American Pharoah embodied greatness by ending a 37-year drought in winning horseracing’s Triple Crown earlier this summer.
Serena Williams awed us when she won the Serena Slam by rallying through to her Wimbledon victory, and will go into the US Open as the heavy favorite to complete the first tennis Grand Slam since 1988.
Jordan Spieth is currently in Scotland to compete at The Open, trying to capture his third major of the year and have just one step left to become golf’s first-ever Grand Slam winner.
I love each of these story lines more than the next, but it got me thinking: We need a Grand Slam in the social sector.
The CLASSY Awards (USA), the Third Sector Awards (UK), and the HESTA Community Sector Awards (Australia) are a good place to start, but we still have a long way to go.
We need to substantially raise the profile of these types of awards. What the Oscars represent in the movie industry and what the James Beard Awards represent in the culinary world—we need that level of gravitas. To get there, we need to increase awareness, take the awards and winners seriously, and double (or quintuple) down on marketing. Don’t think that’s possible in the social sector? Ever heard of a little award from Norway called the Nobel Peace Prize? (Maybe that should be the fourth leg of our Grand Slam of Impact...)
If you’re thinking that social impact shouldn’t be competitive, you’re partially right. But, you’re also super, super wrong. One of the biggest hurdles to true social change is raising awareness, which is exactly where these types of awards and competitions excel. In 15 years, people will still know American Pharoah, Serena Williams, and—if he can pull off two more big wins—Jordan Spieth because they will have the hardware to back up the claims of their greatness.
Can the same be said of your social impact efforts?
this post brought to you by team member jonathan kaufman.
