Conscious Tech with Sera Tajima

Chapters(00:00:00) Thijs Introduction (00:02:15) Internship with Albert Heijn (00:06:39) Internship with medical center(00:07:25) Why Thijs didn't pursue a 9-5(00:10:21) Design content writing(00:13:46) Thijs' approach to Linkedin(00:15:58) Thijs' system for notes(00:18:09) Writing topics(00:20:44) Linkedin as a business model(00:26:26) Using LI to land clients(00:29:22) Design teams need marketing(00:31:22) Building a business that reflects your ideal life(00:34:48) What's the direction of Linkedin(00:37:52) Evangelizing design (00:40:45) Everyone is a designer(00:41:28) The value of writingRecommended Resources: Tim Ferris PodcastFounders PodcastPaul GrahamShane Parrish, Clear ThinkingNaval RavikantWhere to find Thijs Kraan:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thijskraan/Website: https://thijskraan.com/___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

In this episode, Leanne Waldal, Principal at ADP, shares her expertise with us on how to measure the value of design, perspectives on layoffs, career growth, and more. Chapters(00:00:00) Introduction (00:03:10) How to navigate politics(00:05:05) Set up your own board(00:06:08) Learn from sales(00:09:57) Find a coach (00:11:54) Working styles(00:13:17) Manager Training (00:14:36) Layoffs(00:17:00) A typical week(00:18:25) The value is in the hands of the customer(00:24:32) Who and how to research(00:30:45) Is research valued? (00:33:28) Sell yourself using data(00:37:33) Balancing work and personal life(00:42:44) Observe how humans operate(00:43:26) ResourcesRecommended Resources:⁠Follow Leanne on LinkedinDesign XResearchOps CommunitySteve Portigal___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

In this episode Sera shares an excerpt from the Conscious Tech newsletter exploring the limitations of capitalism.Chapters(00:00:00) Why capitalism? (00:03:39) Capitalism is not inherently bad (00:05:41) Where does capitalism fall short?(00:06:16) 1. Business is about the maximization of profit(00:07:34) 2. Companies lacks an ethical foundation(00:08:18) 3. Companies operate with a low level of consciousness(00:09:20) 4. Money buys influence(00:10:43) Rethinking Capitalism(00:13:10) What does change look like?For full access, ⁠⁠subscribe to the newsletter⁠⁠. ___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Dan Mall is the Founder of Design Systems University. He's an expert in helping companies scale design systems. In this episode Dan and Sera talk design systems, why they matter, and how to implement them. Chapters(00:00:00) Dan intro (00:01:58) How Dan got into design (00:04:17) Starting his agency (00:07:10) Find equilibrium as a business owner(00:08:40) Design Systems(00:10:16) The spectrum of design systems(00:13:50) What organizations Dan works with(00:15:15) Get buy-in to scale something that's working(00:16:29) Dan's approach  — "Piloting" (00:18:57) Designers need to learn the language of business(00:22:36) We are not a great representation of users(00:23:47) Design Politics(00:27:14) Have your own opinions(00:32:36) Templates, patterns, and packages(00:36:06) How to get started(00:43:37) No parity between design and code(00:47:15) Get people to spend less time in Figma(00:49:15) Build a tool that people use(00:51:50) Publicize your Design System(00:53:20) Design Systems democratize designFor Sera's highlights, ⁠subscribe to the newsletter⁠. Where to find Dan Mall:Design Systems: https://designsystem.university/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danmall/Twitter / X: https://twitter.com/danmallWebsite: https://danmall.com/___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Redona Dida is Founder of The Sofire, a design agency. She went from 0 to over 100,000 followers on Instagram in the span of a year. In this episode, Redona shares her career growth with us, the journey of becoming a mom, approach to social media, and how she started her agency. Chapters(00:00:00) Redona Introduction (00:01:25) How she got into design (00:03:15) The starving artist(00:07:39) How Redona got her first job as a web designer(00:10:00) A strong social profile creates trust(00:11:25) Getting pregnant while working(00:13:20) How her company started(00:14:25) Redona's Instagram journey(00:17:15) Using human psychology(00:23:18) What makes Redona successful on Instagram(00:25:20) Hateful comments(00:29:10) How are we caring for people(00:30:35) What to do when you don't have data(00:34:20) Don't just follow design steps blindly(00:38:36) Supporting female designers(00:46:50) Redona's agency is fully booked(00:49:00) Get InspiredWhere to find Redona Dida:Community: https://www.skool.com/cro-growth-academy/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/redona-dida-growth-designer/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/redonadida/Threads: https://www.threads.net/@redonadidaVisual Voice Substack: https://redona.substack.com/___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Tommy Geoco is Founder and author of UX Tools. Chapters(00:00:00) Tommy Introduction (00:01:21) Making design education better with UX Tools (00:02:01) The design industry is competitive(00:02:50) The bootcamp business model (00:04:10) The best way to learn is on the job(00:07:14) Ditch the cynicism of the way things evolve(00:09:09) All companies have dysfunction (00:10:10) Tommy's journey into design (00:15:35) Learning online and the shapes of work(00:26:20) How to attract the right fit(00:30:00) Make time for play (00:46:39) Have a growth mindset(00:51:41) Build real relationships(00:55:13) Newsletter & Micro CoursesGet Sera's podcast highlights & resources.Where to find Tommy:UX Tools: ⁠https://uxtools.co/⁠Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@designertomLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommygeoco/⁠Website: https://www.designertom.io/___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Chapters(00:00:00) Introduction(00:00:25) Misunderstanding design(00:01:12) Example: The evolution of cars(00:02:02) Continuous improvement for users(00:02:30) Great design is invisible(00:03:00) Design's impact on society (00:03:10) Design as problem solving(00:03:27) Form follows function(00:04:40) The role of aesthetics(00:05:06) My experience as a product designer(00:06:48) Expanding the impact of design (00:07:26) Product Designers(00:07:50) Creating an experience(00:08:55) Identifying the right problem to solve(00:09:54) Collaborating with teammates and aligning stakeholders(00:11:06) Creating a functional solution(00:12:30) The importance of design (00:12:53) Unintended consequences of design (00:14:00) The conscious design movement___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com

Welcome to the 1st episode of the Sera Tajima Podcast! ⚡️ This podcast can also be found on YouTube. Get Conscious Tech NewsletterChapters(00:00:00) Dedication(00:00:21) Podcast Launch (00:00:32) Personal challenges(00:00:48) Grief, illness, and finding strength(00:02:04) Mission and purpose(00:02:44) Conscious design for humanity and the planet(00:04:28) Who the podcast is for(00:04:40) About Sera(00:05:18) Gratitude and Support(00:05:57) Join the movement___________________________________________________________I'm Sera Tajima, Founder, Climate Tech Advisor & Investor. 🤙I talk about: → Product Growth Strategy (Growth, Design, AI)→ Climate Tech→ Venture Capital⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect for more good energy⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⚡️Become a sponsor: partner@seratajima.com