Written by Hannah Cox, Founder and Director of betternotstop, The Better Business Network and The Better Business Summit
Did I ever tell you how betternotstop got it’s name?
My Dad died just after I turned 27. One of the last things he told me was not to stop pursuing my dreams, especially as he had spent years in a job that didn’t appreciate him. The idea was not to stop, and betternotstop was born as an idea.
I decided to strive to honour that, writing a newsletter of the same name and eventually thinking I had the guts to start it as a CIC in June 2014. I didn’t. I dissolved without even trading a year later.
Then on the 8th May 2018, the day after my birthday I tried again. I got a start up loan from the Growth Company and took a chance.
During Covid I had two other jobs to help pay the bills. I got a bounce back loan. Last year I had to leave my dream home. The business survived.
Sometimes it does feel like wading through mud. Sometimes all I want to post on LinkedIn is ‘I am tired’.
But still the business moves on, and without it I wouldn’t have met so many people on here I now call my friends. I genuinely feel I have a business with purpose, that makes a difference.
As betternotstop approaches its sixth birthday, I’m finally ready to celebrate. While the business may not have million-pound turnovers or huge profits (yet) it’s part of something bigger – a movement of businesses doing good.
betternotstop’s Operations and Impact Manager, Milo Fletcher, Founder and Director, Hannah Cox, and The Better Business Network’s Community Manager, James Dady in front of B Corp the Mural unveiling.
I have a team of people who I trust to care for the business the way I do. (Shout out James Dady, Ryan Flaherty, Milo Fletcher, Aimee Parsons, Robin Lyons, JANNINE BARRON, Graham Hansen, Simon Ursell, Madelyn Postman, Mollie Kay-Hough, Laura Matz)
For all the entrepreneurs and business owners out there, remember that being proud of the work you do is just as important as making money. Let’s go forward together, just like the mural celebrating B Corp month in Manchester suggests.
For more information on the mural, check out this article
