Purpose, revisited
It's B Corp Month and sunshine will return soon
I wrote about being a B Corp, having a true purpose (other than making your shareholders rich), doing the ‘right thing’ and The Better Business Act amongst many other things back in September 2023; however, I am sure anyone who may have seen that piece has long since forgotten its content…
‘Do the right thing and everyone wins, yeah?’
After all, this was six months ago when my substack only had a handful of followers and we were all too busy sunning ourselves through what was unbelievably one of the hottest Septembers in UK History; according to the Met Office -
In early September the UK experienced a significant heatwave with daily maximum temperatures exceeding 30°C somewhere in the UK for seven consecutive days from 4th to 10th and reaching 31 to 32°C across south-east England. On 10th, Faversham (Kent) recorded 33.5°C, making this, unusually, the hottest day of the year. While the highest temperatures were mostly confined to southern England and Wales, temperatures also briefly reached the high 20s in both Northern Ireland and Scotland. Northern Ireland recorded a new September temperature record of 28.0°C at Castlederg (County Tyrone) on the 8th.
While this heatwave would not have been particularly unusual had it occurred during the high summer months (July or August), this was, for September, the longest run of days exceeding 30°C on record.
For those of us who have been wading around sodden countryside with our dogs for what seems an eternity, but in fact is only around six months, more weather related content featuring those halcyon September days can be found here; for the rest of us - back to the script; purpose over profit.
So doing the right thing is what everyone does, yeah?
Well it seems not.
Looking at the state of the economy, the duplicitous nature of many politicians and the dubious movements of many in public life; it very much seems that doing the wrong thing is the order of the day.
Doing what is best for yourself gets you the right results, surely?
Gordon Gekko was right all along, who in their right mind is going to do what is best for the community, for the planet, or for others, when a whole heap of money can be made by purely following the self serving principle of greed; lovely jubbly.
Just NO.
There are so many businesses in Yorkshire and across the UK and beyond that are doing the right thing, signing the Better Business Act and campaigning for a more equitable landscape where people, planet and community are just as important as shareholder value; these are the companies you should want to work for, to be buying goods and services from, to be supporting as partner businesses and holding up as beacons of hope on the desolate landscape of capitalistic claptrap.
Here are just a few of the Yorkshire B corps that really deserve a mention -
My tip for a miserable Friday afternoon in March when you are hoping to slope off from work and do something more interesting……
“look these companies up, make contact and talk about a better B Corp way of doing business; learn about true purpose, you won’t regret it”
Unless everyone takes a long hard look at themselves, we are heading for the crapper; that is for sure. Not the most academically argued or scientifically proven hypothesis, but deep within our loving human souls; we know this to be the truth.
We all want progression, but not at any cost.
Everyone can make a real difference, by supporting purpose driven businesses you can do your bit to redress the balance and stop Gordon (Gekko) and his mates wrecking the economy/your sector/your job/your life/the weekend* (delete as applicable)
Remember what that sunshine felt like back last September?
Close your eyes, think of England (or somewhere else) and do the right thing - you could be basking in the warmth before you can say ‘purpose before profit”
Next Week: The Diamond Dogs
Its good to talk nonsense with fellow sufferers
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