Individual Social Responsibility

I read this interesting tidbit in my 365 Ways newsletter I received today and I think it is something worth exploring. While I have written a number of times about Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Enterprises what might be more important is Individual Social Responsibility. In other words, what is it that you do, the little things, to make the world a better place? What is it that you stand for? What are YOU doing to ensure that you are making a contribution to a better world, not just the status quo? We can look at it like the chicken and the egg argument, the 'it starts at the top and will filter down to the bottom' approach, or you can just step up.

Start by making a list of the things for which you believe in. Do you stand for animal rights, human rights, the environment, etc. Then decide what you can do through your purchasing behavior, your actions, your conversations, to start making it a part of your character - about making it a part of your life. When we individually decide to do something it will start to create a ripple for others to follow.

You don't notice it right away but you plant seeds with every interaction you make. It is like marketing, the more people see and hear something, the more they start to adopt it - this is the way successful brands have done it for years. Think about how you can market animal rights, you could buy only brands such as The Body Shop, wear a PETA T-shirt to a party, or become a vegetarian/part-time vegetarian (my friend Kylie has one day a week where she is a vegan, the rest of the week she is a vegetarian). You don't have to be an advocate, although it would certainly help, but sometimes the more subtle approach with people has a more profound and lasting effect. If you can get other people to ask you about your vegetarianism, instead of telling them outright, people are more likely to listen and take interest than if you are pushing pamphlets on them.

Be a pillar for your values, model them for all to see. Think about how you can market your better lifestyle. Think about other ways you can do your part to make the world a better place. This is your individual social responsibility - you are a business, you are a brand. Now is the time to 'sell' it.