The 'F' word

I can't remember the last time I set a New Year's resolution.

Probably because I never stick to them.

I lose focus and motivation until every good intention eventually fizzles out.

What I DO do, however, is choose a word for the year ahead.

This year, my word is Goblin Mode FOCUS.

Starting with this newsletter.

Until now, I've been writing generally about sustainability and climate change, but it's way too broad of a topic to do it justice.

That said, I've really enjoyed writing about small businesses and entrepreneurship over the past decade or so, and I've been thinking a lot about the small steps that they can take to understand and improve their impact and sustainability.

There's a ton of information about sustainability out there, and it can be overwhelming knowing where to start or how you as a soloproneur, aspiring entrepreneur, or small business builder can make a difference.

It is for me, at least.

So, I'm digging deeper and sharing what I learn, staying laser focused on small business sustainability.

I'll be learning about what it means to be a sustainable small business and what we need to know about things like ESG, sustainability reporting and storytelling, and carbon credits and offsets.

If you have any questions about small business sustainability, please send them my way.

And if you know anyone who owns a small business, wants to start a business, or is interested in small steps they can take to improve their sustainability, please share this newsletter.

This week, I offer tips for getting absolute clarity on your business purpose.

— Tarryn ✌️

Small business sustainability: Why are you here?

We all have to wipe our butts.

So, when it comes to toilet paper options, we’re spoilt for choice.

One-ply? Two-ply? Three?

The cheapest or the softest?

Or, as my dad always says: “Who cares? As long as my finger doesn’t poke through and go up my nought.” 😲

When I lived in South Africa, my toilet paper decision was always a financial one. I wouldn’t compromise on the layers (two-ply, thanks), but I’d always look for specials, and I wasn’t particular about the brand.

But then we moved to Australia, and within four months of living here, I had a favourite toilet paper brand (this, dear reader, is how you know you’re getting old).

It’s not the cheapest.

It’s not the softest.

But it stands for something:

Who Gives A Crap is the toilet paper that builds toilets.

It has a clear purpose: “We donate 50% of our profits to ensure everyone has access to clean water and a toilet within our lifetime.”

The company has already donated over AU$11 million to sanitation projects around the world.

And if that wasn’t reason enough to support them, the gorgeous branding and packaging, cheeky copy, and toilet humour is guaranteed to keep you entertained while you poop…

And your kid entertained building poo paper towers…

And the cat entertained, leaving the mess for someone else to clean up.

My toilet paper decision is no longer a financial one. It’s an emotional one, because the brand’s values resonate with mine.

And because I can’t build toilets, I can contribute to a cause that can and be part of something bigger than myself.

Why are you here?

When it comes to understanding and improving your impact, you need to know why you’re in business in the first place.

If you’re familiar with Simon Sinek’s ‘Start with Why’ theory, then you’ll know that having absolute clarity on your purpose is crucial if you’re to understand your impact.

Now, you might be thinking, “Hell, I’m just in business to make money and put food on the table. My purpose is to make sure I don’t starve.”

I hear you.

But the moment you start competing for sales and money, it becomes a race to the bottom, with the winner (or loser, in this case) being the business that can provide the product or service at the lowest price.

The result?

• Quality suffers because you’ll be forced to take shortcuts to do more with less.

• Your mental health suffers because you’ll be burning the candle at ends you didn’t know had ends.

• Customer service suffers because you become so focused on the numbers and hitting targets that you lose sight of what really matters.

The power of purpose

When you know what impact you want to have in your community and you have a clear vision of the difference you want to make in the world, everything becomes easier.

Business decisions become easier. If something doesn’t align with your purpose, it’s a hard no. If it does, it’s a hell yes. Your values become the guiding beliefs through which all business decisions are filtered, and if they don’t align, the answer should be a no-brainer.

Hiring becomes easier. Your purpose shapes your company culture. When you’re clear on your values and mission, you’ll attract people who share those values and who have already bought into your cause before they apply for a job.

Strategy becomes easier. When you know what you stand for, what you think, say, and do are always aligned. You become intentional about the work you do and deliberate about the actions you take to bring about the change you want to create. You’ll intrinsically know what to prioritise, where to allocate resources, and what skills and capabilities you need to build.

Selling becomes easier. In prioritising meaning over money, you attract customers who share your values and beliefs and want to be part of the impact you’re trying to create, even if what you do or what you sell is not the cheapest option.

Clarifying your purpose

Here are a few questions to reflect on to crystallise your purpose. Don’t just read them. Grab a pen and paper and jot down thoughts or words that come to mind as you work through them.

The ‘you’ in these questions could refer to you, the entrepreneur and business owner, or you, the company.

• What do you stand for?

• What are you vehemently against?

• What role do you play in your community?

• What is your business philosophy?

• Why do you do this work?

• What problems do you solve, or what are you trying to fix?

• Who do you serve?

• What do you value?

• What is your vision for the future?

You should start seeing patterns in your answers that will give you a clearer sense of why you do what you do.

Here are some examples to inspire you:

Zero Co

What they do: Make personal care and home cleaning products, which they fill, refill, and deliver to customers. When they run out of product, customers return the pouches (made from recycled plastic) for a refill.

Why they do it: To “end the single-use plastic problem and clean up the trash junking up our oceans”.

Yevu

What they do: Produce clothing designed and made by women in Ghana.

Why they do it: To create fair, sustainable, and dignified economic opportunities in Ghana with, and for, women.

cuddle + kind

What they do: Make and sell hand-knitted heirloom dolls.

Why they do it: To improve the lives of women and children. For every doll sold, cuddle + kind donates 10 meals to children in need. The dolls are handcrafted by women in Peru and Nepal, providing a sustainable, fair trade income.

Your turn.

This week's climate and sustainability news worth noting

🍴 France has banned single-use, disposable plates, cups, and tableware for patrons eating at a restaurant. From 1 January this year, restaurants like McDonald’s, Burger King, and Starbucks will have to provide reusable cups, plates, and cutlery for customers eating in (i.e., not takeaway). Spain has also banned single-use plastic cutlery and plastic straws, and has started charging tobacco companies to pick up discarded cigarette butts in the streets.

🌲 In a win for the Amazon Rainforest, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has become Brazil’s new President. Lula has promised to reverse and eventually end the deforestation of the world’s most important rainforest, which accelerated under his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro. Right now though, Lula is little preoccupied with rioters storming and breaching congress, and Bolsonaro being admitted to (and released from) hospital.

🌏 The minerals we mine, the gases we release by burning fossil fuels, and the radioactive material we have produced have begun to make fundamental changes to Earth’s geology. Scientists say we’re entering a new epoch (the beginning of a new period of time). Anthropocene is the first era to recognise humans’ influence on the planet. And scientists are going to mark the occasion by selecting a site that demonstrates most vividly how humans have changed the structure of our planet’s surface. Watch this space.

🦅 The recent flooding in south-east Australia has replenished dried-up waterways and rejuvenated swamps, encouraging wildlife to return to habitats they abandoned years ago. The floods could encourage a system-wide increase in animal populations, particularly those that became isolated and smaller during the drought, like frogs and carnivorous birds. Native reeds are thriving while pest plants drown. Yet, while the floods breathe new life into some ecosystems, they also negatively shake up others.

☀️️ The number of children suffering dire drought conditions across Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia has more than doubled in five months, according to UNICEF. Around 20.2 million children now face the threat of severe hunger, thirst, and disease, compared to 10 million in July. This as climate change, conflict, global inflation, and grain shortages devastate the region.

🦏 For the first time since 1977, no rhinos were poached in 2022 in the Kaziranga National Park, the world’s largest reserve for the endangered great one-horned rhinoceros. Rather, four poachers were killed, five injured, and 58 arrested.

Well, that's interesting

💀 New York has become the sixth US state to allow human composting. A person can now have their body turned into soil after their death, which is seen as an environmentally friendly alternative to burial or cremation.

How does it work?

A body is put in a closed vessel along with selected materials such as woodchips, alfalfa and straw grass, and gradually breaks down as the microbes do their thing.

After about a month, you’ll have soil that can be used for planting trees or vegetables.

Apparently, this process can save one ton of carbon compared with burial or cremation.

I'll leave you with this..

Now hiring: An office naturalist.

It's funny because it's ridiculous.

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