Digital do good

Creating positive change through small favours.

Hallo Medium!

There’s a lot going on and you’ll be hearing all about it. I’m embarking on an experiment/personal project that I’ve entitled Digital do good. Before I get to the idea, there are a couple of factors involved: I’m finishing up a Digital Media Management M.A. with Hyper Island and I need to figure out my thesis. Also, I’m in Berlin for the very first time, with no prior social network or knowledge of the area. Lastly, I’m an entrepreneurship junkie. Interested?

I was inspired by an article I read last week on Quartz, entitled, “How to manage your inbox so you don’t miss a life-changing opportunity”. A relatively unexciting title, sure (Sorry, Mr. Brooke.), but a message in there stuck: Find a way to help others with their problems and there will always be work to do. I’m a believer that positivity breeds positivity, and my hope is that teeny acts of kindness will have a tendency to be paid forward by others.

So how do I meet people, get to know the local startup scene AND figure out what to do for my thesis? Simple. Offer my help through small favours to anyone involved in the tech/media/digital space, Berlin and beyond, with no other expectations than to learn new things and make some new friends. Again, they are small, short term favours (helping set up for events, writing up blog or email content, giving an outsider’s opinion on your portfolio, etc.), ideally in the vague realm of “digital”. So I will NOT help you do your taxes, repaint the living room, or give legal advice.. not that I’d be a feasible choice for any of those things (my Asian heritage is embarrassingly bereft of math skills, I’m vertically challenged, and I’m quite the outlaw!).

At this time, I plan on running this little experiment for the whole of my stay in Berlin (until December 23rd, 2013), but if it grows, it grows. Still not sure where things will take me or what any of this means so far, but they say life is what you make it, and the same goes with #DigitalDoGood. Need help with something? Just ask! Please spread the word :)

Yours with hugs and good deeds,

@JuliaCSJ