Many folks are considering ditching their corporate jobs to join the emerging green economy. But there is a lot to consider. What opportunities actually exist in the sector? Can a person really make a living in the green economy? What about family life?
Kim Hoffman, sales executive with New Leaf Paper, is showing us all how it is done. And she seems to have created a blanced life in the emerging economy.
Let's meet this true Eco Babe.
What exactly is New Leaf Paper?
The market leader for environmental papers for business and non profit use. We have over 25 market leading lines of high post consumer, clean-bleached paper.
What is your formal title and what do you do for New Leaf?
Sales Executive and the best way I describe what I do is education, inspiration, and solution talk about the realities of our paper industry, our changing world climate, and how paper fits into that picture.
I present a vision: to inspire a fundamental shift toward environmental responsibility in the paper industry. Most of what I do is provide the best eco paper solutions for a customers' needs and work with the end user, and their printer, to make a successful transition to earth-friendly paper.
Do you feel your personal values and your work life match?
Yes, I do, though with any job, or project, its a constantly evolving journey.
The accomplishment I most proud of is a partnership with The Breast Cancer Fund called TREEty, which is all about getting the chlorine out of the paper making process, out of our environment, and out of our bodies, where it is an endocrine disruptor and linked to breast cancer. When you sign the TREEty and buy New Leaf Paper, you are already helping the planet with your paper choice, but New Leaf also donates a percentage the sale to the The Breast Cancer Fund. The Breast Cancer Fund is an amazing organization as they address environmental and other preventable causes of breast cancer. TREEty is a model partnership for several reasons: it changes the status quo profit-non profit partnership in that it actually addresses a systemic problem, instead of just throwing money at it, and that New Leaf and the Breast Cancer Fund really have very similar missions: to heal the planet. Ms. Magazine was the founding signer to TREEty and the Breast Cancer Fund remains the largest beneficiary of New Leaf's donations.
Is it possible to actually make a living in the green business sector these days, or is it a hand-to-mouth existence?
Sales in the green world is no different than any other sales job. It takes a long time and hard work, but yes, you can earn a nice living while helping the planet-I joke that I have one of the few jobs where money does grow on trees.
You are a mom with a toddler. How are you able to juggle work and family life?
New Leaf has been very good about caring most about the real bottom line for moms - that I do my job and have good results. I work from my home office and have 100% schedule flexibility which is huge. They also recently provided internet phones to us, which has been a great bonus. I can be at the supermarket-taking advantage of childcare-and not miss an email from a customer. The payoff for years of paying dues in sales is that you then have autonomy, within a supportive organization, and to me that is the number one priority with having a toddler.
When computers were introduced into the workplace there were lots of predictions we would soon operate in a "paperless workplace." The opposite now seems true as people print out emails and any old thing. What is the future of paper in the workplace?
We do use more paper-absolutely and that trend is only going to grow. Office paper is a perfect place for 100 percent post consumer waste paper to be used.
Any thoughts on the growth of Green Business as a sector of our economy?
We have only just begun! Along the way, there will be plenty of green washers, but I think businesses with integrity will triumph. The core, green-minded consumer has high standards and pride themselves on being savvy, reading labels, and knowing about the companies that they support. They seek authenticity, so it will be more and more important to actually have it, not just market it.
Many of our customers choose New Leaf not because they can't find another recycled paper option, but because they like our values: we don't offer 2 recycled grades and 25 virgin - we do only recycled paper, day in, day out.
What advice would you give to a young person interested in a green business career?
That you may not walk right into a mega bucks job, but you can earn a living. Most importantly, at the end of the day, you will be able to feel really good about the work you do. There is a real excitement happening in the green economy: it has meaning, spirit and energy that the traditional extractive based business sector never has had-and never will.
