The business benefits of doing good | Wendy Woods | Day 47 – 100 Days 100 Thoughts

Hello Folks !!

Whenever we talk about businesses, we always talk about the problems and how they are ruining the lives of many. We can’t deny the facts that businesses think in terms of profit alone rather than societal impact. So what should be the factor that tracks the impact and contribution? Is CSR enough to measure? And why should a business do good to people? Wendy Woods in this brilliant TED Talk, says how the business benefits by doing good to people. She doesn’t vilify the companies but rather gives us few examples of the companies which profited by doing good. Watch this wonderful TED Talk below.

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This is a beautiful talk where she offers a more practical solution at the same time she also says why it is essential to see the long-term benefits. The most important point mentioned in this talk is keeping the TSI – Total Societal Impact as a focus point. Companies are giving importance to TSR – Total Shareholder Returns, but by giving importance to TSI they can expand their horizons, grow sustainably, and above all that they can achieve better margins. Wendy explains this with data.

Also, she gives us an example of MARS, a company that relies heavily on cocoa sources cocoa from NGOs that directly contacts the farmers from the developing nations. By this they are ensuring the producers are fairly paid, they live in better conditions and their growth is optimized. Above all that this ensures they don’t have to worry about the future of the produce. Their supply chain is secure and all these happened because they were doing good.

Now you might ask a question, what am I getting in this? Why would I listen to a talk which says corporate must think in terms of Total Societal Impact? Who am I to make any such decision and what on earth a common has to do with a talk addressing the corporate.

Congratulations, you are now asking the right questions.

Aren’t we all working? Don’t we all have dreams? Aren’t we all trying to do something on our own? It may be a hobby, it may be a side gig, it may be your passion. Whatever that may be, just give a small thought about it, why are you doing what you are doing? And how can it do good to people? By doing that, you are making a huge impact on society. Just think about it, your journaling habit might actually give hope to a small business person. Your dance class might serve as an inspiration to many and help someone live their passion. Your youtube channel on putting out your thoughts might actually help someone break the ice and speak up. You are a producer and a consumer at the same time. By being good, you open doors for many, which in turn gives you more options to choose from. At the same time, by being good and by solving many others’ problems you are also marching towards a better society. And someday, we will reach a position, where we make business decisions and our nature and ideology will define our business decisions.

At the end of the day, don’t we all belong to the same species who want to thrive together?