I love social entrepreneurship.
If I could, I would spend my life volunteering, connecting with other individuals, and uplifting the life in my community. It’s not altruism, it’s just that I feel really good when I’m doing something connected with the people around me, especially when I know in my heart that it lifts up our collective life experience. And I want more of that.
Social entrepreneurship is the fascinating intersection of using business for earning money for the purpose of uplifting this collective life experience. Life is ever-changing and challenging, and that’s not going to change - but I believe we’re smart enough to irradicate a lot of the really sticky issues that hold us back.
There’s no shortage of sticky issues - irritating poverty, eliminating hunger, improving our health and well-being, creating equal opportunity and better education… sound familiar? That’s because the U.N. mapped out these Sustainable Development Goals into a nice framework a decade ago back in 2012.)
I was inspired to learn more, so I started the People Helping People podcast in 2017 to explore this… and it led me to GiveBackHack, where I launched, with five friends, a screen printing work program for youth experiencing homelessness. We went through SEA Change - an accelerator designed specifically for social enterprises and launched with partners and support to help our vision get off the ground.
That support has been monumental in showing me what is possible when people come together - but it also taught me a very important lesson: when you want to start a business that is making a social impact, you are very much not alone.
In the business world, being a social enterprise is like having a handicap, because, by definition, you will sacrifice profits for your cause. It makes things harder, and let’s face it, entrepreneurship of any sort isn’t easy.
But then comes the magic. People come together and celebrate what you’re doing because it’s not just about you. Your success impacts them and their community just as much as it does you. We’re in this together.
That’s what led to the Social Good Blueprint. A place for people to come together to support the development and success of social enterprises. It’s a resource to give help and support where it’s used best to make sure that, at the end of the day, the activities we engage in for our livelihood, also leave the world a better place.