tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8332466.post942162639884472272..comments2023-08-08T09:38:55.103-04:00Comments on [M]etabrain[E]ntry[L]og: Beer and an unrelated note about social entrepreneurshipMelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15598380941676945491noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8332466.post-78954190671811462172007-06-19T21:41:00.000-04:002007-06-19T21:41:00.000-04:00I think that 'doing well by doing good' is bulls...I think that 'doing well by doing good' <I> is </I> bullshit, but it's not social entrepreneurship. Nikki's wikipedia entry sums it up perfectly- a social entrepreneur is aiming at an entirely different target than a profit-centered one. While most businesses optimize profit while staying within reasonable ethical bounds, social entrepreneurs optimize to their social goals while staying within reasonable financial bounds (at least sustainability). It's entirely possible to live a decent life as a social entrepreneur, or even get rich, but I think that some of the recent hype is an overraction against the perception that you have to sacrifice all of your financial security to do what you believe in. <BR/><BR/> -mattAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8332466.post-46010758252937233292007-06-17T23:35:00.000-04:002007-06-17T23:35:00.000-04:00I'll suggest a spin here; what's BS is that social...I'll suggest a spin here; what's BS is that social entrepreneurship is actually all that different.<BR/><BR/>"What do you want to accomplish" is probably the right way to go about making a business in the first place. You start with an answer to "why should the company exist in the first place?" and concentrate on the business model.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8332466.post-84053486236885982832007-06-17T16:27:00.000-04:002007-06-17T16:27:00.000-04:00Social entrepreneurship is the work of a social en...<I>Social entrepreneurship is the work of a social entrepreneur. A social entrepreneur is someone who recognizes a social problem and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to make social change. Whereas business entrepreneurs typically measure performance in profit and return, social entrepreneurs assess their success in terms of the impact they have on society. While social entrepreneurs often work through nonprofits and citizen groups, many work in the private and governmental sectors.<BR/>--Wikipedia</I><BR/><BR/>It's an interesting idea, and given the right people it could be made to work. The problem is that the pivotal point of it is to game the system - to defy the standards of business and entrepreneurship, and to well despite it. It's the kind of thing I'm interested in just to see if I could pull it off, because it's so damn <I>hard</I> to succeed enough to make a difference without taking shortcuts, chasing loopholes, and generally blowing off your conscience.<BR/><BR/>So it's not complete bs, but that doesn't make it any more doable than being a completely ethical politician who still gets reelected.nikkihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12655022025391097046noreply@blogger.com