For the past several years I have been asked by others and asking myself, “what do you want to do?”, “what’s next?”. Whether it concerned what I wanted to major in, what internship to take, or what to do after graduation. Well, it took me nearly three years of college to pin down a major, and two semesters before graduation to really grasp onto my area of interest(which by the way, happens to be something I did not major in). Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing I regret doing in my 5 years(wow!) of undergrad. Had I not chosen art school in Philadelphia, I would have never transferred to SJU. Had I not majored in finance, I wouldn’t have realized how greatly bothered I was with bad ethics in business, which would not have led me to switch my major to Management. And if I did not have to choose MHC(Managing Human Capital) electives, I would not have taken Dr. Steingard’s Business, Stakeholders and Ethics course; which hit me like a ton of bricks. Stakeholder Theory and Social Responsibility set the tone for the rest of my education at Saint Joseph’s University(which was unfortunately only a semester and a half). But regardless of the short time I had left at SJU, that course and the people I met during my last year there, will have changed me forever….
But that still leaves my last question unanswered. I know what I am interested in and I know what I am passionate about, but what do I do with it? WHAT’S NEXT?! I have answered this question in many variations, but none of them actually solid or completely honest. Lets try some honesty… I have NO idea. I really don’t. There is an endless list of areas I could focus my career on, but how do you pick? Sustainability and social responsibility is so far from specific. Do I want to consult businesses on how to reduce their carbon footprint and increase their community outreach? YES. Do I want to put programs in place that help reduce food waste, while simultaneously helping the homeless population? YES. Do I want to focus on promoting sustainable transportation by creating bike-friendly venues? TOTALLY. I could really keep going with this, but I think you get the point. I feel passionate about all of the above, and then some. So what do I do with that?
Well, a few months ago I became addicted to this subscription called “The Daily GOOD”. I get a message in my Gmail inbox every day that describes something totally awesome going on in our world, in our communities today, that puts sustainability and/or social impact into action. Basically, it is a community of professional do-gooders(for lack of a better term), sharing their impact and their ideas. I am also a member of the Philadelphia Net Impact Professional Chapter, which gives me access to even more “GOOD” information. Well, its pretty cool to have access to all of this info and inspiration, but after nearly a year of reading cool articles, I want to be up close and personal with these people, these projects. So this is where my “next step” comes in…
I may not know where my passions will lead me, but I do know that I want to get in on the action, or at least learn about it first hand. That being said, I have embarked on the most epic and awesome journey of my life. Over the next 3-4 months, I will be traveling the opposite side of the country in search of tall mountains to climb, beautiful winding roads to bike up, and local businesses that harness their power for good and make sustainability a priority. I want to experience any and everything I can(adventurous, spontaneous, scary and otherwise). And I want to see and experience the impact of businesses, in every place I plant my feet this summer.
So after quite a bit of back-story and explanation, this personal blog is intended for those who wish to keep up with my adventures and maybe gain some insight about the communities and businesses I speak to and learn about in my travels. Enjoy!
Reduce, Renew, Redefine 