The book reveals that our social personality type determines how we do good
Do Good, Feel Better by Laura McKnight is a feel-good book that will make you realize how you can feel even better by doing good – and perhaps best of all – in the ways that suit you best.
Almost everyone wants to do good—to help those in need and make the world a better place—but too often we feel guilty when we have to say no, or we have too many other obligations to focus on doing. good, or we are simply not comfortable with the ways of doing good that are available to us. All this will change for you after you read Do Good, Feel Better because you will discover what your social impact personality type is and the best ways to do good according to your personality.
McKnight reveals that there are three social impact personality types: Activator, Connector, and Investor. She defines them as follows:
“Connectors prefer to engage in social impact activities that are social in nature, involving the opportunity to gather with other people, though not necessarily in pursuit of a specific charitable endeavour.
“Activators are passionate about the causes they care most about and tend to focus on ‘changing the world’ and impacting one or more social issues on a broad scale.
“Investors prefer to engage in social impact activities that are independent and do not require scheduling dedicated time or working directly with others in pursuit of a charitable endeavor.”
McKnight also offers a test on his website to help people determine which type they are. She then walks readers through the 10 Ways to Do Good, a list she culled from years of research and interviewing thousands of people. Some of the ways to do good may be surprising, while others may seem obvious. For example, volunteering makes the list, but so does purchasing—where you buy items because the company that makes them will give a percentage of the sales to a worthy cause. Other ways to do good include marketing, recycling and sharing. The great thing about these 10 ways to do good is that each way has components that will work for you, whether you’re an enabler, connector, or investor. And McKnight gives examples of how each way is applicable to each personality type.
These connections that McKnight reveals are great because they make doing good all about how the individual wants to do good. Anne-Marie Harrington, Embolden’s founder, who today works with McKnight at RenPSG, North America’s largest independent philanthropic solutions provider, makes this point in the book’s foreword:
“[T]his book is for you. It’s about realizing what really drives you when it comes to doing good and, just as importantly, how much good you’re already doing. As you learn about the different ways to do good and find your type, the good just grows—along with all the positive feelings that come with knowing you’re changing the world, adding meaning, making a social impact, and building on your own success.”
As an added bonus, the book doesn’t stop after taking readers through the 10 ways to do good. The second half is made up of a number of helpful articles that answer questions many people may have about doing good. These articles cover topics like what you need to know if you start your own charity, what types of charitable contributions are tax deductible, and how you can find out the best ways to motivate your employees to do good in ways they want. There’s even a list of 100 things you might need to know in the process of doing good. There’s also advice on how to research charities to determine “Is it a charity or a mystery?” Sometimes it’s hard to know which causes are most deserving of our dollars, so McKnight discusses a solution to this conundrum in the form of funds, recommended by donors. Finally, I appreciated that she discussed the issue of guilt that occurs when you say no to certain reasons; she advocates simply doing good in the ways that work and feel best to you.
After reading Do Good, Feel Better, I felt better about doing good. I even gave money to a homeless person I wouldn’t have approached before out of fear. I also rethought what I should and shouldn’t be saying yes to and which causes are important to me. I already donate to several charities and non-profits each year, but this book made me realize that I do good in ways I hadn’t thought of, and how I can do good in new ways.
I believe that everyone will benefit from this book and I especially recommend it to all business owners who want to do good in their community and motivate their employees to do the same.
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