#Challenge21 Recap – Doing More As A Business
How many burpees can you do in 21 days?
This isn’t a question that comes up very often when we’re discussing vacancies with clients. However, it’s become one of the major talking points in the (virtual) office recently. Why? Well, in support of #Challenge21, our team has committed to doing a series of challenges with the number 21 in them over the next few weeks.
What Is #Challenge21?
#Challenge21 supports Help Harry Help Others and free@last: two wonderful charities who are helping Birmingham’s children to live happier lives.
Help Harry Help Others was founded by Brummie hero Harry Moseley to support families who were battling cancer. After Harry tragically died in 2011, his Mom Georgie continued his work. A registered cancer charity since 2012, HHHO has raised thousands of pounds for research, as well as helping parents and children across the Midlands as they face the realities of cancer every day.
free@last was founded by a slightly older Brummie hero, John Street, in 1999. For over 20 years, the charity has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of children and young people in Nechells. In 2013, John was featured in The Independent newspaper’s Happy List celebrating the 100 happiest people in the UK.
22nd February 2021 should have been Harry’s 21st birthday, so the two charities have teamed up to have some fun and raise some funds in the process. Participants can do 21 of anything. That could involve baking 21 cakes, dancing for 21 hours, or walking 21 miles. If you’re feeling really brave, you could challenge us at burpees. Get involved here…
Why should my business join in?
The most important part of the challenge isn’t the activity that you choose, but the opportunity to give back to the community. Your team is so busy every day that it can be easy to focus on sales and forget the real purpose of all businesses: making their communities better places for everyone to live.
Some of the UK’s biggest businesses even created a special name for this sense of social purpose. They called it Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). That’s not a very imaginative or catchy name if you ask us – but it gets the point across.
But I already give loads to charity every year…
Great – that’s fantastic! CSR is about more than just donating though. It’s about promoting causes that your people care about. Then you can easily make sure that your (and their) work helps to create the world that you all want your kids to live in. If you share this challenge across your social media channels, think how many people will sign up. You’ll improve the lives of so many people as a result. If that doesn’t make your day perfect, we don’t know what will.
So what CSR does Kingston Noble do?
We knew you were going to ask us that. We’re so committed to raising money for kids, that Nikky climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in 2019. It was absolutely freezing, probably the toughest thing she’s ever done, and essentially turned her feet into walking blisters.
The summit is actually an arctic zone. This became abundantly clear when Nikky reached the top of Kilimanjaro. Despite still feeling cold while having about 80 warm coats on, she felt an overwhelming sense of happiness that £10,000 had been raised to make a real difference to some very special young lives.
OK wow that’s amazing…but how does it help our business?
Does your business have the same impact on your area? The COVID-19 pandemic has brought so much pain to so many people. However, it has also given everyone an opportunity to bring new hope to their communities. There are so many things that you can do to help charities as well as supporting them financially. You could:
- Volunteer
- Make sure that older people living next to your office are OK
- Promote charitable causes on social media.
- Ask friends to sponsor you to do something you never believed you could do
And so much more…
As business owners, we all have to decide what we stand for. In 50 years’ time, when COVID-19 has (thankfully) entered the history books, which businesses from 2021 do you think will still be thriving?
Companies that buy and sell, come and go. Businesses who build positive legacies in their communities last forever.