So lately this old dog has been looking into funding opportunities for three organizations: a small biz dedicated to sustainability, a biotech, and a non-profit. This research could blossom into grant-writing.
It’s fascinating.
Helping individuals to develop professionally is very rewarding. Helping an organization grow and succeed is fulfilling. Helping lots of organizations do so could be a fine way to pay my bills, and have a great time meeting interesting folks who deserve to do well. So stay tuned.
The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers – William Wordsworth
When was the last time you really focused on something? If it was ever easy for you to focus, is it getting more difficult lately? There are some tasks that are inherently painful to focus on- like job-hunting for example. And we are told too that if we wish to keep an edge we should be tapping the powers of the internet, blogging, twittering, searching. These are good things. But it is possible to be washed overboard by the attention-spamming power of Twitter– possible to become self-absorbed blogging– and exploded into pieces by the process of searching for jobs or information.
Sometimes one has to step away from the keyboard. Forced absences. Refraining from jumping on the computer first thing (this is hard to avoid, but I am working on it). Spending time outdoors – yes, outdoors where you really can’t use your laptop fruitfully when the sun is up! My favorite antidote to a long day of fractured thinking: taking the dog for a run someplace beautiful while the sun is setting. Try it. Your attention span will thank you for it.
to finish with the Poet’s lovely sonnet:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon,
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers,
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not.–Great God! I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn; (1)
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea, (2)
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus (3) rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton (4) blow his wreathed horn.
You know, as I have worked hard poring over twitter and linkedin and job sites these past few months, I’ve felt a fragmentation of message and purpose. And I’ve figured it out, I am attention spamming! There is only so much we can do with our cognitive resources. They are ours to protect and deploy carefully, not promiscuously. Have you focused yourself today? More on this soon, from me and others.
Here’s a website worth your while if you are jobhunting: www.linkup.com. I discovered it recently thanks to twitter, and I think it’s a great tool- no login, and it scrapes over 19,000 quality web-sites for job openings.
and here are some reasons why!
A super tool for networking is the informational interview: Science on Informational Interviews
I saw a terrific seminar by Tory Johnson, CEO of WomenforHire.com. She emphasized getting out there, not just on the internet but virtually as well. Her website is chock full of great tips for everyone – not just women.
Harvard has an amazing Office of Career Services (big surprise there, eh??) and with it, a website jammed with solid information that is well-presented. I am especially fond of materials that can be found under non-academic careers for graduate students - this section has some very helpful information on networking, resume preparation and interviewing.
I hope these help! Good luck!
So lately this old dog has been looking into funding opportunities for three organizations: a small biz dedicated to sustainability, a biotech, and a non-profit. This research could blossom into grant-writing.
