This post was originally produced for Forbes.
For the past seven years, I’ve worked full time at writing books and articles, speaking and teaching about people who are doing good in the world. Almost everyone I meet inspires me with the good they do. Yet, there is a recurring theme in the social impact world that drives me bonkers: the message from some that “you’re doing good wrong.”
Let’s agree from the start that there are charlatans in our ranks. For my show, I’ve now interviewed more than 1,100 people. I’ve come across a few people whose idea of doing good is thin but only one or two—much less than 1%–that I would, in hindsight, call charlatans. Of course, I try my best to screen them out before they get on my show. Still, my take is that most people running social enterprises, making impact investments, guiding nonprofits and making philanthropic gifts are both smart and well-intentioned.
From small social enterprises to large nonprofits, I find that people have clear, written theo…