When it comes to building a happy, productive, innovative company culture, skills matter, but beliefs matter more. A great company culture isn’t just about bonuses, perks and groovy office fitouts. It’s the vibe, the feeling, soul and purpose of the company itself that really sets them apart.
Maybe you know that people are increasingly supporting meaningful businesses in how they shop and where they choose to work. Or maybe you heard that in 2015, meaningful brands around the world enjoyed increased sales, better brand awareness and higher annual returns than other companies. Or maybe you are sensing that the people who work for you are increasingly motivated by the aim to make the world more compassionate, innovative, and sustainable. There’s no doubt about it. Purpose is important. But how does a company go about defining its purpose?
In this episode we chat to Donna Burrell from Hunter Design School. Donna is passionate about changing education and helping students find their potential. By validating the creative seed within them; encouraging them to be self-aware and courageous in finding their own path in life, they realize that it is okay to think differently and not just to do what is expected of them.
In a previous post we looked at personal joy and energy as a medium for uncovering your personal purpose. But how can this be achieved, practically? Johanna Scott of Make Do Co shares with us how.
What has longing got to do with work? Everything! Your instincts are the window into finding work you love and – if you so desire – creating a business with meaning. It’s not about finding work nirvana – a place where you’re ecstatic all the time – because the reality is that at times you will feel frustrated, at times you will get irritated with others, at times you will have to succumb to drudgery (especially if you do your own BAS statements!); but on the whole, you will feel content with the space you occupy, excited by future possibilities, and more often than not, you pack up at the end of the day feeling like you have achieved good work. Simply put? It just feels right.
In this episode we chat to Amanda Armstrong from Austability. Austability believe the sustainable solution to global security threats is in capacity building, and they work to build capacity for independent change throughout communities across the world.
No matter how much I concentrate and switch off, there is one noise that cuts through... And I am so glad it does. The sound is that of my little boy Maximus... I am so finely in tune with his voice, that I cannot ignore it. No matter how far he is from me, I cannot un-hear him. It surprises me so often, how many businesses do not have a sharp clarity in their online voice and struggle to express the simplicity of their point of difference in our social media saturated culture. Social media is fast and cheap, so it is easy to saturate your feed with anything and everything in the pursuit of quick instant gratification. Most times when I sit with a client, they begin to explain what they are needing and eventually we get to this question. How do I cut through the noise of social media and find my voice?
Donna believes in a collaborative leadership approach, and encourages a sense of fun and creativity. She understands from a personal perspective how important it is not only for a woman to experience the dignity that work brings, but also how employment impacts family, the wider community and the growth of the Australian economy and society as a whole. Today we talk about the importance of creating shared value in business, self-awareness and managing through change.
Conscious Capitalism Australia (CCA) is the latest establishment to recognise the Hunter region as an incubator for good business, and we’re proud to have been a part of their launch here in Newcastle. We’re all about integrity in business and elevating humanity through our work, so finding the CCA community was like the yin to our yang.
We talk about redefining leadership for modern business, leading your company through complex change and unlocking leadership qualities in others with Peter Kaldor and Naomi Nash from New River Leadership.
Mindsets – our deeply held beliefs, values and higher purpose – are integral to doing good business. In the words of Donella Meadows, “mindsets are the sources of systems”. They drive the lives we lead and the actions we take, which in turn drives the real world potential of the work we do. Ash Buchanan from Cohere shares on The Benefit Mindset.
There is not greater power than that of the collective and collaborative. Every vision statement needs a mission statement to bring the idea to life. Read on and you'll find an excerpt from Simon Sinek's Start With Why that speaks on the partnership between WHY and HOW.
We were really inspired talking to Jo and hearing about her journey to starting her own business. Make Do Co help companies and their people find a more meaningful way of living and working - she's on a mission to reconnect business with people and purpose, and has approached this in a really unique way in her own business.
One thing I’ve noticed over years in business is that empathy is seriously lacking from most workplaces. Other people’s behaviour is a reflection of their context, it has nothing to do with you. Go stand in their shoes and you will see. You don’t have to agree in order to empathise. Maybe if we could stop and see what our colleagues see we’d be a little less inclined to judge and start building better cultures.
Casting vision beyond yourself and into the hearts of your team is a skill to be mastered. But we believe that a team with a sense of purpose can change everything. Simon Sinek shares another excerpt from his book Start With Why; this time about people working together for a common cause, below.
Transitioning a purpose or mindset into a habit is a very difficult task. It takes a lot more than intentions to make that happen. I feel so strongly about how important intentions and actions are, that I wrote about intentions twenty-six times and actions thirty-eight in On Purpose. Not to be repetitive but to illustrate the so many variables impact our ability to live a life of and on purpose. Here is a bit from On Purpose – be patient in the read as it has been selected on purpose. We have to include everyone in our intentions and then make sure we act for all of them – not just one. And remember, profit is an outcome…
Hey guys, welcome to our second episode of Find Your Possible. In this episode, we chat to Siobhan Doran from Conscious Capitalism Australia. Siobhan is the Executive Director of CCA and she’s been working hard to connect the purpose-driven community in Australia to bring higher purpose and ethics into business. We talk about redefining business for the future, the four tenants of building a conscious business and the personal journey of purpose. She also shares her tips for companies just starting out on a more meaningful journey.
Purpose will always be the foundation that we continue to build our business upon. We love that Simon Sinek's writing also aligns with this value and below you can read more about the importance of partnering your WHY, with HOW and WHAT, to give you a kickstart on your journey within this Conscious Business movement that is spreading across the globe.
In our first episode, we talk to the lovely Heidi Pollard from UQ Power. Heidi has spent over 20 years uncovering what makes a great leader and coaches leaders to grow their unique brand and have a greater impact. She's on a mission to nurture conscious leaders who inspire and influence others to unleash their strengths so they can love their work. We talked about the current climate of transformational change in the world and the impact it’s having on business, workplace challenges facing leaders and what it takes to adapt to these challenges. I absolutely love her ethos and have learned a lot from our conversations, I’m sure you will too.
We believe in brands speaking to each person as if they were looking right into their eyes. Mezzanine exists to build brands from the inside-out and nurture them like they were a person because people want to hear from people. That's what we're here to give, something real to experience. Simon Sinek touches on this idea of communicating to someone through something more than words. To meet them right where they are at and understand that gut decisions are the kind we all trust. Read on and you'll find an excerpt from his book, Start With Why.