‘Fast Company’: Doing Good

The magazine Fast Company (December) poses the question, “What’s the best way to do good,” to 16 leaders in business and social activism. Among the answers:

• Marguerite W. Sallee, chief executive of the Frontline Group, a Nashville corporate-training company, says that “to create real change in this world, you have to have a vision, and you have to have enormous perseverance. It’s the same principle that applies in any entrepreneurial venture: You’ve got to be too stupid to quit.”
• Frances Moore Lappe, co-founder of the American News Service, which covers solutions to social problems: “To transform our society into something truly life-serving, we have to project images of people who act on their innate need for connection and meaning — not on some sacrificial inducement to be charitable. When the media glorifies a do-gooder, we think, ‘I could never do what she did.’ The do-gooder is turned into a kind of freak. But really, that person is just like you. The only difference: She took a risk.”
• Lisa Belzburg, founder, Public Education Needs Civic Involvement in Learning, a New York charity: “Once you’re clear about why you’re giving back, think small. Thinking small doesn’t mean that you lack ambition. It means that you’re building something meaningful, manageable, and sustainable. The smaller you set your sights, the more likely it is that you’ll succeed.”

The magazine is available online at http://www.fastcompany.com.