Thought I would share with you a piece I put together for high school students that I was asked to speak to about business. Writing it made me realise how very very fortunate I am to be able to run a social enterprise.
Have you ever thought about running a business that wasn't necessarily about making you rich? What if you thought about running a business that made you happy?
Is money what makes your world turn? Or is it happiness, compassion and a sense of satisfaction?
If you answered yes to the first question then social enterprise is probably not for you. However if you answered yes to the second question then it most probably is.
Social enterprise is a new way of doing business. Well,,,,I say it's a new way but I actually don't think it is. I think that its the way that business used to be done before we got so caught up in this rat race that is life. It s a way of doing business that helps your neighbour as much as it helps you. If we turn back the clock to the years where my Nana was growing up it seems to be that life was about helping others.
What has changed??
The answer is quite simply life has changed. We live in a society where its all about what you have got in your life. But is that what really matters??
At the end of the day - we ain't getting out this adventure called life alive no matter what way we look at it. And in reality the only legacy we leave in this world is two things - the balance we have in the bank and the difference we have made.
Personally I would much rather tick the second box. You see my social enterprise will never give me a big bank balance. My social enterprise wont have me rubbing shoulders with the elite in society.
But.. my social enterprise makes me rich in ways that I cannot even begin to describe.
Every single day I meet people who inspire me. People who are fighting battles, personally and professionally to make life better for those experiencing mental ill-health. These people are strong, beautiful and inspiring. They fill my heart and soul far more than any amount of money ever would.
They show me that amongst all the doom and gloom in the world - that there is hope. That people care for each other. And that people have the ability to make the difference that is needed in the world.
My social enterprise won't make me rich - but it will pay me enough to pay my bills. I'm not going to pretend it isn't hard to look around me sometimes and think "I could/should be earning more". There are days when I think - "what the hell am I doing??? Will I ever made a REAL difference in this whole mucked up world?? - what is the point in trying??" But I would have those days anyway no matter what type of business I was running.
But with a social enterprise that is balanced out by far by the positives of the job.
I know that change happens one person, one attitude at a time - so I keep going. And I am never far away from the next reminder of the difference I am making.
So please - consider a social enterprise as a way of doing business - because doing good really does you good!!
Saturday 17 January 2015
Friday 9 January 2015
Lots of interest in lived experience - but no money to pay for it.
Please excuse if this sounds a wee bit like a rant but I wonder if others are sharing my frustration.
There is a lot of interest at the moment around using lived experience to inform services etc which is absolutely fantastic. I have received many many requests over the last few years. This is 100% a move forward in the right direction.
However - it seems that in most cases there is "no budget" to pay for it. HHHMMMMM
I have worked in the NHS and I now work in the voluntary sector - I know money is tight. But if the big organisations and the LA's and NHS think they have it hard - try being a small voluntary organisation,
Try working 40+ hours per week and getting paid part-time. Try running a project on a shoe string budget but trying to make it the best it can be to prove its value and worth to said LA's & NHS in the hope of a flake of dandruff from their budget in order to sustain your project. Try telling people that their experiences are valued and important - but then tell them they are not valuable enough to be paid for.
This really isn't meant to be a rant - but its a realistic view of what I have seen happening over the last 2 years.
I am living in hope that with the integration of H&S Care and the strong focus on peer support and self-management within the MH Strategy - that we may start to see a shift not only in the talk - but in the walk. Lets see some real shift of budgets to enable people with lived experience and their inputs into projects and services be valued.
In the meantime, yes we will do it free of charge. We will fuel it as usual with the passion and determination that keeps us doing all of the above. Because if we don't nothing will change. I wonder....are we doing the right thing??
There is a lot of interest at the moment around using lived experience to inform services etc which is absolutely fantastic. I have received many many requests over the last few years. This is 100% a move forward in the right direction.
However - it seems that in most cases there is "no budget" to pay for it. HHHMMMMM
I have worked in the NHS and I now work in the voluntary sector - I know money is tight. But if the big organisations and the LA's and NHS think they have it hard - try being a small voluntary organisation,
Try working 40+ hours per week and getting paid part-time. Try running a project on a shoe string budget but trying to make it the best it can be to prove its value and worth to said LA's & NHS in the hope of a flake of dandruff from their budget in order to sustain your project. Try telling people that their experiences are valued and important - but then tell them they are not valuable enough to be paid for.
This really isn't meant to be a rant - but its a realistic view of what I have seen happening over the last 2 years.
I am living in hope that with the integration of H&S Care and the strong focus on peer support and self-management within the MH Strategy - that we may start to see a shift not only in the talk - but in the walk. Lets see some real shift of budgets to enable people with lived experience and their inputs into projects and services be valued.
In the meantime, yes we will do it free of charge. We will fuel it as usual with the passion and determination that keeps us doing all of the above. Because if we don't nothing will change. I wonder....are we doing the right thing??
Sunday 4 January 2015
How WRAP really helped me in 2014 - Focus on whats strong
As we move into 2015 I can't help but reflect back on 2014 and think WOW what a year!! I can honestly say that 2014 has been without a doubt the best year I have had for as long as I can remember.
It hasn't been an easy year - far from it. Health wise I have embarked on a new treatment regime which has as always had its ups an downs and affected both my physical and mental health. In terms of work I have never worked so hard and given so much of myself before. Family wise my boys continue to grow and there is the little part inside me that aches every day with the pain of knowing that there will never be another little one in our family courtesy of my fertility being taken from me by illness.
However - a very strange thing has occurred. Regardless of all of the above I can honestly say hand on heart that this is the first year in at least 10 years that I have not had a significant downturn in my mental health.
This year has been different and reflecting back I understand why. This year I have 100% put my WRAP to work, but more than that I have truly embraced what is known as the "assets based approach" to life. In simple terms - focusing on what's right not what's wrong.
Looking back I think that this seed was planted when I first encountered WRAP. WRAP very much encourages you to focus on what you can do - not what you can't. It has been a seed that has taken time to grow, but it has slowly blossomed and it now feels like its strong and rooted.
I didn't waken up one day and BOOM life had miraculously changed, I worked on change. I worked on really trying hard to see the positives in each situation rather than the negatives.
I really started to self advocate with regards to my health & treatment options and this has led to positive change. I entered my new treatment regime with an optimistic but realistic view - that things were going to be rocky but I had the tools and support to deal with it. And I did deal with it (and still am). My knowledge of both myself and my treatment options have aided this process greatly - without them I would still be stumbling around in the dark.
I literally took the bull by the horns and decided that if I wanted my life to change then I needed to change it. I needed a new challenge and wanted to make a real difference for others who are living with long term health conditions that affect their mental health. But I needed support to do it. So I asked for help - simple! And before I knew where I was I had registered a charity and secured funding for a new project, The Hope Café. It was as much of a shock to me as it was to my long suffering and ever so patient husband who simply said "you've done WHAT???"
And that is the biggie in all of this - the little but large thing called HOPE. The very first key concept that underpins the WRAP programme. With it you have everything - without it you have nothing. Hope has been the fuel to my fire in 2014 and I carry it forward into 2015 in abundance. Hope is unique to each individual - but what's important is that you have it. In 2014 I found it in abundance from the people who surrounded me, supported me and believed in me. There were times where things went wrong, times when things didn't work out quite as planned but having hope and a belief that things would and could get better absolutely carried me through what has turned out to be a fantastic year.
So below are a few of the little sayings that struck a cord with me and helped me in 2014 - I hope they help you. And if you would like to learn more about WRAP and The Hope Café Self-management Peer Support project why not come along to our information session on 20th January and say hi - details here http://hopecafelanarkshire.org.uk/news/want-find-out-more-about-hope-cafe-come-chat-us-January
It hasn't been an easy year - far from it. Health wise I have embarked on a new treatment regime which has as always had its ups an downs and affected both my physical and mental health. In terms of work I have never worked so hard and given so much of myself before. Family wise my boys continue to grow and there is the little part inside me that aches every day with the pain of knowing that there will never be another little one in our family courtesy of my fertility being taken from me by illness.
However - a very strange thing has occurred. Regardless of all of the above I can honestly say hand on heart that this is the first year in at least 10 years that I have not had a significant downturn in my mental health.
This year has been different and reflecting back I understand why. This year I have 100% put my WRAP to work, but more than that I have truly embraced what is known as the "assets based approach" to life. In simple terms - focusing on what's right not what's wrong.
Looking back I think that this seed was planted when I first encountered WRAP. WRAP very much encourages you to focus on what you can do - not what you can't. It has been a seed that has taken time to grow, but it has slowly blossomed and it now feels like its strong and rooted.
I didn't waken up one day and BOOM life had miraculously changed, I worked on change. I worked on really trying hard to see the positives in each situation rather than the negatives.
I really started to self advocate with regards to my health & treatment options and this has led to positive change. I entered my new treatment regime with an optimistic but realistic view - that things were going to be rocky but I had the tools and support to deal with it. And I did deal with it (and still am). My knowledge of both myself and my treatment options have aided this process greatly - without them I would still be stumbling around in the dark.
I literally took the bull by the horns and decided that if I wanted my life to change then I needed to change it. I needed a new challenge and wanted to make a real difference for others who are living with long term health conditions that affect their mental health. But I needed support to do it. So I asked for help - simple! And before I knew where I was I had registered a charity and secured funding for a new project, The Hope Café. It was as much of a shock to me as it was to my long suffering and ever so patient husband who simply said "you've done WHAT???"
And that is the biggie in all of this - the little but large thing called HOPE. The very first key concept that underpins the WRAP programme. With it you have everything - without it you have nothing. Hope has been the fuel to my fire in 2014 and I carry it forward into 2015 in abundance. Hope is unique to each individual - but what's important is that you have it. In 2014 I found it in abundance from the people who surrounded me, supported me and believed in me. There were times where things went wrong, times when things didn't work out quite as planned but having hope and a belief that things would and could get better absolutely carried me through what has turned out to be a fantastic year.
So below are a few of the little sayings that struck a cord with me and helped me in 2014 - I hope they help you. And if you would like to learn more about WRAP and The Hope Café Self-management Peer Support project why not come along to our information session on 20th January and say hi - details here http://hopecafelanarkshire.org.uk/news/want-find-out-more-about-hope-cafe-come-chat-us-January
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