Why the Craziness of 2020 Led Me to a Remarkable Year
Once we learn how to deal with reality, we can identify opportunities to thrive.
Once we learn how to deal with reality, we can identify opportunities to thrive.

2020 was the most challenging year for most people on Earth. The planet’s current situation suddenly transformed our lives into something unimaginable. Socializing is not part of the new normal now, and, as social animals, it’s painfully dramatic for us. Yet, if we focus on the downsides, we’d quickly fall into depression. Life goes on no matter what, and we have to deal with reality as hard as it can be.
“Pain + Reflection = Progress”
― Ray Dalio, Principles
Everyone has a painful story in 2020; mine is being far from my wife for six months. After a pleasant holiday in Brazil, my wife needed to get her visa to live in Germany. Therefore, in February, she flew to Moscow. It was supposed to last two weeks, but it lasted six months.
I was devasted when Germany closed the borders with the world. Uncertainty was the only certainty I had. My wife and I had no idea when we could be together again. I had to do something; otherwise, depression would be part of my reality. As a foreigner in Germany, I couldn’t meet with any of my friends. My wife was in Russia and my family in Brazil.
Facing reality as harsh as it can be was the answer for me. It was painful, but I got some insights into transforming the craziness of 2020 into a good year. I always enjoyed exchanging ideas with my friends. That’s why I decided to give a shot to writing.
“Truth — more precisely, an accurate understanding of reality — is the essential foundation for producing good outcomes.”
― Ray Dalio, Principles
In February, I started sharing my ideas on Medium. What was supposed to be a hobby became a passion. The post you read now is my 100th article in 2020. The journey has been incredible. I didn’t follow any recipe on how to make money on Medium or to grow my audience. My only goal was to share something useful for the community.
The year 2020 was tough for me. But by dealing with the reality, I could benefit and transform into a remarkable year. Let me share some highlights and lowlights of my year. I hope it’s useful for you :)
Some numbers for curiosity:
200,000+ audience reach: my ideas reached a lot of people worldwide. I couldn’t imagine the result when I started. I just wanted to share useful insights. I am glad that many people have benefited from my content.
1100+ students subscribed to my courses: I’ve produced the course How to be a Product Owner, a Portuguese and an English version. Thousands of students enrolled for it. I am grateful for the trust many people gave to me. People from all over the world are part of this course.
685 Tweets: I started joined Twitter this year. Well, I was really a laggard on it. But I could interact a lot this year and benefit from many useful insights.
100 articles published: I wrote many articles about Product Management, Leadership, Startup, Self-Development, Books recommendations, etc. The more I write, the more I learn. It’s a fantastic experience.
26 books read: I am a book lover. This year, I read books about leadership, product management, business, innovation, entrepreneurship, psychology, marketing, and philosophy.
Let me walk you through my learnings of this year.
Writing is Powerful
Writing is magical. You stop, reflect, and organize your thoughts. I believe everyone has something unique to share. If you start, you will be amazed by what you can achieve.
If you are new to writing, my recommendations to you would be:
Share your most relevant insights: what do you do differently? What could you tell the world? Don’t be shy. Shout it out loud. Many people want to benefit from real experiences.
Write as simple as possible: most of the readers are non-native English speakers. You should write to express, not to impress. Writing simple is efficient; people will connect to your ideas easier.
Build on the others’ ideas: most probably, someone wrote something similar to what you want to write, quote that person, and build on top. It will strengthen your arguments.
Start with the headline: don’t overwhelm yourself. Think of a headline, then the next sentence, and then the next, sooner than you expect you have something to share. Consistency is more important than intensity.
Collaborate with publications: search for publications that share the content you enjoy. Then, collaborate with them. My best articles result from a collaboration with great people like Maarten Dalmijn, Willem-Jan Ageling, Fabricio Teixeira, Esat Artug, and so on.
Don’t limit yourself to a single place: try different platforms—for example, Medium, LinkedIn, and Twitter. You can significantly increase your reach by sharing in multiple places.
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.”
― James Clear, Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

Highlights
Some articles hit the mark, and the audience engages with them. I’ve observed that people prefer to know how to avoid failure instead of how to become successful.
The fear of failure is more relevant than the wish of being successful.
Top 3 Articles on Medium
My best posts are related to books recommendation and what NOT to do as a Product Owner.
The article “What is NOT the role of a Product Owner?” is a special one for me; it’s my first article published with a publication. I remember as if it was today, Fabricio Teixeira left a note inviting me to post with the UX Collective. I am grateful for that; I learned a lot from the community.
The 10 books that transformed my mindset as a Product Owner
Learning is so fascinating that the more I learn, the more I want to develop myself; this is an endless magic journey.medium.com
What is NOT the role of a Product Owner?
Since the Agile Manifesto, many companies started working with many agile frameworks, mostly Scrum and Kanban. However…uxdesign.cc
The 10 books every leader should read
Leadership is not a position. It’s a set of attitudes.uxdesign.cc
Low lights
Some of my articles miss the mark, and the audience doesn’t engage. I may think it’s one of my best articles, but the audience perceives it differently. For me, it’s okay. It doesn’t matter whether the article is a hit; I will keep sharing my insights. It might still help someone out there :)
The Bottom 3 Articles
Here are the articles my audience engaged the least.
The Principles I Learned from my Dad Prepared Me for a Better Tomorrow
My dad taught me impressive life lessons with his daily actions.medium.com
Why Scrum and Startups Are a Perfect Recipe for Successful Outcomes
Startups are complex and challenging. Scrum is perfect for this type of environment.medium.com
Afraid of changing directions and speaking up? You shouldn’t be
If you want to succeed as a Product Owner, you must be humble, curious, and bold!uxdesign.cc
Top 3 Tweets
As I mentioned, I joined Twitter this year. Since April, I tweet at least once a day. Here are my top 3 tweets of this year.
Top 3 Posts on LinkedIn
LinkedIn is my favorite social network. Almost all of my jobs started with a new contact on LinkedIn. Networking is incredibly powerful.
During this year, I shared my insights on LinkedIn at least twice a week. My top 3 posts are:
David Pereira on LinkedIn: Why MANY companies will never hire a good Product Owner | 53 comments
MANY companies will never hire a great Product Owner because they have endless misconceptions of this role! I wish…www.linkedin.com
David Pereira on LinkedIn: #learning #agile #scrum | 47 comments
Some books changed my life forever. Every now and then I come back to them, it's always a new learning. I recommend…www.linkedin.com
David Pereira on LinkedIn: Successful Product Owners are Leaders, Not Managers! | 11 comments
Product Owners are not managers. Product Owners are leaders. Until you learn how to behave as a servant-leader, you…www.linkedin.com
Top 3 Books
Curiosity is what drives me. I love learning, and I hate the comfort zone. During this year, the best books I read are:
Building a Story Brand, Donald Miller: most brands struggle to get their audience's attention. They fail to clarify their message until customers understand. Donald Miller explains in a simple way how to build a story brand. This book is terrific.
Inspired, Marty Cagan: most companies are clueless about Product Management. If you want to rock as a Product Manager, you should definitely read this masterpiece from Marty Cagan.
The Infinite Game, Simon Sinek: business became a bloody competition. The problem is that most companies play the wrong game. Business isn’t a finite game like football; the real game is infinite. Until companies play the infinite game, failures are inevitable.
Final Thoughts
The year 2020 taught me the importance of living today. If you have a dream, go and live your dream. Don’t wait until tomorrow. Don’t waste your time daydreaming. Life is now.
Reality may not be favorable for our wishes. But that’s how it is. Learning to deal with reality is vital to thrive. If we keep waiting for a better reality to start living our dreams, we might end up just existing on Earth.
(Note: The links mentioned in this article are affiliate links. If you choose to purchase these books through these links, it will help me earn a small amount of money — at no extra cost to you. Thanks!)