To Do Well Or To Do Good?

If you are anything like my friends and I, you’ve probably played the game ‘Would you rather?’. You sit in a circle, present two options, and vote on which you would prefer. If you haven’t played, I suggest you do- the scenarios and debates that come out of it are hilarious. One of my personal favorites is “Would you rather A) You can listen to any song, but only a Pitbull cover version for the rest of your life or B) You can only listen to Pitbull songs, but covered by any musical artist for the rest of your life”. I challenge you to really think about that one and not get at least a little chuckle out of it.

Here’s another one: Would you rather your romantic partner be funny or attractive? I know what you’re thinking- “That’s stupid, I want someone funny and attractive”. You might even be thinking “Well I find funny people attractive… and I’m probably more inclined to find someone funny if I am already attracted to them”. The point is the two things aren’t mutually exclusive- and the opposite might actually be true.

This is the mindset that we need to bring to the business world. For too long, we have seen doing well and doing good as two opposite ends of the spectrum. Corporations have a huge role in politics, social issues, and public discourse. This gives them a great deal of power, but this also means the potential (and responsibility) to make a positive difference. To achieve this, companies need to stop seeing social impact as a hindrance to business success. For a plethora of reasons, creating positive social impact can actually lead to more success.

Consumers are finding it more and more important that the brands they buy from support the causes they care about. That trend makes sense- as corporations take on a bigger role in politics and CEO’s become celebrities, buying from a company feels like more than a simple transaction. Buying one brand of chicken sandwich can feel like a political statement.

Part of the issue is that some brands seem to think the only way to make a positive impact is to donate out of profits, and in essence ‘throw away’ money in order to do good. This is far from the reality. With alternatives like impact investing, companies can invest in social enterprises, and gain financial returns on their investments. Alternatively, companies can look within themselves to create change. Providing growth opportunities for minorities and historically disadvantaged groups is a great way to help address issues of systemic racism or sexism. And this is a benefit in the long run, because companies benefit from having diverse voices and opinions.

Doing good is not only the right thing to do, it’s actually the smart thing to do. When you can embed purpose into your organizational goals and values, you can do well and do good.