Welcome

Welcome to my personal website! :)

Woh, so this is what social anxiety feels like.

I’ve never been a big contributor to social media. It’s always felt more like a competition rather than a collaboration. I used to think having a personal website was too self-aggrandizing. I no longer think that is the case.

With this personal website, I’m hoping to bring a little more authenticity and joy back to the Internet. Hopefully, some of the content will inspire you. If not, that’s okay too.

I’ve been thinking about launching a personal website for a number of years. Until now, it never felt like the right time. A few streams in my life have just naturally converged:

1. I started climbing and mountaineering. Since November 2021, I’ve done a few treks and hikes. One fourteener. Still entry-level stuff. While researching new outdoor activites, I’ve discovered a beautiful corner of the Internet. One built by people who document their ultramarathon races, hikes, and camping adventures all over the world. Some of these folks set up their own personal websites to share their journey. To me, their authenticity is endearing and infectious.

2. I started writing down my values in 2019. They’ve provided a recurring basis for personal reflection on my life and career. They’ve provides stability during turbulent circumstances. I haven’t made many changes over the years, but the order changes ocassionally. I’ve shared them with some close friends and family, but have never talked about them publicly. I will begin sharing them.

3. In the last few years, I’ve read a few books that help me better understand the behaviors of people, societies, and bureaucracies, including:

   • “Principles: Life and Work” by Ray Dalio,
   • “Greenlights” by Matthew McConaughey,
   • “One Long Night” by Andrea Pitzer, and
   • “I Will Teach You to Be Rich” by Ramit Sethi

I’ve just started “Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed or Fail”, also by Ray Dailo.

In “I Will Teach You to Be Rich”, Ramit discusses building a “system” to save for retirement. I believe this approach can be applied to other parts of life than just personal finances.

My plan is to build a system. The system will incorporate my values, and be practical for use in a variety of professional situations. I hope this system can guide you in your own endeavours.

I’ll be sharing some of my thoughts about leadership, data engineering, cloud engineering, and artificial intelligence.

Here we go.