On Job Search Rules You Should Break Now

While rules can be good and helpful, some can be outdated and sometimes even inaccurate. This applies to the rules that you’ve probably heard when it comes to job searching. In this piece, Gwen Moran highlights 7 common job search rules that need to be reevaluated and perhaps even avoided. For example, a common rule of thumb is to look for job openings on job boards such as Linkedin. However, “by the time many jobs are posted, the company may already have leads on great candidates or have made a decision about their next hire.” It is therefore critical to learn to leverage your personal network to search for potential job openings, and look to places such as subreddits and Slack channels instead of traditional job boards. Give this a read to see which other job search rules you should be rethinking. Fast Company. 

On How to Make a Difference with Your Career 

There is an overwhelming number of urgent challenges facing the world, from poverty to disease to climate change. While many of us (and many of you) have the desire to make a positive impact on our community and in the world, it can be confusing to decide which career to choose in order to create that desired impact. This piece lays out the meaning behind phrases such as “doing good” and “making a difference,” as well as suggests careers have more potential than others to improve societal wellbeing, such as work in fields such as global governance, voting reform, reducing suffering from factory farming, and investing for the future. 80,000 Hours is a great resource for those who want to solve the world’s most challenging problems. We learned lots from this read, hope you do too. 80,000 Hours.

On the Class of RBG

I (Stella) really enjoyed this read on women of the Harvard Law Class of 1959, of which Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a renowned graduate. It traces the stories of the 9 women who shattered glass ceilings by joining a class of over 500 men. They then went on to hold their own in a classroom and a profession dominated by men, all the while juggling familial responsibilities. While RBG has become a household name, the stories of her other female classmates are no less impressive. We have come a long way since 1959, but these narratives of defiance and perseverance have proven to be timeless. After you read this, I would also recommend watching On the Basis of Sex, on how RBG overturned a century of gender discrimination. Read and be inspired. Slate.