BIG NEWS! We won 🎉

Am I a social entrepreneur now?

Beyond Survival has been selected for the Social Entrepreneur’s Ireland Ideas Academy. 

I’m delighted. For the next three months, I’ll be taking part in an intensive training program designed to accelerate Beyond Survival’s growth and impact. I’ll also receive a small financial bursary (€500) and, perhaps more importantly, an injection of belief and validation in the power of this project. 

Some snapshots from the launch event

What is a social entrepreneur? 

To me, the simplest way to describe a social entrepreneur is to think of them as entrepreneurs who are focused on generating positive social change, rather than revenue. 

Definition via Investopedia, or the image I included in my vision board earlier this year!

I’m not sure I identify as a social entrepreneur yet. First and foremost, I’m a writer. I’m a person who spent decades doing mission-driven work, but ultimately ended up disillusioned and burnt out. But I’m also someone who wants to make a positive difference in the world. 

In my application, I wrote about how survivors of sexual violence are among the most under-served communities in the world.

I wrote about how, if I were diagnosed with cancer in the morning, there would be somewhere to go for peer support and community. When you’re sexually assaulted, there’s nowhere to go. Most survivors are advised to add their name to the therapy waiting list and not to tell anyone about their assault.

I wrote about the power and resilience that exists among survivors. How they we have been forced to live through some of the most devastating aspects of human experience, and are still here. I wrote about how storytelling and community can reduce the stigma of sexual harm and how our society should support survivors to build their own version of recovery. 

As I wrote, I was surprised by how fully formed my ideas seemed. I’ve been thinking about these topics for so many years and when asked, the (rough, imperfect) project plan flowed coherently from my fingertips. 

Right now, I’m feeling overwhelmed. It’s a huge honour to have been selected for the program, but it’s also a significant under-taking. The next few months are already filling up with training, mentorship, peer learning and lots of other things. I have an enormous list of things to do: building a website, putting together a business plan, figuring out the strategic direction, launching a podcast, not to mention all of my other commitments. 

But it also feels right. There’s a sense of inevitability about it, but only in the best way. Like this is what I was always meant to do. 

I’m scared too. This is something new, and it could fail. I feel the sharp vulnerability of creativity, of trying to expand how we think and talk about sexual trauma in our society. Not to mention that this project grew from the seeds of my own experience and though I feel well at the moment, the long shadow of trauma still lives between my cells. 

This work can be difficult. It is sometimes triggering, exhausting and uniquely depleting. But it’s also worth it. I want to at least try to build the thing that would have changed my life if it existed 15 years ago. I know it won’t be easy, but I also know I want to try. 

Six months ago, I re-introduced this newsletter and re-orientated its mission toward changing the conversation about life after trauma. It’s humbling to see how it has grown since then. I’m still trying to understand the contours of what I’m trying to build - how big will it become, and how will it impact people? I don’t know, but I’m excited to figure it out. In the meantime, there won’t be any changes to this newsletter. You’ll continue to receive something from me every week, with a bonus recommendations piece at the end of each month. 

Thank you for coming along on this crazy journey with me. We did this together. My name is on the application form, but this community made it possible. 

As always, the very best way to support me is to become a paid subscriber. When everyone contributes a little, it adds up to a lot and that makes a huge difference to the time I can devote to Beyond Survival. 

💕 If this piece resonated with you, please tap the heart below to help spread the word.

💬 In the comments, I’d love to know what you’d like to see in this space. How could Beyond Survival add more to your life? 

🙏 I say it every week, but thank you for welcoming me into your inbox. It means a lot.