At the poolhouse of her apartment complex, about 20 people were treated to pizza, Indian delights and drinks for Dr. Sanika Doolani’s “Book Shower” event in Milpitas. 

Two years ago, Dr. Doolani, a computer science professor at San Francisco State University, began the process of writing her book, “I’m Done Dimming My Light,” reflecting on her life experiences and challenges she had to overcome. 

“In past three years, I went through a lot of things altogether like rejection, betrayal, job loss, identity crisis, existential crisis, all of it altogether in like three years’ time,” Dr. Doolani said. “And I came out of it and I researched a lot of things to help myself. So, when I was in a nice place, I looked back and I said, ‘I’m done dimming my light.’ I cannot live a life where I’m hiding in my own shadows… And that’s where I decided to write a book.”

The event took about a month of planning, with the idea inspired from baby showers. On one of the tables at the book shower, there was a sign displayed, stating that she had raised $1,550 for her book to be published, but the goal is to raise $15,000.  

“That’s how this idea came into picture, where we had to fundraise like how a baby shower has a registry and everything,” said Sampada Samaka, Dr. Doolani’s friend who helped put the event together. “That’s why we wanted to do a book shower, do the fundraising and let people know about the book.”

Samaka said this book isn’t just a one-time read, but rather something someone can read anytime they need motivation. 

“You always can have the book and go through the chapters whenever you feel low,” Samaka said. “You want a little pick-me-up? That’s the book you have.”

The book details Dr. Doolani’s rejection from Facebook after she applied for a summer internship at the company Oculus back in 2017. Dr. Doolani was always a straight-A student, and this was her first rejection. It crushed her, but she found a way to overcome the complex emotion. 

“I never failed, and the first big failure put me into a big spiral of depression,” Dr. Doolani said. “I was in bed crying for two months. I came out by going to the gym, and the first time I tried therapy. That really helped me, and that’s where I started learning more about myself.”

Dr. Doolani’s husband, Jayesh Doolani, saw firsthand the impact that the Facebook rejection had on her. 

“Lowest point of her career. I saw her when she actually wanted that job really bad because it was the right fit for her,” Jayesh Doolani said. ”When she faced that rejection, I saw her just sitting in a very corner of the room, literally for days.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Doolani was collecting virtual reality data from the University of Texas at Arlington, but when the university went online, all her data had disappeared. Luckily, her friends, family and other people within her community convinced her not to give up. 

“All my work actually went out of the window,” Dr. Doolani said. “I was on the verge of giving up my Ph.D., but my friends and family said, ‘You’ve already put in four years in it. Just do something and go ahead with it.’ So, me struggling during the pandemic, pushing myself every single day, that broke me so much.”

Shreedutt Hegde, Samaka’s husband, read the synopsis of the book and was intrigued by the part where she talks about how everything was perfect in her life, but she still felt incomplete. 

“She’s done everything right in her life, and then still she felt like there’s something — she feels hollow now,” Hegde said. “You’re trying to achieve something, but you just feel like you haven’t done it, even though you have always achieved and you kept doing the right things. I think that struck a chord with me.”

Dr. Doolani worked as a product designer for Salesforce from 2021 to 2023.

Anubha Dubey, a senior user experience manager at Salesforce, remembers the time when she interviewed Dr. Doolani to become an intern. 

“She gave the presentation as a Kung Fu Panda journey,” Dubey said. “How this panda is scared, and then how the evolution happens and ended up being a warrior, so that was really fun. She would always bring her creativity to all the experiences.”

Another former colleague of Dr. Doolani, Tiffany Chin, who was senior director of product design at Salesforce, remembers the passion that Dr. Doolani had for the team. 

“We were in a very complex part of Salesforce. One of our team members used to call it ‘diving into the deep end,’” Chin said. “I feel like Sanika was willing to take on that challenge, whether she knew anything about the subject matter or not, and taking it full in stride. I always appreciated that about her.”

Dr. Doolani was fired from Salesforce after two years. Dubey looked at this from two perspectives: a personal perspective and a business perspective. 

“Decisions get [made] very fast, and then there is a time you need to show up that way to navigate that because things change,” Dubey said, shaking with sadness. “There was a person like Sanika who was extremely thoughtful about the people she works with and the conversation she brings to the table. So it wasn’t the easiest decision.”

As someone who grew accustomed to overachieving, Dr. Doolani took her firing from Salesforce hard, and it impacted the type of person she is. 

“I lost my identity,” Dr. Doolani said. “For a person who has been raised with the mindset that your achievement speaks louder than your being, and when your achievements are taken away from you, who you are… I didn’t have answers for that.”

One scenario Dr. Doolani recalled when experiencing unemployment is getting to know people at social events.

“All the meetings or parties that I went to, the first question is ‘What’s your name?’ And the second is ‘What do you do?’” Dr. Doolani said. “I didn’t have an answer for that. And that gave me the identity crisis. Like, who am I without my job title?”

Today, Dr. Doolani teaches her students to develop a strong mindset. When her students come up to her when they face rejection, she shares her story. 

“Rejection is just part of that journey and I teach them that,” Dr. Doolani said. “Think of it as a game of throwing a die. The more times you throw a die, the more chances of getting a six. So that’s how you play around rejection.”

“I’m Done Dimming My Light” will come out in April 2026 and will be available on Amazon, Manuscripts and Dr. Doolani’s website.