We’re in dire straits – the UK economy is lagging, predicted to be the only G7 economy to shrink in 2023. Early startups and burgeoning businesses are feeling the pinch, with worldwide concerns about the looming recession, impending inflation, and soaring operating costs negatively impacting prospects and return.
Consumers, customers, and communities alike are increasingly interested in good decision making, expecting both emerging and established brands to make it easy for them to do the right kind of spending. We are spurred on by meaningful and intentional business, driven by a sentiment of hope in the face of a profound cost of living and climate crisis. As a public, we are conscious of the consequences of our coin, cognisant of initiatives like the Better Business Act, 1% for the Planet, and B Corp accreditation helping to indicate good businesses worthy of custom. Now more than ever we are interrogating the purpose of new ideas that ask us to dig into our pockets – what is the impetus for your business, and why should I invest in your vision?
There’s a clear solution to making the purpose and profit predicament sustainable, viable, and most importantly, achievable for businesses. Triple bottom line thinking speaks to a wider economic ambition that empowers people, planet, and profit in equal measure, without compromising on the products or services that answer to public desire and demand. We’ve got an opportunity to cultivate a future that uplifts the global economy, instead of holding it back, and it’s our responsibility to act on it.
Establishing your authority in and beyond your industry begins with a question
Identifying your purpose and using it as a framework for your business plan requires a long-term mindset. Thought leadership, archiving your perspective, and empowering your vision is part of the long game. Measuring your success without arbitrary numbers calls for a new metric of impact; explore what your business accomplishments would be if it didn’t mean hitting that 6 figure month, 50% cash-flow, or securing a dedicated team. Abandon the idea of a 5 year exit strategy, instead focusing on what a successful, multi-generational business could look like for you, and for those willing to part with their money.
There’s no harm in using profit as an incentive, but untold riches doesn’t, and shouldn’t, be the end goal. Money is an enabler, a method of mobilizing the purpose of your business into your end goal or outcome. Money might not lead to happiness, but it’s useful - it removes financial stressors and cash-flow worries, allowing you to do the things you want to do, and to excel within and beyond your remit with meaning and intent.
Use your ambition as a means of motivation, harness the thrill of your idea into a strategy, and channel the buzz of your business into building a solid foundation. Start with purpose, and profit will follow.
Read the full article on Maddyness where Abb-d digs deeper into the zero-sum-game of profit and purpose, exploring an expansive global conversation beyond the UK, whilst anticipating a hopeful future for better business.
