Making Good

March 5, 2012
Social entrepreneurs Parish (co-founder of Energy Action Coalition) and Aujla (founder of DreamNow) provide an informative and engaging look at how to make the world a better place while simultaneously earning a living. The authors show that there's an upside to our web connectivity, namely the awakening of empathy on a wide scale and its power to prompt global change. Those that are driving this movement and improving their own lives are responding to three important developments: the increasing ability to see the world as one family; opportunities provided by the internet to "collaborate, innovate, and share information across borders;" and strides being made in green technology. While the authors emphasize the huge shift occasioned by the rise of social networking, they insist that this is a multigenerational effort. Parish and Aujla make a convincing case for this growing trend, but their greatest contribution centers around monetizing social commitments and turning them into jobs. While stressing that each person's path will be different, the authors offer practical strategies and identify four common stages that all will encounter. Along the way, they share success stories from their own lives and others' across a variety of industries to demonstrate how to find and take advantage of opportunities. Geared toward helping readers find satisfaction in work that reflects their principles, this book shows that you don't have to compromise to earn a living by doing good.

Starred review from February 15, 2012

The realities of the recent recession, high unemployment rates, and ever-increasing student loan balances can justifiably dampen the bright moral imaginations of the generation now entering the workforce. Coauthors Parish (founder, Energy Action Coalition) and Aujla (founder, DreamNow) outline the skills, resources, and insights necessary to create socially responsible change while navigating a nonlinear career path. The authors use their more than ten years of personal experience as well as lessons from fellow pathfinders to put together this insider's guidebook to social entrepreneurship. They cover foundational concepts, preparatory exercises, daily practices, and resources helpful in creating careers that combine meaning, money, and community while "making good." VERDICT Highly recommended. An uplifting primer filled with practical insights for students who want to effect global change without sacrificing personal financial security or stability. The business acumen, leadership skills, as well as real-life examples illustrated here draw a compelling picture of careers that combine purpose and sustainable security.--Jane Scott, George Fox Univ. Lib., Newberg, OR

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 15, 2012
Two enterprising young activists explain why trying to change the world is the best career move you could possibly make right now. The current unemployment crisis is enough to get anyone down, but Parish and Aujla are here to brighten the gloomy atmosphere. Where others see hopelessness, they see opportunity. This enthusiastic handbook urges the jobless and the underemployed to venture out, virtually skip the corporate world all together and embrace the power of "non-linear" career paths. Doing so, the authors write, will lead not only to greater personal fulfillment, but also broader societal change. The prescription boils down to acknowledging your passion, discovering a need and creating the job that you really want. The authors draw heavily on their own experience working in the areas of green energy and community organizing to illustrate their points. They also provide numerous exercises, each designed to aid others in devising personal pathways out of the jobless wilderness. Joseph Campbell urged his students to "follow their bliss." Parish and Aujla are doing the same thing here, with the added benefit of reducing unemployment and hopefully spurring wider societal progress. There isn't one right way to create your own job, of course, so the authors provide general rules, exercises and thought experiments to help individuals realize their true potential and value in the changing workforce. Unfortunately, their efforts to simultaneously address both career development and social change occasionally become unwieldy, resulting in choppy sections. Practical advice and earnest cheerleading more than make up for these shortcomings, however. A fresh way to look at the challenges facing job seekers today.

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