July 28, 2025 • 20 mins
Can you build a business that truly makes a difference and pays you well? In this episode, Toni Finnimore, founder of The Social Society, shares how she’s balancing purpose and profit by designing a values-driven business model that delivers real community impact without sacrificing boundaries or wellbeing. We talk about why consistency matters more than quick wins, how to stay true to your vision when the world says otherwise, and what redefining success really looks like after corporate life.
Key takeaways:
-
Redefining Community & Charity Work:
Toni Finnimore shares how The Social Society is bringing a fresh approach to volunteering, blending the best of community, connection, and values while sidestepping burnout and traditional charity pitfalls. -
Purpose & Profit, Not Either–Or:
Learn how Toni refuses to accept that you must choose between making a difference and making a living, and how holding firm to this belief has shaped her business model. -
Boundaries Against Burnout:
Both Toni and Anna discuss the challenge of “giving” professions, showing how healthy boundaries and prioritising your own wellbeing are essential to creating lasting impact—both for yourself and the organisations you support. -
Building a Sustainable Business Model:
Discover Toni’s innovative approach to business sustainability through subscription-based volunteering platforms and meaningful, skill-based event days—all while staying true to her core values and not chasing trends for the sake of it. -
The Power of Consistency and Authenticity:
Toni reveals the joys and struggles of growing her personal brand and business, underscoring why showing up regularly and speaking honestly matters more than hacks, trends, or going viral.
If Toni’s story has you rethinking how you want to build your own business - one that protects your time, reflects your values, and actually works - let’s talk. I help independent experts (re-)design their business models so they’re strategic, sustainable, and built for enough.
Book a call to explore what that could look like for you: onestepoutside.com/call
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Reimagining Success, episode 352. And my
guest today is the founder of the Social Society. And she's sharing
how she's redefining community impact not just through charity
work, but by designing a business model that's really rooted in values,
boundaries and real world results. We talk about what it takes to
stay true to your vision, why consistency matters more than quick wins,
(00:22):
and how to build success on your own terms, even when the world
says otherwise. Foreign.
The podcast that helps you build a profitable business as an independent expert, one
that works for you and your lifestyle. I'm your host, Anna Lundberg,
former corporate insider turned business mentor, executive coach and
(00:44):
mum of two. Whether you're a solopreneur, a coach,
speaker, consultant, I'm here to guide you in creating a business
that gives you freedom, flexibility and the fulfilment you're
looking for. Ready to redefine success and build a
business that you love. Let's get started.
Hello everyone and welcome to this month's interview. And I'm here with
(01:08):
Toni Finnimore, who I don't know very well. So I'm as excited as you all
are to dig into her story. And Toni, as ever, I'm going to
hand right over to you and ask you to introduce yourself as only you can
and then we'll dig into your story and what it is you're doing. Amazing. Thank
you and thanks for having me as well. It's great to be here. Yeah. So
I'm the founder of an organisation called the Social Society and we're a volunteer
(01:29):
and events community that effectively top line makes local volunteering
easy. And we do that by the human to human
matchmaking. I guess we're a little bit like the bumble tinder or hinge
of charity matchmaking. And we bring both local people,
employees and students of late, and charities
into our community and matchmake them based on their
(01:50):
skills, their hobbies, their passions and real time
need for the charity and local community. The event
side of our work is predominantly festival team days, so
we bring anything from 50 to 500 people into a field
from businesses and we pay local charities to come and ask for help.
So we cherry pick the skills and we make sure we support charities in a
(02:14):
way that's actually meaningful rather than guesswork. Love that.
Important work. How did you end up there? Was this sort of a very
clear path laid out after you finished school or have been kind of the
little pivots and twists and turns along the way? Yeah, there was a slightly
bumpy period after all, I would imagine when my poor parents thought, what is she
going to end up doing? But actually, looking back
(02:37):
now, yeah, there was a very clear route, I guess, started in
NHS support work, went into advocacy, representing
people's rights and wishes and beliefs, then went into managing
those services for charities and community provisions. So
mental health, end of life, learning disability services.
When I was in it, I was very much like, wow, where is this going?
(02:58):
This is hard. Like, this is hard work, especially
in communities on ground level. But, yeah, looking back now, there was
a very clear reason why I'm here today. I guess,
connecting the dots backwards, as Steve Jobs famously said. I
suppose going back to that beginning, it sounds like you've always done meaningful work, but
I guess in a different way. Yeah, different container or whatever you want to
(03:21):
call it. But how has your view of success, both for you
personally in your career, but also, I suppose, more broadly for the
charities you work with, shifted since when you first started
to where you are today? Yeah, definitely. Oh, it's hugely different.
I look back at some of my career, especially in charity and
managing community provisions, and it was. It was all day,
(03:44):
it was zero boundaries, it was give, give, give, give, give to the point of
burnout constantly, you know, huge hu,
lots and lots of stress and crisis. Unfortunately, I think charities are still in that
position because they're still plugging local gaps all over the uk.
But, yeah, it was a. It was a pretty bleak time and when I was
in it, I was thinking, oh, wow, this is really tough. But now
(04:06):
way more boundaried, freedom, flexibility and the. The
sort of ability to make a real impact is all I really focus on,
so lots better at that now. That's
so interesting because I've worked a lot with people who have left corporate, as I
call it, and it tends to be, if you think about the Ike guy, which
you may be familiar with, with sort of the things that you love doing and
(04:27):
the things you're good at and making money and things that the world needs, we
tend to be on the kind of good at making money side of things
and then we want to move more towards making a bigger difference, making an
impact. Meaning. But. And I recently wrote an article actually
about sort of how passionate what you do can actually lead to
burnout. Right. Because you do blow those boundaries. And I'd imagine it's the same when
(04:49):
you're doing really meaningful work. It's even harder to shut your
laptop down because I see colleagues, and I'm not going to name their particular industries,
but where you can easily go up. That work isn't making a difference, but
your work actually can make a difference. So yeah, that's a
really interesting tension of I need to understand that if I burn out,
I can't help anyone, I can't help my family, let alone the people who
(05:11):
I'm trying to help in this organisation 100%. And it is a tricky
one, especially when you're working closely with organisations that are
grassroots on the ground floor, dealing with the client
crisis on a day to day basis because you want to step up and do
more and help, you know, in a way that's going to make a much wider
impact for them and the people that they support. But ultimately you can only do
so much and so by having that time and being boundaried and
(05:34):
flexible, you can actually support far more. And I think that
Ikigai, I think there's still a narrative, I think that
you can't have purpose and profit at the same time. And I think
it's a little rubbish, to be honest. I think you absolutely can. But
that's also a journey that I've been on. Yeah, I'm with you on this, but
let's dig into that because I think that's true again, both from the individual's perspective.
(05:56):
I mean, I think my Instagram bio, which constantly changes something around more, more income
and more freedom and more purpose. Right. Without the hustle and.
Absolutely. I think there's a growing group of us who believe that that's possible in
organisations too. Whether it's the, the core movement, which I've seen be
criticised recently, but it's still moving in the right direction. Right. Or you know, the
triple bottom line and all these thoughts. So tell us more about
(06:18):
that then. How, how are you thinking now in terms of the purpose and
profit? I think there's a, there's a. In terms of client. I was doing some
stuff on this this morning, just around the clarity of your offer and not trying
to be everything to everyone. The B Corp movement is an interesting one. They
are, they are changing but they're changing their account. They're like framework their standards, their
accountability, I guess what you would call them to be more
(06:39):
rigorous. So I think again, I'm actually going through mine at the moment. I think
it's a really good way to hold yourself accountable and also
work and collaborate with people that are in the same space
to do good. Yeah,
yeah. And have you had any wobbles along the way? You know, what sort of
the dreaded imposter syndrome we always talk about, like how Can I possibly make this
(07:02):
work? How can I do this and also make a living? As I would talk
us through kind of the inner workings of your mind during this time. Every
week, Every single week. No, it's
less and less so now. But it is, I think in, in the spirit of
being open and honest. It's an absolute journey, you know, journey. And it's an,
it's not a linear path. It's always. It's a very much like a roller coaster
(07:24):
but the highs far outweigh the lows. The impact that you can
make, the, the work that we do and the,
you can see it, you can see not just in the field with, with the
charities that have received the help, but the longer term impact and the connections and
the support floor is, is
worth, is worth it. And if you.
(07:45):
No, please, go ahead. Just going to say, just, you know,
just pretty similar along those lines really. I was going to say, building on that,
if you could sort of let us have a peek behind the curtain, I suppose,
of the business model. How do you navigate that tension of making money for your
own sake and for the sake of, you know, business and team members and so
on. And then also obviously the really important work that you're doing. How do you.
(08:07):
What does your business model look like? Yeah, sure. So it's a subsidiary, I guess.
So it's a subscription based model. So you have lots of, I guess,
volunteer skills platforms that are very plug and play, that will plug into
hr, pieces of tech for businesses up and down the
UK and much further afield. So it's a per employee
cost for the subscription base and effectively what we do is we take the legwork
(08:29):
out of it for the organisations and we lead on their employee volunteering, we
give them marketing collateral report on their social impact. So that's
one revenue stream and then the festival team days are another. So if
organisations. Some we do every quarter so they'll get their
teams together every quarter to have a strategy day and they want to
do good on the second day. So yeah, we'll lead and facilitate that. And
(08:52):
there's a financial model or revenue stream in that as well. Nice. And what
kind of companies do you work with? Do you have a particular focus there? Or
anyone who wants to organise those team days? Yeah, it's sexual
agnostic really. It's really interesting. We've had tech, we've had digital, we've had.
We work with trusted house sitters at the moment, which is a pet sitting company.
It's, it's really varied. But just anybody that Genuinely wants to make
(09:14):
a difference. I think there are lots of. I still get lots of emails saying,
can you drive us six hours out of borum wood to just paint a
shed or dig an allotment? And I'm like, no, can't solve the problem.
And so we are. Yeah, we're just very clear
about, you know, you need to actually want to make a real difference.
Nice. So you have that filter in terms of making sure that you're working with
(09:36):
the right partners. Yeah, 100%. Yeah, definitely. And then
you as the founder, we talked briefly before we started recording about public speaking and
TED talks and that kind of thing. How do you see kind of your personal
brand building as part of your business as well as possibly separate
and kind of above and beyond any particular business you have at the moment? Yeah,
I think it's becoming more. It's more and more of a thing to build your
(09:57):
personal brand. And I never set out to actually do that. Just kind of.
I'm not a fan of social media, if I'm honest, and I'm really
not, especially not Instagram. And I didn't used to be a fan of LinkedIn,
but the minute I switched from this is what I should post
to just me, which is very. My
language is all my misel. There's a lot of just. I say how it
(10:19):
is. I've started sort of growing that brand. Yeah.
And it's just kind of naturally happened and I've had opportunities to come and
speak on things that I'm just passionate about and the work I've done. And it's
been a journey to get there. It's not an easy. It's not an easy
slog. Well, what's. What is. What has that journey been? Well, how
did you get the kind of confidence to go now? Actually, you know what, I'm
(10:40):
just gonna. I'm not gonna try to, like, sort of tiptoe around or try to
play the game. I'm gonna just say, say it as I see it. And that's
gonna obviously hopefully bring the right opportunities and allow you to stay
in your integrity. It all makes sense on paper, but it's harder to sort of
have the courage to go, hey, this is me. This is what I stand for,
you know, and doesn't matter the consequences. Yeah. 100. And
(11:00):
honestly, I think for me personally, it's just been just doing it. I'm very
much a doer. I'm like, actually, I'll think about that later. Let's just do it.
So just post. And also from Personality
Wise my whole career. Like I've always been very good
at unpicking injustice or support or being the voice of
somebody that needs it most. Like actually that's not okay. I was always
(11:22):
one of those people that would climb the ladder and knock on the hospital manager's
door. Disability discrimination and all of that. Absolutely useless for
myself. You know, I'd go to the hairdressers and they'd shave me a
rainbow coloured mohawk and I'd give them a 20 pound tip and rule my eyes
out like a 5 year old after because it looked terrible, it was awful. I
did it for myself, but I've always been very good at doing it for others
(11:43):
and so I just do. I guess I started by just posting
and seeing what happened and that consistency really, really works. And
I know it's a bit of a dull thing and people are like, oh, there's
no hack for this, but there really isn't. It's the tortoise, not the her.
It's both kind of reassuring and annoying that there is no hack and there's no
one answer. Right. But it's also, it can take the pressure off because I think
(12:04):
we, and, and when I hit publish on my first blog, I got 12,
13 years ago and I was like, oh, I'm gonna die, people are gonna read.
And of course it was my mum and like her friend who read it. So
it's, that's the good news. It's hardly anyone cares because everyone's so
busy. But also it's such a tapestry, patchwork of a post
here I think. It's not like you go viral or you do a TED Talk
and then boom, suddenly it all comes. It's really every, it's
(12:27):
consistency but it's up sits, downs, it's. Sometimes something works, sometimes it doesn't. This
feels better, this doesn't. And it's just kind of plodding along, it's not so sexy,
but it's the stuff that works. And in the meantime you're running your business and
doing, you know, living your life. Right. So it's just a small part of that.
It's the same in business, right. You know what the social society looks like today?
Yes. The core mission is the same. To change the way we give back to
(12:47):
communities, to have these independent spaces and models to do that.
But wow, it's changed so much and it changes all the time. Every project we
do, every event that we do, we are. You know, when I first
started I was off an investment and I turned it down because everyone was talking
about tech and scaling and taking over the world. And actually my
core values have always been about human connection and about in
(13:09):
those spaces. And I was. Laughter. For the subscription based model, like
what you want people to subscribe and pay to volunteer and also
bringing people together in person was just not heard of. And then obviously we
had Covid like, okay, maybe there's
something in this. And then now we're getting lots and lots of people saying, oh,
you know, you mentioned that tech piece seven years ago actually we really
(13:32):
want to be out in a field. We want to disconnect from the square that
day. You know, our teams are hybrid, they're stressed, they're burnt out. We want to
be together and we want to do good in a way that's meaningful. So it's
funny turns but that consistency and
sticking with your values and your beliefs and having. Well,
having that belief. Yeah. That you. The end goal will work. Yeah. And that's
(13:53):
music to me is both the human connection because I think especially now, as you
said post Covid, but with AI and all these things and you know, I'm fiercely
independent, working from home for the last decade and yet, you know, even I
want to go out and meet real people and I'm seeing the value in that.
So I think that's so, so important. And then as you said, I think I
work with so many people now who get caught up in exactly that, oh, I've
(14:13):
got to scale for the sake of scaling or the investors are pushing in that
direction or oh, I've got to jump on this trend now with the AI and
it's got to be. And it's the, the again the courage, but
the patience, the sort of guts to kind of go, no, hang
on, I'm staying in my lane. This is what I believe, this is what I
want to do. And you know, things will come and go. Right. Trends will come
and go, investors will come and go. But really. And you're. It sounds like your
(14:37):
vision has kind of played out in reality and, and even
if it didn't, it's the right thing for you to do. So that's. That's such
an important lesson. I think it is. And that's a really key point. Like it's
you, it's you, it's no one else's. And you will have, frankly, you'll
have people with opinions constantly. And I still do today. But you know
that, that you have to have that utter belief in the model and that it
(14:59):
works. You know, obviously it has to work to a degree because, you know, be
silly to continue down that path if not. But yeah, just keep keeping going,
I think. And it's also sort of quieter version of success. It's not the rah,
rah, look at me with my, you know, traditionally fancy offices and big investors
and Facebook just bought my st startup kind of. It's much more. No, but I'm,
you know, I know this is changing the game for charities and for
(15:21):
individuals and this is what's right. And that's what I'm focusing on.
Yeah, 100%. And by being, you know, flexible with my time
anyway, in particular, I can get up and be like, okay, well I'm going to,
I live in Brighton so I'm going to go for a seafood stroll. I'm going
to process my thoughts, you know, take a bit of a call here around this
crisis and the charity, what they're dealing with. And yeah, it's really important.
(15:41):
It's really important. And that's my success and their success. Well, and
me being able to do that and be boundaried and have that flexibility
and grow in the business slowly and sustainably gives
them more of my time and support and the team.
And if we're bringing this down to a really practical level, what does a typical
day look like, if such a thing exists or a typical week for you? What
(16:03):
does sort of your working calendar look like? I
mean this week and next is quite events heavy.
So we are doing a pilot with some students at the moment for. Because
the same gap exists in students in universities and colleges. They want to
give back but in house teams don't necessarily have the time. So we almost act
as a matchmaker and a broker there. So we've got some pop ups at the
(16:25):
university, some social impact panels. I've got two of those coming
up. We have got a festival team day in the
pipeline. I think it's two weeks away and then
every other day is different really. And I guess it's what I put in the
calendar. Like I love to get up, have a stroll, do a sauna a couple
of mornings a week, work late. You know, it varies
(16:46):
massively in the summer, from June to October we'll
be busy because that's kind of event season for festival team days
and then. Yeah, so events and community matchmaking
and. Now you have a team. How. What does that look like? Yes, we have
community managers, we have city leads and then when we come to event season, we
have a whole heap of freelancers that come in and like on a rotor that
(17:08):
come in and dip in and out and help run the events as and when
they can. Yeah. And you working fully remotely
throughout the year until you meet up for events or how do you come together?
Pretty much. Well, we're live direct from the kitchen now and that's the last few
days. Yeah. But I've got co working spaces and things that
we go into. But. And I'm in London actually this week as well for the
(17:29):
Charity Film Awards. So there's a. There's a variety. Yeah, put
it that way. Sounds amazing. Sounds so interesting. That's what keeps
it interesting. Right? The variety of being out, being home in your
kitchen, being alone, being with. People 100%
and the choice to do that, I guess. And the festival team days in particular
are very different. Each one of them is different. Kind
(17:52):
of like co produce and design them with the business. So some businesses
will say we'd really like health and wellbeing and horse box saunas and
yoga and movement and breath work. And then others will say, I'm
absolutely not getting in my bikini in front of Colin from Accountants. I don't want
that. So it's. It's very different. So they're all
really different experiences. Love that. And I suppose
(18:13):
I always ask if you could give one piece of advice and I suppose
thinking about someone who is maybe feeling a bit like, ugh,
I'm being pushed in this direction or put, you know, and actually I feel
like that's not where I want to go. Can you offer some words of wisdom
to how you can kind of stick to your vision, your values and kind of
keep going on that path? I think, and it's a really short one
(18:35):
as you do you like. And I say this all the time and people, what
does that mean? Literally, you do whatever it is that you feel you
know and you will have that. But if you have that belief in the end
goal and you've got all of this narrative saying, don't do it, do it like
this. You have to be careful, I think. I think
people will offer advice and sometimes it's really good advice. We can't do it on
(18:55):
your own. So I'm not saying be stubborn and. But ultimately you know
what's right. So just trust, trust your instinct, keep going,
consistency. And you do you. Yeah, that's simple. We would
get T shirts. But I think that's the tension again, isn't it, of listening to
experts on certain things where you might not know and there's gaps in your knowledge,
but also understanding the really important things around the values as well as how you
(19:17):
want to live your life and run your business. Because that's the whole point, right?
Why set it up if you're not doing it true to the vision that you,
you have yourself. So, and ultimately you'll learn from those
experts. The experts. And some won't be, you know, I've many a time over the
years and you don't know, right? You don't know. You go, let's get the help,
let's get the support. And then, you know, six months in, you think, actually, this
(19:37):
isn't where I want this to be going. So it's just life lessons,
which is tough. But yeah, just keep doing you and being consistent, I would say.
Love that. And Toni, where can we find out more about you? Where can we
connect with you and follow the work you're doing? So LinkedIn is Toni
Finnimore. And then
thesocialsociety.org.uk is the website. Perfect.
(19:58):
Love that. And again, I, I didn't know you at all before this call. I've
been so glad to, to find out both about your, the
patterns and what you're doing, which is so different to what I've done, but, and
yet I just really resonate with everything you're saying and I know that the audience
will too. So thank you so much for sharing that. Best of luck with the
next step of your journey as well and looking forward to staying connected. Yeah,
thanks for having me.
(20:21):
If you're ready to grow a business that actually works, one that pays you well,
protects your time and reflects what matters most, the business
accelerator is for you. It's a 12-month journey for independent experts who
want strategic growth without burnout and without
compromise. Apply or join the waitlist
at
onestepoutside.com/accelerate.
Reimagining Success, episode 352. And my
guest today is the founder of the Social Society. And she's sharing
how she's redefining community impact not just through charity
work, but by designing a business model that's really rooted in values,
boundaries and real world results. We talk about what it takes to
stay true to your vision, why consistency matters more than quick wins,
(00:22):
and how to build success on your own terms, even when the world
says otherwise. Foreign.
The podcast that helps you build a profitable business as an independent expert, one
that works for you and your lifestyle. I'm your host, Anna Lundberg,
former corporate insider turned business mentor, executive coach and
(00:44):
mum of two. Whether you're a solopreneur, a coach,
speaker, consultant, I'm here to guide you in creating a business
that gives you freedom, flexibility and the fulfilment you're
looking for. Ready to redefine success and build a
business that you love. Let's get started.
Hello everyone and welcome to this month's interview. And I'm here with
(01:08):
Toni Finnimore, who I don't know very well. So I'm as excited as you all
are to dig into her story. And Toni, as ever, I'm going to
hand right over to you and ask you to introduce yourself as only you can
and then we'll dig into your story and what it is you're doing. Amazing. Thank
you and thanks for having me as well. It's great to be here. Yeah. So
I'm the founder of an organisation called the Social Society and we're a volunteer
(01:29):
and events community that effectively top line makes local volunteering
easy. And we do that by the human to human
matchmaking. I guess we're a little bit like the bumble tinder or hinge
of charity matchmaking. And we bring both local people,
employees and students of late, and charities
into our community and matchmake them based on their
(01:50):
skills, their hobbies, their passions and real time
need for the charity and local community. The event
side of our work is predominantly festival team days, so
we bring anything from 50 to 500 people into a field
from businesses and we pay local charities to come and ask for help.
So we cherry pick the skills and we make sure we support charities in a
(02:14):
way that's actually meaningful rather than guesswork. Love that.
Important work. How did you end up there? Was this sort of a very
clear path laid out after you finished school or have been kind of the
little pivots and twists and turns along the way? Yeah, there was a slightly
bumpy period after all, I would imagine when my poor parents thought, what is she
going to end up doing? But actually, looking back
(02:37):
now, yeah, there was a very clear route, I guess, started in
NHS support work, went into advocacy, representing
people's rights and wishes and beliefs, then went into managing
those services for charities and community provisions. So
mental health, end of life, learning disability services.
When I was in it, I was very much like, wow, where is this going?
(02:58):
This is hard. Like, this is hard work, especially
in communities on ground level. But, yeah, looking back now, there was
a very clear reason why I'm here today. I guess,
connecting the dots backwards, as Steve Jobs famously said. I
suppose going back to that beginning, it sounds like you've always done meaningful work, but
I guess in a different way. Yeah, different container or whatever you want to
(03:21):
call it. But how has your view of success, both for you
personally in your career, but also, I suppose, more broadly for the
charities you work with, shifted since when you first started
to where you are today? Yeah, definitely. Oh, it's hugely different.
I look back at some of my career, especially in charity and
managing community provisions, and it was. It was all day,
(03:44):
it was zero boundaries, it was give, give, give, give, give to the point of
burnout constantly, you know, huge hu,
lots and lots of stress and crisis. Unfortunately, I think charities are still in that
position because they're still plugging local gaps all over the uk.
But, yeah, it was a. It was a pretty bleak time and when I was
in it, I was thinking, oh, wow, this is really tough. But now
(04:06):
way more boundaried, freedom, flexibility and the. The
sort of ability to make a real impact is all I really focus on,
so lots better at that now. That's
so interesting because I've worked a lot with people who have left corporate, as I
call it, and it tends to be, if you think about the Ike guy, which
you may be familiar with, with sort of the things that you love doing and
(04:27):
the things you're good at and making money and things that the world needs, we
tend to be on the kind of good at making money side of things
and then we want to move more towards making a bigger difference, making an
impact. Meaning. But. And I recently wrote an article actually
about sort of how passionate what you do can actually lead to
burnout. Right. Because you do blow those boundaries. And I'd imagine it's the same when
(04:49):
you're doing really meaningful work. It's even harder to shut your
laptop down because I see colleagues, and I'm not going to name their particular industries,
but where you can easily go up. That work isn't making a difference, but
your work actually can make a difference. So yeah, that's a
really interesting tension of I need to understand that if I burn out,
I can't help anyone, I can't help my family, let alone the people who
(05:11):
I'm trying to help in this organisation 100%. And it is a tricky
one, especially when you're working closely with organisations that are
grassroots on the ground floor, dealing with the client
crisis on a day to day basis because you want to step up and do
more and help, you know, in a way that's going to make a much wider
impact for them and the people that they support. But ultimately you can only do
so much and so by having that time and being boundaried and
(05:34):
flexible, you can actually support far more. And I think that
Ikigai, I think there's still a narrative, I think that
you can't have purpose and profit at the same time. And I think
it's a little rubbish, to be honest. I think you absolutely can. But
that's also a journey that I've been on. Yeah, I'm with you on this, but
let's dig into that because I think that's true again, both from the individual's perspective.
(05:56):
I mean, I think my Instagram bio, which constantly changes something around more, more income
and more freedom and more purpose. Right. Without the hustle and.
Absolutely. I think there's a growing group of us who believe that that's possible in
organisations too. Whether it's the, the core movement, which I've seen be
criticised recently, but it's still moving in the right direction. Right. Or you know, the
triple bottom line and all these thoughts. So tell us more about
(06:18):
that then. How, how are you thinking now in terms of the purpose and
profit? I think there's a, there's a. In terms of client. I was doing some
stuff on this this morning, just around the clarity of your offer and not trying
to be everything to everyone. The B Corp movement is an interesting one. They
are, they are changing but they're changing their account. They're like framework their standards, their
accountability, I guess what you would call them to be more
(06:39):
rigorous. So I think again, I'm actually going through mine at the moment. I think
it's a really good way to hold yourself accountable and also
work and collaborate with people that are in the same space
to do good. Yeah,
yeah. And have you had any wobbles along the way? You know, what sort of
the dreaded imposter syndrome we always talk about, like how Can I possibly make this
(07:02):
work? How can I do this and also make a living? As I would talk
us through kind of the inner workings of your mind during this time. Every
week, Every single week. No, it's
less and less so now. But it is, I think in, in the spirit of
being open and honest. It's an absolute journey, you know, journey. And it's an,
it's not a linear path. It's always. It's a very much like a roller coaster
(07:24):
but the highs far outweigh the lows. The impact that you can
make, the, the work that we do and the,
you can see it, you can see not just in the field with, with the
charities that have received the help, but the longer term impact and the connections and
the support floor is, is
worth, is worth it. And if you.
(07:45):
No, please, go ahead. Just going to say, just, you know,
just pretty similar along those lines really. I was going to say, building on that,
if you could sort of let us have a peek behind the curtain, I suppose,
of the business model. How do you navigate that tension of making money for your
own sake and for the sake of, you know, business and team members and so
on. And then also obviously the really important work that you're doing. How do you.
(08:07):
What does your business model look like? Yeah, sure. So it's a subsidiary, I guess.
So it's a subscription based model. So you have lots of, I guess,
volunteer skills platforms that are very plug and play, that will plug into
hr, pieces of tech for businesses up and down the
UK and much further afield. So it's a per employee
cost for the subscription base and effectively what we do is we take the legwork
(08:29):
out of it for the organisations and we lead on their employee volunteering, we
give them marketing collateral report on their social impact. So that's
one revenue stream and then the festival team days are another. So if
organisations. Some we do every quarter so they'll get their
teams together every quarter to have a strategy day and they want to
do good on the second day. So yeah, we'll lead and facilitate that. And
(08:52):
there's a financial model or revenue stream in that as well. Nice. And what
kind of companies do you work with? Do you have a particular focus there? Or
anyone who wants to organise those team days? Yeah, it's sexual
agnostic really. It's really interesting. We've had tech, we've had digital, we've had.
We work with trusted house sitters at the moment, which is a pet sitting company.
It's, it's really varied. But just anybody that Genuinely wants to make
(09:14):
a difference. I think there are lots of. I still get lots of emails saying,
can you drive us six hours out of borum wood to just paint a
shed or dig an allotment? And I'm like, no, can't solve the problem.
And so we are. Yeah, we're just very clear
about, you know, you need to actually want to make a real difference.
Nice. So you have that filter in terms of making sure that you're working with
(09:36):
the right partners. Yeah, 100%. Yeah, definitely. And then
you as the founder, we talked briefly before we started recording about public speaking and
TED talks and that kind of thing. How do you see kind of your personal
brand building as part of your business as well as possibly separate
and kind of above and beyond any particular business you have at the moment? Yeah,
I think it's becoming more. It's more and more of a thing to build your
(09:57):
personal brand. And I never set out to actually do that. Just kind of.
I'm not a fan of social media, if I'm honest, and I'm really
not, especially not Instagram. And I didn't used to be a fan of LinkedIn,
but the minute I switched from this is what I should post
to just me, which is very. My
language is all my misel. There's a lot of just. I say how it
(10:19):
is. I've started sort of growing that brand. Yeah.
And it's just kind of naturally happened and I've had opportunities to come and
speak on things that I'm just passionate about and the work I've done. And it's
been a journey to get there. It's not an easy. It's not an easy
slog. Well, what's. What is. What has that journey been? Well, how
did you get the kind of confidence to go now? Actually, you know what, I'm
(10:40):
just gonna. I'm not gonna try to, like, sort of tiptoe around or try to
play the game. I'm gonna just say, say it as I see it. And that's
gonna obviously hopefully bring the right opportunities and allow you to stay
in your integrity. It all makes sense on paper, but it's harder to sort of
have the courage to go, hey, this is me. This is what I stand for,
you know, and doesn't matter the consequences. Yeah. 100. And
(11:00):
honestly, I think for me personally, it's just been just doing it. I'm very
much a doer. I'm like, actually, I'll think about that later. Let's just do it.
So just post. And also from Personality
Wise my whole career. Like I've always been very good
at unpicking injustice or support or being the voice of
somebody that needs it most. Like actually that's not okay. I was always
(11:22):
one of those people that would climb the ladder and knock on the hospital manager's
door. Disability discrimination and all of that. Absolutely useless for
myself. You know, I'd go to the hairdressers and they'd shave me a
rainbow coloured mohawk and I'd give them a 20 pound tip and rule my eyes
out like a 5 year old after because it looked terrible, it was awful. I
did it for myself, but I've always been very good at doing it for others
(11:43):
and so I just do. I guess I started by just posting
and seeing what happened and that consistency really, really works. And
I know it's a bit of a dull thing and people are like, oh, there's
no hack for this, but there really isn't. It's the tortoise, not the her.
It's both kind of reassuring and annoying that there is no hack and there's no
one answer. Right. But it's also, it can take the pressure off because I think
(12:04):
we, and, and when I hit publish on my first blog, I got 12,
13 years ago and I was like, oh, I'm gonna die, people are gonna read.
And of course it was my mum and like her friend who read it. So
it's, that's the good news. It's hardly anyone cares because everyone's so
busy. But also it's such a tapestry, patchwork of a post
here I think. It's not like you go viral or you do a TED Talk
and then boom, suddenly it all comes. It's really every, it's
(12:27):
consistency but it's up sits, downs, it's. Sometimes something works, sometimes it doesn't. This
feels better, this doesn't. And it's just kind of plodding along, it's not so sexy,
but it's the stuff that works. And in the meantime you're running your business and
doing, you know, living your life. Right. So it's just a small part of that.
It's the same in business, right. You know what the social society looks like today?
Yes. The core mission is the same. To change the way we give back to
(12:47):
communities, to have these independent spaces and models to do that.
But wow, it's changed so much and it changes all the time. Every project we
do, every event that we do, we are. You know, when I first
started I was off an investment and I turned it down because everyone was talking
about tech and scaling and taking over the world. And actually my
core values have always been about human connection and about in
(13:09):
those spaces. And I was. Laughter. For the subscription based model, like
what you want people to subscribe and pay to volunteer and also
bringing people together in person was just not heard of. And then obviously we
had Covid like, okay, maybe there's
something in this. And then now we're getting lots and lots of people saying, oh,
you know, you mentioned that tech piece seven years ago actually we really
(13:32):
want to be out in a field. We want to disconnect from the square that
day. You know, our teams are hybrid, they're stressed, they're burnt out. We want to
be together and we want to do good in a way that's meaningful. So it's
funny turns but that consistency and
sticking with your values and your beliefs and having. Well,
having that belief. Yeah. That you. The end goal will work. Yeah. And that's
(13:53):
music to me is both the human connection because I think especially now, as you
said post Covid, but with AI and all these things and you know, I'm fiercely
independent, working from home for the last decade and yet, you know, even I
want to go out and meet real people and I'm seeing the value in that.
So I think that's so, so important. And then as you said, I think I
work with so many people now who get caught up in exactly that, oh, I've
(14:13):
got to scale for the sake of scaling or the investors are pushing in that
direction or oh, I've got to jump on this trend now with the AI and
it's got to be. And it's the, the again the courage, but
the patience, the sort of guts to kind of go, no, hang
on, I'm staying in my lane. This is what I believe, this is what I
want to do. And you know, things will come and go. Right. Trends will come
and go, investors will come and go. But really. And you're. It sounds like your
(14:37):
vision has kind of played out in reality and, and even
if it didn't, it's the right thing for you to do. So that's. That's such
an important lesson. I think it is. And that's a really key point. Like it's
you, it's you, it's no one else's. And you will have, frankly, you'll
have people with opinions constantly. And I still do today. But you know
that, that you have to have that utter belief in the model and that it
(14:59):
works. You know, obviously it has to work to a degree because, you know, be
silly to continue down that path if not. But yeah, just keep keeping going,
I think. And it's also sort of quieter version of success. It's not the rah,
rah, look at me with my, you know, traditionally fancy offices and big investors
and Facebook just bought my st startup kind of. It's much more. No, but I'm,
you know, I know this is changing the game for charities and for
(15:21):
individuals and this is what's right. And that's what I'm focusing on.
Yeah, 100%. And by being, you know, flexible with my time
anyway, in particular, I can get up and be like, okay, well I'm going to,
I live in Brighton so I'm going to go for a seafood stroll. I'm going
to process my thoughts, you know, take a bit of a call here around this
crisis and the charity, what they're dealing with. And yeah, it's really important.
(15:41):
It's really important. And that's my success and their success. Well, and
me being able to do that and be boundaried and have that flexibility
and grow in the business slowly and sustainably gives
them more of my time and support and the team.
And if we're bringing this down to a really practical level, what does a typical
day look like, if such a thing exists or a typical week for you? What
(16:03):
does sort of your working calendar look like? I
mean this week and next is quite events heavy.
So we are doing a pilot with some students at the moment for. Because
the same gap exists in students in universities and colleges. They want to
give back but in house teams don't necessarily have the time. So we almost act
as a matchmaker and a broker there. So we've got some pop ups at the
(16:25):
university, some social impact panels. I've got two of those coming
up. We have got a festival team day in the
pipeline. I think it's two weeks away and then
every other day is different really. And I guess it's what I put in the
calendar. Like I love to get up, have a stroll, do a sauna a couple
of mornings a week, work late. You know, it varies
(16:46):
massively in the summer, from June to October we'll
be busy because that's kind of event season for festival team days
and then. Yeah, so events and community matchmaking
and. Now you have a team. How. What does that look like? Yes, we have
community managers, we have city leads and then when we come to event season, we
have a whole heap of freelancers that come in and like on a rotor that
(17:08):
come in and dip in and out and help run the events as and when
they can. Yeah. And you working fully remotely
throughout the year until you meet up for events or how do you come together?
Pretty much. Well, we're live direct from the kitchen now and that's the last few
days. Yeah. But I've got co working spaces and things that
we go into. But. And I'm in London actually this week as well for the
(17:29):
Charity Film Awards. So there's a. There's a variety. Yeah, put
it that way. Sounds amazing. Sounds so interesting. That's what keeps
it interesting. Right? The variety of being out, being home in your
kitchen, being alone, being with. People 100%
and the choice to do that, I guess. And the festival team days in particular
are very different. Each one of them is different. Kind
(17:52):
of like co produce and design them with the business. So some businesses
will say we'd really like health and wellbeing and horse box saunas and
yoga and movement and breath work. And then others will say, I'm
absolutely not getting in my bikini in front of Colin from Accountants. I don't want
that. So it's. It's very different. So they're all
really different experiences. Love that. And I suppose
(18:13):
I always ask if you could give one piece of advice and I suppose
thinking about someone who is maybe feeling a bit like, ugh,
I'm being pushed in this direction or put, you know, and actually I feel
like that's not where I want to go. Can you offer some words of wisdom
to how you can kind of stick to your vision, your values and kind of
keep going on that path? I think, and it's a really short one
(18:35):
as you do you like. And I say this all the time and people, what
does that mean? Literally, you do whatever it is that you feel you
know and you will have that. But if you have that belief in the end
goal and you've got all of this narrative saying, don't do it, do it like
this. You have to be careful, I think. I think
people will offer advice and sometimes it's really good advice. We can't do it on
(18:55):
your own. So I'm not saying be stubborn and. But ultimately you know
what's right. So just trust, trust your instinct, keep going,
consistency. And you do you. Yeah, that's simple. We would
get T shirts. But I think that's the tension again, isn't it, of listening to
experts on certain things where you might not know and there's gaps in your knowledge,
but also understanding the really important things around the values as well as how you
(19:17):
want to live your life and run your business. Because that's the whole point, right?
Why set it up if you're not doing it true to the vision that you,
you have yourself. So, and ultimately you'll learn from those
experts. The experts. And some won't be, you know, I've many a time over the
years and you don't know, right? You don't know. You go, let's get the help,
let's get the support. And then, you know, six months in, you think, actually, this
(19:37):
isn't where I want this to be going. So it's just life lessons,
which is tough. But yeah, just keep doing you and being consistent, I would say.
Love that. And Toni, where can we find out more about you? Where can we
connect with you and follow the work you're doing? So LinkedIn is Toni
Finnimore. And then
thesocialsociety.org.uk is the website. Perfect.
(19:58):
Love that. And again, I, I didn't know you at all before this call. I've
been so glad to, to find out both about your, the
patterns and what you're doing, which is so different to what I've done, but, and
yet I just really resonate with everything you're saying and I know that the audience
will too. So thank you so much for sharing that. Best of luck with the
next step of your journey as well and looking forward to staying connected. Yeah,
thanks for having me.
(20:21):
If you're ready to grow a business that actually works, one that pays you well,
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