Today we’d like to introduce you to Steven Puri
Steven, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My career has always been a mix of technology and entertainment. My first job was a newscaster/interviewer for the #1 youth TV show in the DC-Baltimore market. After I left for USC in Los Angeles, I became a junior software engineer at IBM. I was lucky that I made a bunch of friends in the film industry and I used my technology knowledge to start producing computer-generated effects for movies.
I sold my first company “Centropolis Effects” that I co-founded with Roland Emmerich & Dean Devlin after we won the Academy Award for Visual Effects for Independence Day.
I decided to get into film development & production and eventually became Vice-President of Development and Production at 20th Century Fox Filmed Entertainment, overseeing action franchises including Die Hard 5, “24” and The Wolverine. Prior to that, I was an Executive Vice-President at DreamWorks-based Kurtzman/Orci (Star Trek 11, Transformers 1-2, Eagle Eye, The Proposal, Fringe, Hawaii 5-0, Transformers: Prime).
I have run two remote companies (“distributed teams”) and I have experienced firsthand the benefits (global talent pool, no commutes, greater work-life flexibility) and the downsides (isolation, disengagement, loneliness).
For this reason, I created an online co-working site – The Sukha Company (“sukha” means “happiness” in Sanskrit). It brings thousands of people together to quietly work, and provides a great set of focus tools like music, pomodoro timers, task lists, etc.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Since online co-working (and remote work, really) is such a new concept that was brought into the consciousness because of the pandemic, sometimes it’s hard to explain to someone what it is…and how great it feels.
The best thing I’ve found is to encourage them to find an hour’s worth of work they need to do…and try it for free.
It’s an incredible feeling to both get your work done faster (our members finish on average 48% faster when they are in Sukha) and feel happier (92% of our member report being happier on the days when they participate).
I’m particularly proud of the second metric because it means we are solving one of the deep problems of remote work: isolation.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My upwards career trajectory has been a series of wonderfully lucky breaks thanks to friends. I’ve started almost all my companies with friends or friends-of-friends.
The power of other people to influence you is not lost on me, and I’ve noticed that I’m drawn to collaborative professions – film, television, technology. I love the energy of working with others.
I do think that this passionate belief in “let’s go farther together” is evident in The Sukha – it’s all about how much we benefit personally, as a community and as a society when we hold each other up.
My favorite thing of running The Sukha is seeing the friendships that are forming across borders, across oceans, across time-zones. To see people who just weeks ago did not know each other…start to congratulate each other on their work, provide advice and support…that warms my heart.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Yes – the biggest lesson is that remote and hybrid work are here to stay. And that while they offer great benefits, the biggest downside is that over time you can feel isolated, lonely and burned out.
This is the genesis for The Sukha. To offer the happiness and camaraderie of being around other people…while you still enjoy the benefits of working from anywhere.
Pricing:
- 14-day Free Trial
- $10/month after that
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.TheSukha.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_sukha_co/
- Twitter: https://x.com/the_sukha_co/
