2DO Before I Die

Tight Times Loosen Creativity

The New York Times web site recently requested artists to share how the economy was affecting their lives and work. 

As the Times says in a feature out today: "Perhaps most striking about the comments was the considerable number who were defiantly upbeat despite grim circumstances. Many artists testified that the recession had strengthened their commitment to their work or allowed them to concentrate on their art — since the time spent on side jobs had diminished — or had even been a source of creative inspiration....Said one: 

“Nobody wants me to do anything, so I’m just doing what I want,” she said.

Click here for the full story. 

With Finance Disgraced, Which Career Will Be King?

Today's New York Times has an interesting piece on the changing job market. With Wall Street no longer providing a lucrative, safe haven, it asks where will recent college graduates be looking for work, and how it will impact society? 

An excerpt: "Today, the financial crisis and the economic downturn are likely to alter drastically the career paths of future years. The contours of the shift are still in flux, in part because there is so much uncertainty about the shape of the economic landscape and the job market ahead.

But choosing a career is a guess about the future in which economics is only part of the calculation. Prestige, peer expectations and the climate of public opinion also matter. And early indications suggest new career directions that are tethered less to the dream of an immediate six-figure paycheck on Wall Street than to the demands of a new public agenda to solve the nation’s problems..."

Click here for the full story. 

Top Jobs for 2009 - According to Fast Company

Fast Company has a series of articles out this month on the state of the job market.

Curious to know 'Where in the World to Find A Job', or what the 'Ten Best Green Jobs for the Next Decade' are, or the '7 Essential Steps to Surviving a Post-Layoff Existence'?

Those and Po Bronson's follow piece to his book, 'What Should I Do With My Life, Now?' can all be found here at this link....

Also, link here to their list of new kinds of job sites, using the web in innovative ways. 

Work on Stuff That Matters - First Principles

Good post here by entrepreneur and publisher Tim O'Reilly. Here's the intro, and below that, a link to his full piece.

I spent a lot of last year urging people to work on stuff that matters. This led to many questions about what that "stuff" might be. I've been a bit reluctant to answer those questions, because the list is different for everyone. I thought I'd do better to start the new year with some ideas about how to think about this for yourself.

First off, though, I want to make clear that "work on stuff that matters" does not mean focusing on non-profit work, "causes, or any other form of "do-goodism." Non-profit projects often do matter a great deal, and people with tech skills can make important contributions, but it's essential to get beyond that narrow box. I'm a strong believer in the social value of business done right. We need to build an economy in which the important things are paid for in self-sustaining ways rather than as charities to be funded out of the goodness of our hearts.

There are a number of half-unconscious litmus tests I use in my own life. I'm going to try to tease them out here, and hope that you can help me think this through in the comments.

Read the full piece here. 

'Doing the Math To Find The Best Jobs' - New Survey of Best/Worst Jobs

The Wall Street Journal has a story on a new jobs survey out this week concerning the best and worst occupations in the US.

The survey "evaluates 200 professions to determine the best and worst according to five criteria inherent to every job: environment, income, employment outlook, physical demands and stress." 

Mathematicians come out on top. Lumberjacks take last place. 

For the full list of job rankings, go here. 

For the WSJ article on the survey, click here.