Learning, adjusting and sharing

Right after the experience with STOKR, one year ago I let the thread of my passion towards blockchain guide me to share my approach to inquiry the links between soft skills and technology. In January 2019, I decided to prototype a concept for a survey to engage the Blockchain Berlin community. With the support of external feedback, in March 2019, I launched the Berlin Blockchain Service Design survey. Listening and talking to the community gave me more insights about the power of networks, their needs, the future directions. In learning there is no linear pathaway. Adjust, learn and bounce back from failure.

Platform strategies through research, problem solving and mindsets

From the previous existing Blockchain network, I helped a start-up founder to map out internal resources and pull them together to serve an upcoming ecosystem for sustainability. Since April 2019 last year I could experience the blossom of Cobiom platform. The impact of user research toolkit and customer journey mapping shed light on the importance of cross functional conversations inside the team. This helped the project to shape its brand, communication, internal culture with engagement and inclusiveness. This helped me to focus on the vital importance of the human interactions to untangle opportunity for collaboration and innovation.

Summer of…TEGG – Token Engineering Global Gathering

The community called back and I was excited to give my support during the Berlin Blockchain Week 2019 in August. Being a volunteer was a bridge with the previous project in January. The sense of belonging and curiosity within the team was contagious. For me, the topics and the opportunity to learn and interact with the speakers, researchers marked a social and intellectual responsibility. It means that I am still connected with the TEGG team and established an open professional exchange with few of the speakers. It was a lot of fun and I could wrap up the experience with a Debrief exercise with the team to inspire self-reflectionand the next development for the next TEGG!

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And the fuel and inspiration of my 2019 self-development took place in…

Reading: my best reading in 2019 that still fuels my inquiries, determination and courage is Marcus Aurelius Meditations. Try to read one page every morning!

Improvisational Theatre: since January I am part of a community that performs and we did. The discovery was the principles that exist even in improvisations. This is a sample of what we did: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfCgXSBewCQ&feature=youtu.be

Playing bass guitar: It is just inspirational and healthy to be part of the Open music school! The community that come together what we learn, chilling and bonding regardless country, language. Take a look here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsFF6-L717E&feature=youtu.be

Sport: crossfit, it is not a trend, really. I was sceptical about it, eventually it helped me to start a new conversation with my body, my soul after the basketball career – I keep playing anyway – and the berlin marathon (link). We have to listen to our body to align our spirit and feelings.

Eating healthy with joy, awareness and activism: next June it will be 3 years since I follow a whole-grain plant-based diet. The variety of choices and colours in my plates are the diversity of impact I feel to share with others. In fact, as individual I learnt the importance to listen to other point of view and, in between, I speak out my mind with informative approach. You don’t have to be vegan; you need to know that your health, your planet and your ethics are all in your plate and in your food shopping every day.

Focus on the giving rather than receiving…

These spontaneous notes are seeds of ongoing learning and appreciation towards the opportunity in life as person and professional to exchange with others. During this 2020 as the new decade I will look at: enhance human interactions in teams, abundance versus emptiness, network and communities versus what creates disconnections, blockchain and AI as tools to empower platform strategies. And, of course, I will swim into bass guitar notes.

Life ultimately consists in circulation, whether within the physical body of the individual or on the scale of the entire solar system; and circulation means a continual flowing around, and the spirit of opulence is no different….If we choke the outlet the current must slacken, and a full and free flow can be obtained only by keeping it open.

Thomas Troward