My motto is Work happy, love happy and change the world. One of the people who has inspired me to change the world is Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS Shoes. I heard Blake speak at Willow Creek Community Church a couple of years ago, and he was really motivated to change the way I do business. Ahhh, but I’m getting ahead of myself. You may or may not have heard of TOMS Shoes. TOMS is a for-profit company that has a non-profit subsidiary, Friends of Toms. What makes TOMS so great? They have developed (and protected by copyright) the One-For-One philosophy. For every pair of shoes they sell, they give one to a child who really needs it. TOMS has also expanded into eyewear, using the same One-For-One philosophy. They have provided free new shoes to children all over the world (40 countries from Argentina and Haiti to right here in the US). They have also provided necessary eye surgery that helps save and restore sight.
As a business model, TOMS is unique: the One-For-One social responsibility message is its main marketing strategy. Clearly I’m not the only one inspired by this: TOMS are now sold at stores like Nordstrom and even Whole Foods Market. TOMS has also been very creative with its marketing, participating in fashion shows, social media, college campuses, and (non-denominational) churches. So how did Blake inspire me to change the world? Not only did I buy shoes after his talk, but I also bought his book, “Start Something That Matters.” 100% of the profits from the book go to a foundation that helps start up the ideas of entrepreneurs and students. “My goal is to inspire others to go out there and make a positive impact, to start something they care about,” Mycoskie said. “In my book, I felt a deep sense of responsibility to share everything we’ve learned at TOMS over the last five years, so that others can learn from our mistakes as well as our successes, and go out and chart their own course. -Blake Mycoskie
In his book, Mycoskie talked about social entrepreneurs like Tony Hseih, founder of Zappos; Scott Harrison, founder of Charity: Water; Lauren Bush, founder of FEED Projects; Eric Ryan, co-founder of Method; and Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-Hour Workweek, building sustainable, socially conscious businesses out of his own passions. According to the One-For-One model, for every book sold, a new book is provided to a child in need.
As soon as I read the book, I decided something important was starting. Although I have been a business and lifestyle coach for 10 years, I developed a new business model to include giving 25% of my business profits to non-profit organizations that help people help themselves. Five that are near and dear to my heart are Kiva, SavetheChildren, CharityWater, Discovery-Austin.org, and my local church.
There are many ways to change the world: all it takes is to start something that matters.