I have about six lightbulbs out in my house that are in impossible to reach places. If one more goes out, I’m going to have to break out the ladder and risk my life for the sake of lighting. Since I don’t own the place, I’m probably not going to invest in a more expensive energy-efficent bulb that takes years to pay itself off. But if I did own a place, that would probably be the best decision, which is why TCP is worth taking a look at it–energy efficient lightning is a huge growth industry. The Aurora, OH based company (their world headquarters is in Cham, Switzerland) calls itself “the home of lighting innovation.” They “offer one of the largest selections of ENERGY STAR-approved products” and “distribute them throughout North America and abroad.”
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I’m going to a wedding this weekend. I’ll wear the same black Bonobos suit that I wear to every wedding. All I have to think about is what tie to wear. I’d never even consider buying a new outfit for a wedding other than my own or one I’m in. But it’s not an uncommon thing for a lot of women to wear a different dress to every wedding they go to. That can get expensive, unless you choose to Rent The Runway. Rent The Runway is a New York, NY based “community designed to fill the needs of women who know and love high fashion, who want to look glamorous for all their nights out, and experiment with new brands without the anxiety of investing in piece after piece.” (Use this link to try it for $20 off.) The company was started by two women (Jenn and Jenny) who met at Harvard Business School, and it’s taken off since as the “Netflix for fashion.”
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fashion,
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product development,
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software development,
style,
web development,
writing
One mistake that most college students make is that they focus too much on sexy industries and companies during their internship search. There’s no doubt that following your interests can lead to really good things, but there are so many “boring” industries and businesses that can provide amazing learning opportunities while being surprisingly interesting. Advantage Business Media certainly falls into this category. They’re a Rockaway, NJ based “digital business-to-business information company” that “has successfully transitioned itself from a print-centric publishing company into digital-centric media organization.” B2B is a space that many young people are barely aware of, but it’s absolutely massive.
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unpaid,
Wisconsin
I’m getting a dog! It’s still many months away at the earliest, but I’m extremely excited. It’s going to be a sporting breed, and I’m hoping to train it to do what it will be bred to do. I’ve been reading a few books on training in preparation, and I’m simply amazed by what dogs are capable of. The combination of good breeding and patient training is extremely powerful. And nowhere is that combination put to better use than at Canine Companions for Independence. They are a Santa Rosa, CA based non-profit that “enhances the lives of people with disabilities by providing highly trained assistance dogs and ongoing support to ensure quality partnerships.” They have regional training centers across the country, so they’re able to match amazing dogs with the people who will benefit from them most–free of charge.
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California,
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When I was a kid I was jealous of the kids who went to one of the other elementary schools in town because they had an awesome carnival. I was kind of a wimp about carnival rides, so the most intense ride that I would go on was called the Himalaya. All it did was spin you around kind of fast. While the painting on the ride was certainly accurate to the name, I’m not sure that it was a very good representation of Himalayan culture. The Rubin Museum of Art in New York, NY is. It’s “a dynamic environment that stimulates learning, promotes understanding, and inspires personal connections to the ideas, cultures, and art of Himalayan Asia.” It also won’t make you nauseous like the ride might.
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New York,
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programming,
publishing,
research,
unpaid
Last week in my write up on the U.S. Association Of Former Members Of Congress, I touched on the idea that our politicians might be more effective after they retire from public service. I think this is especially true for members of Congress who have no term limits and constantly need to worry about being reelected, but I think that presidents face similar pressures to follow the polls. Once they’re out of office, former politicians are free to work on the problems that they think are important. For President Clinton this work manifests itself through the William J. Clinton Foundation, which is Little Rock, AR and New York, NY based non-profit organization that aims to “improve global health, strengthen economies worldwide, promote healthier childhoods, and protect the environment by fostering partnerships among governments, businesses, nongovernmental organizations, and private citizens.”
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south africa,
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One of the things that I find strangest about American politics is that older people are generally far more worried about the debt situation than young people (even though it’s the older generations that is responsible). At some point we won’t be able to kick the can any farther down the road, and I fear that time will come just as our generation is hitting its prime. It’s an extremely serious issue, but it’s one that is hard to take seriously when you’re young. The Can Kicks Back is an organization that is trying to change that. Though they haven’t launched yet (their website says Fall 2012), the “Millennial-driven campaign to solve America’s fiscal crisis” will be based in Washington, DC. I would have thought that The Can Kicks Back would already be more active considering that the election is barely 2 months away.
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Over the years I’ve come across quite a few non-profits that use sports as a tool to enact social change. Most of them focus on youth. It makes sense–when you’re young it’s easy to pick up new sports and you stand to gain the most from the positive influences of being on a team. Lately, I’ve started to see a few organizations that are using sports to help end homelessness. A few months ago I wrote about Back On My Feet which “promotes the self-sufficiency of people experiencing homelessness by engaging them in running as a means to build confidence, strength and self-esteem.” Today I came across Street Soccer USA, which is a New York, NY based non-profit that “to get homeless men, women, and youth off the streets, scoring goals on the field, and achieving their goals in life.” It’s a really neat idea, and it seems to be working.
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Forbes is calling for nominations for their list of The Best Websites For Your Career. Let’s put ODOJ/ODOI on top of the list. E-mail careerwebsites@forbes.com or tweet @JacquelynVSmith and tell them why One Day One Job/Internship belongs.
If you look through our archives, you’ll occasionally come across a company that is radically different from when we covered them. If a business can’t rapidly adapt to a changing market, they’re probably going to end up dead (there are a few of those in our archives too). That’s why I’m fascinated by companies that are able to successfully reinvent themselves. Jellyvision is an awesome example. They started out creating children’s films as Learn Television, but they quickly became frustrated by the passivity of a one-way medium, so they moved into interactive software. They released a few titles before landing on a blockbuster called You Don’t Know Jack. You’ve probably played it or heard of it considering that it’s sold more than 4.5 million units. Jellyvision, which is based in Chicago, IL, is still in the games business (Jellyvision Games), but they also decided to share their ability in “employing interactivity to communicate complex subjects” through work as a marketing agency called Jellyvision Labs.
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software development,
video games,
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A lot of people criticize the NIMBY or “Not in My Back Yard” mentality. I think it’s great. If people stand up for their own interests, then you get a more efficient distribution of externalities. Locally focused organizations are often the most effective because the people are much more deeply invested. That’s likely the case with Louisiana Bucket Brigade, which is a New Orleans, LA based non-profit “environmental health and justice organization working with communities that neighbor the state’s oil refineries and chemical plants.” It’s all about holding industry accountable for the pollution that they create.
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I’ve always had an amazing appreciation for wildlife, but after a week in Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks, it’s definitely grown. I’m completely amazed by how many species I was able to experience that were at one point on the brink of extinction. While the federal government has done a fantastic job in that particular situation, they’re not able to act in the same way across the world. That’s where organizations like World Wildlife Fund come in. WWF is a Washington, DC non-profit that “has been protecting the future of nature” for the last 50 years. They work in 100 countries and have more than 5 million members across the world. The organization’s vision is “to build a future in which people live in harmony with nature.” That’s a tall task considering our history, but there are certainly signs of hope.
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Washington DC
One day I aspire to have so much money that I don’t know where it all is. I’m not talking about having random $20 bills in some of my pants pockets–I mean having all kinds of financial accounts all over the place. It’s a problem that we all want to have–and, yes, it can be a problem. It’s hard to manage your money and allocate your investments properly when you don’t have a grasp of where it all is. ByAllAccounts is a Woburn, MA company that has developed a technology solution that can aggregate “account data from virtually any online financial source.” That means that they’re able to “provide transaction level detail, data quality, and custodian coverage specifically required for professional wealth managers and financial advisors.” ByAllAccounts isn’t magic–it can’t find every account that a person has–but once you link accounts in, it’s able to keep pulling in data to provide a continuous feed of the activity across all accounts.
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One of the most impressive things about the United States is how much we do for the rest of the world. We may do our fair share of messing things up and meddling in other people’s business, but the amount of aid that comes out of this country is truly remarkable. There are all kinds of organizations that are doing a variety of things to help the developing world. Many of these organizations are members of InterAction, a Washington, DC based non-profit that “seeks to shape important policy decisions on relief and long term development issues, including foreign assistance, the environment, women, health, education and agriculture.” They represent more than 190 member organizations that combine to do work in nearly every developing country. All of InterAction’s member organizations share the goal of a “peaceful, just and prosperous world of nations with inclusive and sustainable societies.”
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There are two ways that I like to judge PR and marketing firms. I like to look at the work that they do for their clients, and I like to look at the work they do for themselves. I’m not sure if one is more important than the other, but I think it’s kind of ridiculous if a firm doesn’t do a good job communicating their brand. VSCPR is “an award-winning strategic public relations and digital marketing boutique founded in 2002” that does a fantastic job with their messaging. They’re based in San Francisco, CA with offices in New York, Mumbai, and London. The VSC in their name stands for visibility, strategy, and creativity, and the company calls its people “the pyromaniacs of PR.” Their website certainly exudes all of those things.
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Last weekend we took a look at International Rivers and how they are ““at the heart of the global struggle to protect rivers and the rights of communities that depend on them.” While rivers are my favorite body of water, they aren’t by any means the only ones that that are essential to the livelihood of nearby communities (and it’s not just communities in the developing world that are so dependent on bodies of water). That’s why we’re going to take today to look at a non-profit organization that aims to protect a single watershed. Heal the Bay is devoted to protecting and reviving Santa Monica Bay, “the centerpiece of Los Angeles’ beach culture, and the geographic center of the LA region.” They’re based in Santa Monica, CA, and they’re focused on both the aesthetic and economic reasons for healing the bay.
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Communication is one of the most essential skills in the job search. If you can’t communicate your value to an employer, you won’t get hired. Most people use words to communicate–some do better when they’re spoken and some do better when they’re written. And some do better with pictures. Those are the types of people who should work at JESS3, a Los Angeles, CA (formerly Washington, DC) based “creative interactive agency that specializes in the art of data visualization, adding context and meaning to the exponentially growing world of data around us.” They’re another company that I learned about from Inc. Magazine’s 30 Under 30 list of America’s Coolest Young Entrepreneurs. The company is actually run by a couple (Jesse and Leslie), which must make for an interesting dynamic.
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web development
For most of us hunger means that we’ll be eating soon–it’s a sign from our bodies to walk to the kitchen. That’s why it’s hard to grasp that hunger is still a problem in our communities, especially with obesity becoming such a big problem. Food insecurity might be a better name for today’s version of the problem (though that sounds like when someone feels bad after they eat). Whatever you want to call it, WhyHunger is a New York, NY based non-profit that is trying to fix it. They are “a leader in building the movement to end hunger and poverty by connecting people to nutritious, affordable food and by supporting grassroots solutions that inspire self-reliance and community empowerment.”
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Yesterday we talked about how One Acre Fund is helping people escape poverty by giving them access to technology that makes them better farmers. Today’s non-profit also fights poverty with technology, but they’re using the power of the Internet to give people in countries like India, Pakistan, Haiti, Uganda, South Africa, and Kenya access to more robust economies. Samasource is based in San Francisco, CA, and they have a technology platform that brings “dignified, computer-based work to women, youth, and refugees living in poverty.” Outsourcing and offshoring often get a bad rap, but you rarely hear about how life changing the work can be for the people who get it. (I’m also convinced that outsourcing is a significant net positive for those of us who live in the countries with robust economies.)
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I’ve read plenty of articles about how technology is making kids dumber. Video games, Facebook, and text messaging are usually the culprits. I’m more interested in how technology is making kids smarter. My expectations for kids who are currently in elementary school are through the roof because of the tools they and their teachers have access to. Wireless Generation is a Brooklyn, NY based company that is at the forefront of education technology. The company was founded by two Rhodes Scholars who “shared a passion for technology and an interest in what it could do for K-12 teachers.” Within ten years they built this passion into a company that was sold for $360 million. That’s what’s cool about the education market–you can feel like you’re doing good and still play in a market with big money.
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statistics,
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video games,
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If you asked me if I like pop culture, I’d say yes without hesitation. I’m pretty good with trivia from the 90s and 2000s, but I’m not sure if I like pop culture anymore. Either I’m a little bit smarter, or our society is a lot dumber. I say that, but then I go and watch reality tv… and I literally just clicked a link to a NY Daily News article about a Dutch artist who turned a stuffed cat into a remote control helicopter (I refuse to link to it). Pop culture is like a drug, and BUZZMEDIA is a dealer. They are based in Hollywood, CA, and they’re “the web’s fastest growing entertainment publisher reaching more than 100MM monthly pop culture, music and celebrity enthusiasts worldwide.”
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Walking around a museum and looking at stuff is usually boring for me. It’s just too passive. I like museums that are hands-on and offer experiential learning opportunities. I’ve never been there, but The Exploratorium in San Francisco, CA looks like my kind of museum. It’s focused on art, science, and human perception and based on the premise that “following your curiosity and asking questions can lead to amazing moments of discovery, learning, and awareness, and can increase confidence in your ability to understand how the world works.” The Exploratorium looks like a truly amazing place to visit, and they even offer all kinds of in-depth web content for those who can’t visit.
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Last week a guy I knew in college e-mailed me looking for some career guidance. I’m happy to help just about anyone as long as they ask pretty specific questions, but I’m especially willing to do whatever I can to help him out. Why? While I thought I was taking a risk by doing a startup after graduation, he’s been flying helicopters in Afghanistan for the Army. It’s easy to forget that there are people like him who are risking their lives every day to protect us. Memorial Day weekend is all about thanking them and remembering those who have lost their lives in the call of duty. That’s why we’re going to take a look at an organization called Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America today. They’re based in New York, NY and Washington, DC, and they are the “country’s first and largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.”
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Washington DC
Neuroscience is a word that is about as intimidating as astrophysics. Most people have no idea what it means, but they’re pretty sure that its definition is over their head. The truth is that neuroscience is simply the study of the brain and nervous system. That’s not to say it’s a simple science, but it’s a science that covers equipment that we all have. With that said, neuroscience gets a bit complex as it draws from “other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics, medicine and allied disciplines, philosophy, physics, and psychology.” (Here’s the Wikipedia article on Neuroscience.) The Society for Neuroscience is a Washington, DC based non-profit member organization for the scientists and physicians who study the brain and nervous system.
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operations,
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psychology,
science,
Washington DC
I get a ton of PR pitches every day (I just got another one while I was writing this). They typically range from very bad to downright terrible, so I either ignore them or send a nasty reply asking the person to remove me from their list. I checked my e-mail archives, and I’ve never received a pitch from anyone at Sparkpr, but my guess based on their reputation is that they’d actually take the time to send me a decent pitch if it was appropriate. They’re a San Francisco, CA PR firm that was started in the late 90s “at the height of the Internet explosion in Silicon Valley.” They’ve maintained their close ties to the tech scene through the ups and downs, and they’ve won a ton of awards along the way.
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Happy Mother’s Day! While the best gift that you could possibly give your mother is for you to get a job–flowers, brunch, or a card will have to do for now (not many people get hired over the weekend). I think flowers make a pretty awesome gift, but it sucks that they are eventually going to die. Why not give your mom a flower experience instead? Take her somewhere like the Queens Botanical Garden, which is a Flushing, NY based “urban oasis where people, plants and cultures are celebrated through inspiring gardens, innovative educational programs and demonstrations of environmental stewardship.” Could there be a better place to take your mother?
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plant science,
unpaid
Earth Day is a contrived holiday. It was designed as a day of teach-ins across the country to educate students about environmental evils. April 22 was chosen as the date because it fit perfectly between spring break and final exams. If you want to maximize on-campus student activity, this is the time of year to do it. It’s worked. Earth Day now has more than 40 years of history behind it, and it continues to be a great way to rally people for environmental causes. Earth Day Network is a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that organizes Earth Day activities across the world while also focusing on environmental causes year round. In the past they’ve “executed successful environmental campaigns on issues ranging from climate change and drinking water to voter registration and saving the whale.”
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unpaid,
Washington DC
April is the month of Opening Days. My two favorite seasons–baseball and fishing–open all across the country this time of year. I’ve already snuck up to Michigan’s Au Sable River once this year to go fishing, and I have another trip planned in a couple weeks. I’m lucky that I have such a wonderful place to spend my time, and I have a number of conservation groups to thank for their work in protecting and improving the river system and its trout fishing. I’m a total sucker for anything related to hunting or fishing, so when a reader e-mailed me yesterday to tell me about a job at the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, there was no doubt in my mind that I’d be writing about them today. They’re a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that provides “access and a voice for sportsmen in the U.S. Congress, the Administration and federal land management agencies, as well as state legislatures across the country.” They’ve been at it for more than 20 years, and they’ve accomplished quite a bit in that time.
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Washington DC
I hate stock photography–especially the kind that you find on many career related sites. It’s usually a group of moderately attractive, racially diverse people who are smiling while dressed in business suits and holding folios. It’s not real. These photos create an unrealistic view of what a work environment looks like. In the world of home design, the analog is the fruit bowl. Whether you’re looking through real estate listings or a home decor magazine, chances are that you’ll see lots of fruit bowls–and they’ll be in odd places like bathrooms and bedrooms. Dwell is a magazine that defines itself by focusing on real life, something that “has been conspicuous by its absence in most design and architecture magazines.” Fruit bowls are ok, but only if the owners eat fruit. And so are other things you may not see in similar magazines–things that “demonstrate that a home is truly livable” by showing “it as it is lived in.” Dwell is based in New York, NY and San Francisco, CA, and although they consider themselves Modernists, they’re “nice Modernists.”
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Internships,
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writing
Whether you’re giving or receiving, there’s nothing better than a unique, well thought out gift. Gift cards have a reputation for being the antithesis of that. But let’s be honest, it’s often better to be able to buy what you want than to be in a situation where you’re repeating the name of the gift just given to you (Seinfeld pointed this out, and it’s so true). GiftRocket is a San Francisco, CA based company that has made the gift card more flexible while also making it more personal. I know that seems impossible, but here’s how it works. When you buy someone a gift on GiftRocket, you can choose from a massive number of merchants. You can pick a specific one like your favorite neighborhood pizza joint, or you can leave it up to your recipient to choose where he or she wants to spend the money.
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Public relations is a funny game. A former intern recently published an interview with me on a pretty major blog. I got the coverage because of who I knew. But then an even bigger blog called Lifehacker blogged about the article. I got the coverage because of where I had been previously covered. A few days later One Day One Job was mentioned in another Lifehacker article on Top 10 Ways to Get a Better Job (this was just a short mention, but it sent by far the most traffic). I got this coverage because the author was familiar with me and my site. It takes a ton of hard work to run into this kind of luck, which is why most major companies hire PR firms that have solid reputations and great relationships with journalists. But it takes more than that–it takes a focus on action and results, which is exactly what Emanate offers. They’re a New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA based PR firm that focuses on consumer marketing, corporate communications, digital & social media, and health & wellness. They’ve only been around five years, but they’ve accomplished a lot and have big plans for the next five years.
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