£1 million in revenue: the lessons I've learnt in 8 years as a social entrepreneur

I was recently reminded of when I first started as a Social Entrepreneur, setting up Solutions for the planet with my best friend Jen, and the things the organisation has achieved over the past 8 years such as 27,000 young people impacted by our Big Ideas programme; and £1 million in revenue (over this time). [Importantly not the impact itself but the significant milestones when you think back to where we started and the journey we’ve been on to get the organisation to this point].

It set in motion a period of reflection, of what I’ve been through and learnt during this time. The truth is SO MUCH! But here are some of the key lessons I've learnt over the past 8 years as a social entrepreneur, which may be helpful for you to hear:

✅ The need to nurture our #resilience and have a #growthmindset to get through the challenging moments

✅ Discovering that I was the expert of my organisation and social impact programmes (even when you're completely new to delivering them), and the need to stop giving away my power to experts and #mentors, because it can shift us off track (they're there to provide support, advice and information, but you get to choose how you use that in a way that's useful for your organisation)

✅ Impact measurement matters and needs to be done (and it's often simpler than we first think it is) BUT communicating your impact story well is what builds traction in exposure, authority and sales

✅ That it's OK to make good money creating social and environmental impact, to be paid well (as part of the transformation to a more just, equitable and sustainable world) and discover a way to sell that's fully aligned with who you are and the values you have

I shared a full explanation of these and my story over in my Facebook Group - The Impact Entrepreneurs Club, watch here.