11.6.2009 10:10 AM

Learn This Secret to Green Career and Investing Success

Understand how to take advantage of growing opportunity in clean energy, organics, remediation and many other areas.

man in business outfit with briefcases rejoices in a field

Photo: Istock

By TDG Community

The following is a guest post by Ezra Drissman of GreenCareersGuide

Growing up and living in Michigan I have learned a lot about business. Most recently, the state has seen tremendous financial troubles. From this I learned the most important aspect of any business: diversification.

Of course, this lesson is easier said than done. Most of us learn at an early age to find what we are good at and stick with it. This is a good lesson but it's lacking some clear direction. What we should have learned was, find what we are good at and seek the many careers that fit into that specialty. If this would have been our attitude from the beginning, we may not have failed because we would have learned to diversify. It's through diversification that the green industry is set up for success.

Many industries are set up with a diversification model. For example, if you have a working knowledge of how to build and market a Website, then you can use this knowledge in nearly any field. This is a trait that can be applied to many. If you are good at selling, than you can walk into any business and succeed regardless of what you are selling.

In these examples the skill is what's marketable. In the new green economy, all sections of jobs can be crossed over into a green career. If you are a roofer, than you can transfer this skill over, if you are an engineer, this can be transferred over. This is what makes green careers such an exciting and optimistic opportunity.

The United Nations expects the green career movement to be a 1.5 trillion dollar industry. This is because so many of the jobs that are currently available can be transferred. Another reason is that we are just starting to see the development of the clean energy field. This field is truly in its embryonic stage.

In a few ways the green industry is similar to the car industry. The car industry, at its prime, was a massive industry that encompassed hundreds of other smaller ones. Car sales, engineering, manufacturing and many others were, and still are, reliant on the larger body. The big difference is that the different parts of the green industry are not reliant on any larger body. They are themselves entire industries that have a complementary relationship with other green companies.

Green collar jobs are truly in the beginning stages. Many times we read articles on how there is no real definition to a green career. In many ways, they are right but completely miss the point. What makes the industry so strong is the truly diverse definition and complementary nature. As the U.S and the world start to think about how they can go green, take some time to diversify.

Also by Ezra Drissman:

From Yahoo! Green: Finding the green job of your dreams

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