons from documenting in public.

  • 03:20 – 04:15 → Proof is the new branding.

  • 04:15 – 05:30 → Build in public: why people connect with progress.

  • 05:30 – 05:45 → Make your brand functional.

  • 05:45 – 06:30 → You don’t need a rebrand, you need a record.

  • 06:30 – 07:00 → Final thoughts + CTA.

In this episode, Naya breaks down how she transformed her product management experience into structured offerings like PMaaS and Side Hustle Stories. She shares how small acts of documentation became data, how structure created clarity, and why proof always comes before scale.

Key Takeaways:

1. You don’t start by building a business — you start by building proof.

2. Your patterns reveal your first offer.

3. Structure creates clarity and scale.

4. Test in public — feedback builds confidence.

5. Your experience is your data.

   Timestamps

   • 00:00 – 02:30 | The surprising start — how documentation turned into a product journey

   • 02:30 – 05:30 | Story: From podcast reflections to building proof

   • 05:30 – 06:00 | Point 1: Start by naming what’s working

   • 06:00 – 06:30 | Point 2: Build structure around your skill

   • 06:30 – 07:00 | Point 3: Show proof before you scale

   • 07:00 – 07:45 | Wrap-up & final reminder: Proof becomes your product

   • 07:45 – 08:30 | CTA: Newsletter, Side Hustle Stories, Dive Africa

In this reflective episode, Naya shares what working with startup founders taught her about real-world product thinking. Beyond frameworks and templates, founders taught her the value of clarity, prioritization, storytelling, and scrappy validation. She connects these lessons to her own journey building PMaaS and preparing for Dive 2025 — Africa’s biggest tech and product conference.

Key Takeaways:

1. Clarity is a discipline, not an end goal.
2. Prioritize what matters now — not everything at once.
3. Storytelling is a product strategy.
4. Build with what you have, not what you wish you had.
5. Validation always beats perfection.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – 01:10 | Founders move fast — intro to today’s topic
• 01:10 – 03:50 | Observing early-stage founders: from chaos to clarity
• 03:50 – 05:20 | Lesson 1: Clarity isn’t an outcome, it’s a discipline
• 05:20 – 06:50 | Lesson 2: Prioritize what matters right now
• 06:50 – 07:40 | Lesson 3: Storytelling as strategy
• 07:40 – 08:00 | Lesson 4: Build with what you have
• 08:00 – 09:00 | Lessons I’ve applied to PMaaS
• 09:00 – 09:30 | Dive 2025 mention & reflections on community
• 09:30 – 10:00 | Wrap-up & CTAs

Key Links:

• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Free Smart PM Career Roadmap⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Build Without Permission – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Side Hustle Stories – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Proof & Practice Bundle
• Subscribe to the newsletter
• DM me on LinkedIn about PMaaS
• The Dive 2025

In this episode, I talk about Product Dive 2025, Africa’s biggest tech and product conference, my role as an ambassador, and what the Becoming the Product community can gain from it. I share why this event is special to me, what to expect, and how to plug in ahead of December.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro: Something big is happening in December

• 01:30 – What Product Dive 2025 is all about

• 04:00 – My role as an ambassador

• 07:00 – Why this matters to me personally

• 10:00 – What you can get out of it

• 13:00 – CTAs + Wrap up

  Key Takeaways:

  • Product Dive is the #1 tech/product event on the continent.

  • Ambassador roles can be more than promotion — they can be storytelling bridges.

  • This is a prime opportunity to learn, connect, and grow within Africa’s product ecosystem.

    Key Links:

    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Free Smart PM Career Roadmap⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Build Without Permission – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Side Hustle Stories – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Proof & Practice Bundle
    • Subscribe to the newsletter
    • DM me on LinkedIn about PMaaS
    • productdive.com/the-dive-2025-conference

    
    

In this reflective episode, Naya shares why stepping into incubation was one of her smartest career moves — even if it didn’t look like it at first. She unpacks how working with founders sharpened her product thinking, inspired PMaaS, and gave her strategic positioning that a traditional PM role couldn’t.

Key Takeaways:

• Unconventional pivots can sharpen unique skills and perspectives.

• Incubation offers deep exposure to multiple products and founders.

• Acting as a “fractional PM” builds operational clarity and mentorship muscles.

• Quiet moves often become powerful leverage points later on.

  Episode 14: My Most Underrated Career Move — Working in Incubation

  • 00:00 – 01:30 | Intro: Bold moves that don’t look bold at first

  • 01:30 – 02:00 | Story: Becoming an incubation manager

  • 02:00 – 03:00 | Point 1: Ecosystem exposure

  • 03:00 – 04:00 | Point 2: Operational clarity & mentorship

  • 04:00 – 05:00 | Point 3: Strategic positioning for PMaaS

  • 05:00 – 06:00 | Wrap-up & reflections

    Key Links:

    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Free Smart PM Career Roadmap⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Build Without Permission – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Side Hustle Stories – Mini Course⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
    • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Proof & Practice Bundle
    • Subscribe to the newsletter
    • DM me on LinkedIn about PMaaS