Comments on: Trust Banks – A Tool for Responsible Business

By: Jack

Jack — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 08:32:47 +0000

Reckon he’ll sue me for plagarism?

By: Flendolyn

Flendolyn — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 05:50:45 +0000

“I suspect the act of giving has less to do with wealth than one’s heart”

Apparently some guy said the same thing a couple of thousand years ago…

By: Jack

Jack — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 00:22:49 +0000

Yes but I have also heard (from the same great reference ) that those that don’t give to others when they are poor will also not give to others when they are rich. So I want our business to be a giving business from the outset but the material value of those gifts will be low until we get on our feet. I have some ideas brewing of low cost giving. I suspect the act of giving has less to do with wealth than one’s heart, and yep I’m as good as anyone at making excuses. And then there’s the definition of poor, somewhat different here in NZ than many other places. I can see why Gareth Morgan choses to give elsewhere than NZ.

By: Flendolyn

Flendolyn — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 22:02:06 +0000

I read somewhere in some book by some person (great ref I know!) about a group of people they referred to as ‘kingdom builders’ – people whose talent is to make money. That money was then poured into schemes much like this. The book also talked about those in start-up situations, or in low income families struggling with debt. Those people were encouraged strongly to work towards being able to give. And the first step of this, was to give nothing. It can be a hard concept to get your head around if you’re used to tithing / giving. But if the best way for you to make the biggest difference in your lifespan, is to spend every cent you have now getting rid of your debt / making yourself profitable – you are actually making great strides towards the future goal – to be a ‘kingdom builder’. If your only contribution towards giving this year is to aim to reduce your debt SO THAT you CAN give in the future (and give more than if you were continually feeding the interest on your debts), then that’s a great thing. The catch is when you’ve paid your debt and then you find excuses not to give… one to watch out for!

By: Frank

Frank — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 01:07:51 +0000

we have to grow and get profitable first. I know that sounds like putting profit before people, but we aren’t much use to anyone if we end up going broke

I understand that completely.

Will keep my eyes and ears peeled for any other businesses wanting to approach such a venture as part of a group.

If it doesn’t happen it could still be worth looking at micro-enterprise at a level that works for you, though it looks like it may be a struggle to venture into anything in the first year.

Personally I see it as making good marketing sense – being able to promote to the customer that some of the proceeds from the sale (not set percentages necessarily as that can be hard to administrate if the sales points and values vary) go towards making a difference.

Take everything I say with a grain of salt though. Whilst I can appreciate the efforts that must be involved, I’m not in the thick of the blood, sweat and tears it takes to build a good business from scratch. I’m just into encouraging people towards making a difference where they can and I know it’s the can that is so variable.

By: Jack

Jack — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:49:26 +0000

Thanks for that Frank. Sounds like a fantastic scheme, but too expensive for us to do on our own as a very small business. We will most likely be looking at a $5000 or more loss for this year so to have that sort of dosh to donate will take a bit of time – we have to grow and get profitable first. I know that sounds like putting profit before people, but we aren’t much use to anyone if we end up going broke
Would be happy to look at it though as one of a small group of businesses – let me know if you know of any interested.