Change Doesn't Happen Without Action
I have been building socially conscious businesses most of my life without really having a name for what I was building. I just had this desire in my heart to help people, to make a difference while making enough profit to be able to support my family in a way that my loving parents could not provide for their own children while we were growing up.
So, I stumbled along and built businesses that have done just that.
In 2012, I had the wonderful fortune to run into a woman that was doing a Doctoral Thesis for her PhD on Benefit Corporations. Not knowing what the heck a Benefit Corporation was, I was super intrigued and we quickly became friends.
I’m one of those nerds that is super into building businesses and helping other people build businesses but I get super nerdy when building a business that will help others.
I learned so much from her while helping her with her thesis. She is in her fifties and has been building businesses since college so she has much more experience under her belt than I do. So I was more than happy to sit at the knee of the teacher and learn.
The Most Important Lesson
I learned from her for years and the greatest lesson that she taught me was that change doesn’t happen without action. If you want true, lasting change that makes an impact then you have to be brave enough to take the first step.
It can be absolutely TERRIFYING to spearhead a movement and enact change.
What if you fail?
What if your resolve is not strong enough to see it through?
What if it’s too hard?
There are so many questions that can swim through the mind of someone that takes on a social challenge that they want to change. Or any new project or challenge really. But the road to change starts with a single step forward, then another.
Being the Change You Want to See In the World
If you want to inspire change, you have to first embody the change that you want to bring about. Talk is cheap, as they say.
Take action in your own life as you build out the business or organization that you want to bring into existence. When people see you living your truth, you will find your tribe that believes in your message. I tell this to everyone that I work with.
You don’t want followers just to have followers. You want to have followers that believe in you, that believe in your message, and can see your vision. Because it’s those followers that will be supportive through the ups and downs that you will inevitably have.
Starting something new and different can be difficult so you need to give yourself enough time to get the wheels moving. So many people give up on their dreams before seeing them through because of fear or not having the financial resources to support their life while building their dream business or venture.
Second Most Valuable Lesson
Besides just taking action, my unofficial mentor taught me that bootstrapping a business is the best way to start a business. Bootstrapping means that you start the business part time while you work a day job. This lessens the stress and pressure that you may feel to get money rolling in and you can focus on building a solid foundation.
Is it hard to build a business part time while you work a full time job? Hell yes it is! But how badly do you want it? How much do you believe in your vision and in your truth? Are you really going to let anything stand in your way?
If you are willing to let something stand in your way, then maybe starting a business isn’t the right avenue for you to go.
I hope I’ve given you something to think about. Change starts with each individual person that has a hope and a dream. And when action is taken, we have the power to change the world!
Thanks for reading,
Ivy
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thanks this post is very motivational although I never heard before about term socially conscious business
Socially conscious businesses are those that are working to solve a social challenge such as homelessness, joblessness, chronic hunger, or to bring fresh water to areas of the world that don't currently have it. Whatever injustice that you see in the world or in your own community that you feel passionate about and want to solve by using business profits to do it. For me, usually a certain portion of our profits goes to feeding, housing, or helping chronic homeless veterans because this is something that I am passionate about. Thanks so much for comment!
Ivy
it sounds like a normal business is giving some part of profits for charity.
In a lot of ways, yes, that's true. Most socially conscious businesses will develop a plan for their business to to all around more socially responsible. Things like using recycled paper, sourcing from other local businesses instead of big corporate stores, and treating their employees fairly by providing a fair living wage and benefits. It's a complete mindset shift to be a socially conscious business because it isn't just about profits like most businesses are.
it sounds good, although is very difficult to compete with a business that is not socially conscious
I think most businesses want to be perceived as socially conscious but not all of them actually are. It really is a mindset shift that has to happen in order to run a business that cares about more than pure profit.
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This is how you create the change you want in the world.
I love your post and know how it is to build business who has the aim to help people. Sometimes they fail and it is okay to fail so that you will learn from it.
A lot of people are afraid of failures and I get it because our society is so enamored with success.
I couldn't have said it better myself! Very insightful! I have built and lost a few businesses over the years but I have learned so much from those experiences, probably more so then the businesses that were successful honestly. Thankfully, I learned early in life that failure is not so bad because my parents actually encouraged us to fail so that we knew what it felt like. And when we failed they wouldn't let us quit. It really helps my siblings and I now in life so I am grateful to them for those life lessons early on.
Ivy
I wish I could do the same as my matriarch demanded nothing short of perfect and failure was not an options which placed me in a precarious situation of having low self-esteem issues and a perfectionist attitude that meant I always second guessed myself hahaha.
My mother tried that for a while with me since I was the oldest child but my dad was putting us in situations that would give us opportunities to fail so she kind of changed her parenting style. And the best part was that when we actually did succeed in situations where we had failed before the feeling was just so very intense! I have a little bit of perfection too but just remember that the world needs what you have to offer, even if it isn't perfect :)
Ivy
Another great blogpost that I think many will find useful in their lives.
This is key. I received a comment on one of my tutorial posts about finding the time to do what is necessary to get a music career happening and still have time to play music. I couldn't have said it better myself than you have here.
🙏🏽
I appreciate the compliment, thank you! I agree with you that its a common question about how to start a side gig while there are so many other things going on in life that we could be focusing on. I have seen many people quit because they felt that they didn't have the time. That's sad really because they may never know what they could have accomplished if they didn't stop pursuing their goals. Your tutorial posts are very good by the way and anyone looking to start a business could take a lesson from you.
Ivy
So much valuable wisdom packed in one post! Socially conscious businesses are the future...and it's great to see new ones arriving on the scene all the time. It really comes down to the entrepreneur holding onto that passion and purpose in order to see the vision through...which isn't always easy in the face of so many economic stresses. Each one that actually succeeds is a shining example of how these businesses make a difference and change lives. We need more of this in the world! <3
Also stopping by to say that you have been featured and curated for MSP Community Curation: Top Five 'Positive PAL Posts' - Week #19
https://steemit.com/community/@creativesoul/msp-community-curation-top-five-positive-pal-posts-week-19
Thanks for such a nice comment and the opportunity to get this message in front of more Steemians! You are awesome! I agree that we need more businesses in the world that are working towards positive change. It's my unofficial mission in life to mentor more business owners in how to be more socially conscious.
Ivy
Amazing post, not only in terms of motivation but there is also a lot of useful information.
I like the idea of socially conscious business, I see in the comments your explanation of it so that was very helpful since I didn't know much about it.
Thanks for sharing! Happy steeming! :)
Thanks for a wonderful comment! Socially conscious businesses are so amazing and the founders of these are changing the world every single day by changing one life at a time by using profits to bring about positive change. I'm definitely going to do more posts on social entrepreneurship.
Ivy