We had an FES Faculty Retreat last week, and one of the themes we discussed was the career anxiety of students who come to us (and their parents). They want to study, and they might be attracted to Environmental Studies because of concern for the planet, but will they get a job? Will they be successful?

We thought about how we might ease some of those anxieties - some of the best suggestions came from faculty members like Anders Sandberg and Roger Keil who follow their students long after they've graduated and find that they are doing interesting things out in the world (and have good jobs).

Over the weekend these thoughts of career anxiety ran through my head and I remembered Alain de Botton's excellent TED talk on the topic. He has philosophy that can help you make sense of why you're feeling career anxiety.