Often, when I tell people I’m building an online media company, I get a bunch of blank stares. What the hell is an online media company and why should I care? What’s your vision?
I could tell you that Kindling is an online magazine or news site – a place to go to get information and join a conversation. This would be true. But it doesn’t capture the full vision of what I hope and think Kindling can be.
My hope above all else is that Kindling becomes a community grounded in the values of possibility, growth, beauty, and compassion. I hope Kindling is a place you can go to understand practically what you can do to help our society move forward. I hope you can use Kindling to share your own ideas with a broader network. I hope Kindling becomes a focal point for a broad range of ideas, people, movements, and possibilities.
Ok, admittedly this still sounds pretty vague. To be honest, it is vague – intentionally. If I learned anything in business school it’s that ideas are cheap. You never move forward with your original idea. So I know that, if Kindling is successful, it will almost definitely be in a way that I haven’t yet imagined.
In a way, this is a relief. I don’t necessarily need to know exactly where I’m headed. I just need to take a step in the right direction every day.
With that said, I have plenty of ideas for what Kindling can start building. Some ideas for tools and events Kindling can offer that I’ve been tinkering with include:
- Online courses on sustainability, social justice, leadership development, and conscious management
- A database of purpose-driven, conscious companies (like coops and B Corps) that are part of our brighter future, so you know which companies to buy from
- A database of change agents like you and me that helps you understand their passions, skills, and projects and connect and collaborate with them
- Software that allows you to create and share your own systems maps
Most importantly though, I hope Kindling offers a space that listens to you, learns from you, and offers something of substance. Ultimately, if Kindling is going to truly make a difference, it will be because we offer you something that is unique and of value.
With that, I flip the question back to you:
What do you want Kindling to be?
