Corporate lawyer,  turned explorer, writer, environmental change agent and much more… including, you know, just snorkeling across the Arctic to raise awareness about disappearing sea ice. Emily’s dream is that every New Zealander has healthy food on their table that is better for people, our waterways, soils and oceans. Through her role at the Sustainable […]

As an HR practitioner with around 15 years in the field, I have sat on a huge number of interview panels. These have been across a range of industries as well as in a number of different countries. Certain things have stood out during my time on the ‘other side’ of the table, with this […]

When I sat down with Anna Watson at the iconic central Wellington Lido café, we got straight into chatting about careers, passions and the hopeful blending of those into one. She began by referring me to David Sedaris’ “Four Burners Theory”, shared on Do Good Jobs, a theory on life that had recently caught her […]

After months of near total perfect silent Nothingness. After more than 200 job applications resulting in less than ten one line emails, I was broken. Absolutely and utterly broken. In a world, in a country, in a class, in a family that values your job as a measure of your success, I was a failure […]

Where are you working at the moment Fiona? I’m the Community Projects Manager of Child Labor Free Foundation ( I started less than a month ago!) and am also writing for GOOD Travel. Can you tell us what Child Labor Free Foundation does? Child Labor Free is a simple concept to address a complex problem. […]

You’re probably familiar with the trope “sitting is the new smoking”. Everything is the new smoking if you do it too long and in positions that are not ergonomic.  Sitting, standing, using devices, staring, emailing, collaborating, sleep deprivation, drinking and even smoking are the new smoking. The push for Wellness is a movement that’s here […]

  Ex-treasury economist, social entrepreneur, strawbale home builder, hospitality guru and more. Ben’s a do-gooder that’s good at getting stuff done. He’s the co-founder and CEO of Conscious Consumers, a social enterprise that connects consumers with businesses who care about looking after the planet. Here’s more about his career path, what he’s doing now and […]

It was a perplexing phone call. My job application had been successful and they had narrowed applicants down to 12 from 100+ applicants. I was excited about the role. So this was good news… Would I care to join them for a group job interview? I would need to prepare some sort of activity for […]

Paul Bedggood is the Volunteer Service Abroad (VSA) Programme Manager based in Bougainville. He’s also a three-time VSA volunteer and all-round good guy (so much so that the word is even embedded in his name!). The VSA Programme Manager role calls for people prepared to turn their hand to anything, from mingling with ministers and diplomats […]

You have a big interview looming. You’re nervous. You’ve heard that the questions are tough. No doubt you have prepared all the answers to the cliché questions focusing on your strengths and weaknesses….What you may not be as prepared for are the dreaded behavioural questions that are increasingly common in job interviews. These questions are […]

Do you wish you could withdraw to a blanket-fort? Do you fantasize about switching an open-plan office for a cubicle-oasis of bliss? Do you feel like work-related criticism or bright lights seems to effect you more than your colleagues? If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you may be a Highly Sensitive […]

  How approaching a job interview can feel like making a celebrity comeback From Puff-daddy to P-diddy, from Prince to the artist formerly known as (rest in peace), from Beyonce to Sasha Fierce and back; what do these celebrity reinventions have to do with job interviews, you ask? Each time you approach a job interview, […]

Talk to enough people in the progressive and NGO sectors and you will find those who work more than they are paid for. There are a few ways this can manifest. Perhaps they don’t claim for the exact hours they work, don’t file for overtime, skip lunch breaks and holidays, or regularly gift their time […]

Reuben is the “Chief Spoon Bender” for The One Percent Collective – a storyteller that’s out to drive change and make magic stuff happen. He’s a newbie to working in the charity sector, but from what I’ve seen, he’s keen to learn, has bucket loads of enthusiasm and is an all-round goodie! I might be […]

The precursor to considering a change of career is discontent. Sometimes we suffer years of it before we take action. We humans are complex creatures, but getting to the bottom of your ennui is the foundation to creating a better life. Sometimes people make massive changes to create a different work life only to realise […]

Everybody needs good neighbours – and I don’t mean this in an Australian soap opera kind of way (though I was a huge fan back in the Kylie and Jason days!). Right now, my desk neighbour at my co-working spot at the Bizdojo is Ashlee. And guess what? Ashlee is a Do Good Jobs success […]

Self-care, what does it really mean and how can we practice self-care to benefit our work and personal lives.

You’ve probably heard the saying “jack of all trades, master of none”, but do you know there’s an additional line? Jack of all trades, master of none, though oftentimes better than master of one The addition of seven words turns an insult into encouragement. Fingers in lots of pies? Great! Pies are really delicious. Why stick to […]

  I find it encouraging to know that a new generation of do-gooders are in the wings, the future leaders of Kiwi charities and good business. Jemma has contributed a blog post about her thoughts (and excitement) about being able to join the do-good workforce fresh from university, and the challenges of achieving this as […]

I love new year’s resolutions. I love making new year’s resolutions, anyway (learn to drive! write a book! talk to cute person who works at neighbourhood coffee shop!)*. The task of actually resolving new year’s resolutions is a bit of a different story. Despite faithfully resolving to learn to drive for the last five years, the number of […]