This one simple mind-shift will increase sales in service of people and planet

These days, I’ve been thinking a lot about the topics of technology, business, consciousness, and artificial intelligence and the impact of exponential growth.

You see, I sit at the intersection of multiple worlds:

1. The world of product marketing, where I’ve worked with over 30+ founders and have launched over 200+ products across a variety of growth stages from angel to public. I help companies grow through storytelling, positioning, and building a robust go-to-market strategy that aligns with their product roadmap and long-term mission. I also wrote one of the first books on product marketing for the mainstream in 2017 and continue to share my knowledge about the subject in other books and articles. I've interviewed some of the leading product marketers in the world which have informed some of the content for my later books.

2. The world of consciousness, where I’ve interviewed over 115 leaders in the world of consciousness, intention, intuition, personal development, emotional intelligence, and business on my podcast Gateways to Awakening. Some of the guests include Deepak Chopra, Brenda Dunn, Thornton Streeter, and more. Years ago, I earned a Master Certification in Intuition Medicine ?, and have been personally curious about the world of intuition, intention, and the existential qualities of our existence, namely — consciousness. For the purposes of this post, I am using the definition of high levels of consciousness as described by the Barrett Academy.

What is alarming is that these two worlds rarely converge. There is an assumption that these worlds are communicating, but they are not. When building new technologies and products, businesses- even mission-driven ones- are often times over-indexing for profit over considering how their products might impact the public and the planet.

Yet being more conscious will also win the approval of your customers and be more friendly for the planet.

According to research from GreenPrint, nearly?80% of consumers?are more likely to purchase a product labeled as environmentally friendly, with 77% of those surveyed saying they are concerned about the environmental impact of products they buy.

There is an invisible accounting ledger between these worlds.? When a product manager or founder makes a zero-sum game decision that overrides the public good or the planet, it is my belief that these decisions will come back to collect, with interest.?

Perhaps they come back on a micro scale at first with a polarized and uncomfortable work environment, a toxic work culture, and later on a macro scale: leading to the creation of massive inequities in wealth, increasing the level of discrimination towards marginalized communities, or a broken or unfair supply-chain. In the worst-case scenarios, it can lead to the destruction of nature and the planet.

We must include a level of consciousness in how we build products into the product lifecycle for both the health of the company and the collective. So how should we think about it?

“Today’s most powerful technology companies are driven by perverse incentives. They win by maximizing growth and profits, yet hold little responsibility for their negative consequences on individuals and society.”

- Center of Humane Technology

In the world of consciousness, and a win-win reality, the first questions that should be asked are: How will this product impact the whole of humanity and the earth? We can and must create companies and products that integrate this level of thinking, and it is my observation that we will be forced to do so once we realize the impact and mess that unconscious founders and product teams have created. This has already been highlighted in documentaries like The Social Dilemma.

In the world of integrating consciousness into the product roadmap, the first principle is to ask how the product will impact the world at large, rather than just a targeted audience. Because when we cultivate a perspective that allows us to see our products and services as a microcosm of the whole, we tend to behave differently and make different decisions that are beneficial not only for our own well-being, and our customers, but for the well-being of the world.

According to an IBM study, one-third of all consumers today will stop buying their preferred products if they lose trust in the brand, and one-third of consumers have already stopped purchasing their longtime, favorite brands in 2019.?Consumers are paying attention to the ways that products impact the collective.

In this perspective and world-view, we are like a web, in which one product made without a collective perspective becomes a weight on the entire system. Perhaps, on some primordial level, we know, intuitively, that we must think outside of a “me” universe and instead turn towards the notion of a “we” universe, and help each other think about both people and productivity.

My friend, Mona Hamdy, former teaching fellow at Harvard University Applied Ethics said: “We are just caretakers of what we have in this life until we pass it along. One day, our world will run on transparent, highly-efficient systems designed to heal our planet. It’s our shared responsibility. And it’s within our grasp.”

Even more important, many of us must recognize that the last two years are a reminder of how quickly and easily our world can fall apart, with just a small unconscious decision.

It is my belief that product managers, and especially product managers who are making important decisions about products that have an exponential impact, must be trained in understanding the highest levels of consciousness and asking questions that account for the well-being of our collective human family. At the very least, they should be including diverse perspectives in the room and conversation, especially if they represent a majority group perspective.

If they are the visionaries tasked with building algorithms and machines that are exponential in nature — then we must also be creating code at the highest level of consciousness available. We must champion qualities like discernment, self-awareness, and an understanding of how consciousness works. These are not easy skill sets to master. They require a high level of intentionality and training. They require vulnerability, humility, and understanding of self. They require drastically reducing our own self-importance and asking.

Robert Ohotto once said, “You can only offer people the level of intimacy you have with yourself”. Similarly, the level of consciousness of the product or service is only as conscious as its’ creators.

Founders, product managers, and engineers can only build products that are based on the perspective and level of discernment, understanding, and connection that they have within themselves. Their values are projected outwards into their product and product roadmap.

My hope is to create a bridge between these worlds so that the people building companies and products start to develop a refined level of discernment that includes the highest level of perception and human consciousness when creating a code and program that could impact the lives of millions and our planet.

I also hope that product marketers and marketers, in general, take this issue seriously, think deeply about the impact that they will make when commercializing a product, and ask the bigger questions before bringing a product to market:

1. How will this product impact the collective?
2. Have I incorporated a diverse set of perspectives when creating this product?
3. What will this product do for the greater human family?

As the world continues to evolve, I believe it is our responsibility to evolve with it. I am still continuing to refine my understanding of how I can best serve the founders and teams that I work with in order to create the most positive impact on people and the planet.?

Of course, this topic has not always been top of mind for me, but through many years of self-inquiry, I have made it my mission to continue to think from the perspective of the collective, as much as I can.

If you’d like to join me in the conversation, you can check out my podcast, Gateways to Awakening which is on Apple & Spotify, or one of my many books and resources on product marketing.

If you’d like to work together, you can join my waiting list here.

These topics are near and dear to my heart, and as always, I'd love to hear from you.