How To Give Back In Your Business
By: Rebecca Teaff
When I first started my business, my goal was to work with organizations that were changing the world. I wanted to contribute to their success. Some may call this cheesy, but this is where my heart lies.
The first few years running the business I worked on gaining clients, building the team, and creating systems, etc.– all important parts of running a business. But then one day I looked up and said it is time to “walk the talk.”
I wanted myself and our team involved in making the world better with our actions, not just our work. I sat down and said “well how can we do this in an impactful way?” And out of this thought process our community outreach plan was created.
It is now part of our company culture at Redstart Creative to give back throughout the year in different ways:
- Days Of Service. Twice a year, in the fall and winter, Redstart gathers a group of volunteers to participate in a day of service. Recently, we visited First Fruits Farms. First Fruits Farm is dedicated to providing hungry people with nutritious, fresh-picked fruits and vegetables. We also recently volunteered at BizTown and worked with fifth grade students on the importance of career skills. BizTown is a 10,000 square-foot, life-like city designed to reflect the importance of workplace performance and financial decisions in an authentic economy.
- Jumpstart Program. Beginning in 2014, Redstart launched our Jumpstart for Nonprofits program. We select one new (1-3 years old) non-profit to be awarded pro-bono services for logo and website development every other year. This is our way of contributing our time and skillset to an amazing organization that needs some extra help! Jennifer Cox, the founder of our 2016 Jumpstart recipient Empower4Life was one of the 2017 CNNs Hometown Heroes.
- Donations. Along with donating our time and skills, Redstart also carefully selects one of our clients for an end-of-year financial donation. In lieu of holiday gifts for our clients, we select projects that make an impact for many. This is always a hard decision because all of our clients are making such important contributions, but we love being able to give back financially.
There are many elements to running a business that are important, and giving back together as a team can bring so much benefit internally as well as to those you serve.
As you can see, there are many different ways other than monetary donations that you can give back to your community and organizations that mean a lot to you. As Theodore Roosevelt said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” Learn more about Redstart and our community involvement here.