ENVIROlocity™

By: Neha Bhalla 

There’s no doubt that COVID-19 drastically transformed the entire job search process — networking included. Many career seekers express their frustration with me that virtual networking is not as easy as in-person networking.  The reality is that virtual networking is not going away for a long time, if ever; however, it can actually be easier with the right mindset and methods.

Virtual Specific Benefits

Global Availability: Unlike in-person networking, virtual has no bounds. If you’re considering moving to a new location, you can start meeting people before you land a job. 

Convenience: It can be nearly impossible to get a busy person to meet you out for coffee. 15 minutes on a Zoom call, however, is a much smaller ask. Many students don’t have cars so they can skip maneuvering the bus schedule for an hour for a 20-minute meeting. Plus, while you still have to look prepared, you don’t have to put as much effort into...

 Co-authored by Neha Bhalla

Looking to enter the environmental field, but don’t have an environmental degree? Or maybe you don’t have a degree at all. Even though your path into sustainability might look different, you can still do your part to save the planet!

 There are many valid reasons why someone might want to pursue a career without getting a degree first. They may feel it’s too late in their career to go back to school, they may not be able to afford it, or they simply may not have an affinity for academia. Regardless of your reasoning, in this article, we will cover what you need to know to break into the environmental field.

If you have any degree at all — whether you studied computer science, marketing, or even film — those skills can almost definitely help our planet. A relatively seamless way to transition into the environmental field is to apply for roles that you were already applying to before, but at environmental...

Co-authored by Neha Bhalla

Take a deep breath - you’ve made it through 2020. I hope you had a relaxing holiday season, no matter how you celebrated it, and here’s hoping for a lockdown-free, mask-off 2021!

As the new year starts, here is what you need to know to reinvigorate your job search!

1. Stop Doubting Yourself 

Half of the job-search-battle is your mindset, and after a difficult job market in 2020, it’s easy to feel frustrated or defeated. However, if you’re going into interviews thinking “I’m unqualified for this job” or “I don’t want to be here,” you might as well not show up. Confidence and enthusiasm are everything; acting down-in-the-dumps during an interview or blasé about a job is a massive red flag for a hiring manager.   

If you do find yourself saying “I’m unqualified for the types of jobs I want,” there are plenty of ways to become qualified - whether...

You’re excited — but also nervous. 

You got the interview, now it’s time to get ready.

13 quick tips to help you prepare for your upcoming job interview.

Before the Interview Tips:

1. Research the company

Awaken your inner stalker. Do some research into the company you’re interviewing for. 

Look at the company’s website, check out their LinkedIn, Google them, Bing them, read news articles, and keep researching until you have a thorough understanding of the company’s culture, mission, and values.

2. Dress for success

Making a good first impression is EVERYTHING.  

Research the company’s dress code and make sure you dress accordingly. You don’t wanna be wearing basketball shorts when everyone else is in suits. 

3. Prepare a few relevant short stories

Don’t just regurgitate what’s on your resume.  

Instead — highlight your skills with short stories explaining how you got them, why you...

You’ve got an interview coming up for an environmental position. How do you prepare? What will they ask you? How can you stand out?

90% of the mastering an interview is standard issue, meaning it would apply to any job in any industry.

Things like dressing appropriately, making eye contact, and following up. What you need to know is the kind of info you can’t just find by searching “how to prepare for an interview?” You need to know that other 10%, the 10% that relates directly to environmental positions.

Here are some environmental interview specific example cases and recommendations for how to handle them: 

Stop waiting for the experience to fall in your lap and go out and get it.

Past experience

It’s common to think your college didn’t prepare you for that first job because the reality is that they didn’t. You know what permitting is but you haven’t done it. You understand the concept of water monitoring and sampling but you...

Getting your environmental degree most likely means you’ll need to complete at least one internship. One the one hand it seems exciting to have hands-on experience, on the other hand, it can be scary. Procrastination is one of the worst things you can do because of the good internships, the ones that pay or are at the local aquarium, go fast. Waiting until the final hour also increases your stress because you’ll get more rejections and feel like you’re running out of options.

Here are three things you can do to rest assured that the internship is coming:

1. Start looking early. The best time to start looking is now, even if you don’t need the internship until next year or another semester. Starting early will allow you to start networking in the right places (see #2). It wouldn’t hurt to ask if you can get on the waitlist for popular programs more than a semester out.
2. Network both online and in-person. You’ve got your LinkedIn profile up to date,...

The best way to get an advantage in the job search, after networking, is to bring something special to the table. Of course, every job and industry are different but there are a few skills that are important to all industries that can serve you well no matter where you work.

The key is to choose one, or one at a time, and focus on building that skill. Often for entry-level positions, the applicants all have just a basic knowledge of any one of these. Being able to show that you have a passion for one of them, are really great at it, and have something to show for it can pay off big time.

So, how do you choose? For that, we turn to Key #2 of the Environmental Career Coach’s 3 Keys to landing your dream job. Key #2 is Knowledge, Experience, and Interest. Combining the three of these over time should develop into a passion. Start with interest. Which of the 4 cross-cutting skills is interesting to you? If they all are, or none are, then you can look at the job...