🥬💻Charting a Sustainable Future in Tech and Nature

Hello Friends and Family!

Welcome to the second issue of my newsletter! I hope it finds you well and you are ready to dive into a blend of personal stories, professional insights, and a few handy tips to boost your productivity

So without further delay, let’s dive right in!

Personal Updates: Birds and Beyond!

📅January was a month of rejuvenation and reflection. I kicked off the year with an incredibly fun bird talk I held to a local Rotary Club chapter, sharing my passion for birds and our connection with nature with my community. The talk was well-received and immensely grounding, reminding us of the delicate balance with our environment.

🤩On the professional front, I'm organizing and gearing up with a renewed vigor for my next job. It's an exciting (and slightly nerve racking) phase, filled with opportunities and possibilities. I'm looking forward to exploring product management roles that align with my expertise in digital transformation and sustainability.

🎯Amidst all this, I'm also focusing on my more long-term goals. Establishing a brand as a leader in the digital transformation space with an emphasis on sustainable best practices is at the forefront for me. I am continually learning, networking, and strategizing to build a strong foundation for this vision.

Sustainability and Digital Transformation: A Broader Perspective

Digital transformation and sustainability go beyond just going paperless or moving services to digital channels. It's about a holistic approach that makes you look at all aspects of your day-to-day life.

Businesses in today’s day and age must be more conscious of their carbon footprint. In my experience, I see immense opportunities in the following areas:

☝️Eco-Friendly Hosting Solutions: Implementing hosting solutions that reduce emissions, thereby contributing to a greener planet. SiteGround is an example of a company that has made great strides in their sustainability practices by transitioning to a cloud-based data center infrastructure, achieving carbon neutrality through energy efficiency and renewable energy.

✌️Data-Driven Conservation: Utilizing existing data to identify inefficiencies in your resource output. This not only optimizes productivity but also pinpoints areas that need extra attention in their overall conservation efforts. In industries such as mining, which ultimately do take up considerable resources literally digging up the earth, can leverage data as one company had demonstrated to be a smarter and more sustainable business.

☝️✌️Incentivizing Sustainable Habits: Encouraging users to adopt greener habits by incentivizing the use of sustainable features. It’s about creating a culture where sustainability is a shared responsibility. Even the big boys like Nike and Apple are doing their part but one of my favorite breweries New Belgium Brewing is taking it a step further

In my quest for new opportunities, these principles guide my vision for integrating sustainability with digital transformation.

Productivity Corner: Using Agile Practices For Your Own Personal Goals

Let's talk about personal productivity or also known as GSD (Getting $h*t Done).

Agile methodologies aren't just for product development work; they can also be incredibly effective for personal goals. For instance, creating your own version of a Kanban board (see image above) to visualize and manage your daily tasks as you work towards something bigger is a great way to

• Stay Organized

• Work Towards Your Long Term Goals

• Look back on all the amazing work you’ve accomplished

While tools like JIRA offer similar functionalities, a simple Excel spreadsheet can also serve as a less technical, yet efficient way to manage personal life and progress towards weekly and long-term goals.

As I mentioned in my previous newsletter, creating roles that you aspire to be can be motivating goals that you work on in each “sprint”. For me, it has been a game changer in keeping track of your progress and staying motivated.

In 2023 alone, I had made over 827 priorities for the year that I worked towards tackling week over week. Even at a 75% completion rate, that’s over 600 priorities completed!

What’s Your BHAG?

We all have had aspirations and visions of who we could become. Have you ever truly thought it through by writing it down? The BHAG or Big Hairy Audacious Goal has become somewhat of a buzzword in around tech leaders in America. Microsoft but more specifically, Bill Gate’s BHAG was “A computer on every desk”. In essence, it is a single sentence statement that you envision being at the apex of your potential based your experience.

Up until recently, I had no idea what I was looking for. I just wanted to work in a job I felt good about that would eventually lead to advancement and ultimately people leadership. Well, as noble yet vanilla as that goal was, it didn’t have any specifics that I strived towards. After taking my inspirational product leadership program, it was then when I finally figured out what my BHAG was.

Looking ahead, my Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) for the next five years is to lead a major tech initiative that not only revolutionizes user experience but also sets new standards in sustainability. It's ambitious, but with strategic planning and a focus on continuous learning, it's achievable.

Wrap it up, B

As we step into another month, let's remember the impact our daily choices have on the world around us. Whether it's through sustainable practices or embracing digital transformation, each step counts. Thank you for joining me on this journey, and I look forward to sharing more next month.

Stay curious, stay inspired,

Patrick

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