GoHuman Blog

The GoHuman blog has expressed Occupy Wall Street sentiments since before the movement started in Zucotti Park on 9/17/11. One reason a disenfranchised 99% seek to occupy is because they lack ownership.  Owners have legal rights to “enjoy, occupy, possess … an item of property.” The Occupy movement claims moral ownership to rights they don’t legally possess.  Is this moral claim valid?  Let’s look back to our Judeo-Christian heritage to point a way forward. 

In the Dec. 5, 2011 issue of Forbes magazine, the article “Entrepreneurship or Bust” addressed Millennials (those born after 1980 who are ready to start their careers) when they wrote that “the conventional jobs aren’t there – that just means finding new routes to success.” 

Over the last couple of years, there’s been a lot of talk about greed being one of the main drivers of the global financial crisis. And that talk rings true. After all, greed is an inherently selfish motive that disregards the harm it causes to others or to ourselves. And as the crisis has illustrated, the more power and influence a person or organization has, the more damage their greed can cause. 

We now have a bigger problem than we did when the Great Recession started back in 2008… the ten largest banks in the country now control 64% of the country’s assets in 2011, up from 58% in 2006 and only 25% in 1990 (source: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas).  Talk about too big to fail… yikes! 

1776 in the U.S. is symbolic of the struggle for freedom from those who would tax without representation.  Economic freedom.  Since last July 4 the markets had a wild recovery ride, but in the last month they’re trending dramatically down again.  The power of global government stimulus has run its course, and the fundamental problems have not yet been fixed.  New regulations have been authored and are in various stages of approval, but there is disagreement on what they will or won’t achieve, both positively and negatively.

There are many ways to look at this problem.  I like the chart at bottom with democracy and economic freedom on a grid.  We could discuss the placement of various countries, but to do so we’d have to first discuss the criteria by which we evaluate the terms.  That would lead to other discussions – and it gets pretty complex pretty fast.  Here’s an interesting video that shows there is hope we’ll get it right!

GoHuman.com’s answer to these challenges is to unite and strengthen local entrepreneurs, supported by a marketplace with transparent information.  This allows prices and services to find their own levels, as in so-called free markets.  But by building it from the bottom up, and putting ownership in the hands of the individual, we strip power from “market makers” who manipulate and control the so-called free markets to their advantage.  We welcome your input to this discussion.

Thank you to our members and supporters.  We look forward to working with you to make GoHuman.com even better in the year ahead.

The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) concept of “People, Planet, Profit“ demands that a company’s responsibility be to the people who are influenced in any way by the actions of the firm rather than the people who own it.

TBL is typically discussed in a big business context for two reasons: One, big businesses are by nature the farthest out of human touch with sustainability. Two, if you have to choose one business to make sustainable, a bigger business will have a bigger impact.

But what if we could create an integrated network of small local businesses and independent professionals with an eye on the ecological, economic, and social concepts expressed by the Triple Bottom Line related to their communities?

What if people all over the planet quietly frustrated with the status quo could find the voices of power they’ve lost in the wake of unprecedented corporate growth over the past century?

GoHuman’s vision is a world where these ideals are not afterthoughts, but rather integral and essential elements connecting every community and every business within those communities. We cannot afford for these to be abstract thoughts or luxuries. They are a necessary part of the emerging global consciousness and we need to integrate them into our personal and professional lives by igniting our tribal instincts.

In the United States and other parts of the world, the motivation to adopt this sustainable lifestyle is neither handed down by the government nor encouraged by our existing capitalist economic model. An intricate web of subsidies and loopholes has all but extinguished the basic humanity enjoyed in simpler times in favor of the almighty profit margin.

It’s not all doom and gloom. There is hope. We believe in a better way. It’s the passion that fuels GoHuman and the real people behind it — people just like you with the vision and gumption to do something about it.

It starts simply. It starts with an equitable marketplace that promotes balance amongst the people who use it by rewarding those who provide value with something equitable in return.

It starts with you.

We’ve been honoring two important themes in April – Earth Month and Autism Awareness Month. Yesterday marked the 40th anniversary of Earth Day and we want to help you find ways to create a more sustainable business. We’re also continuing support of our MicroCause for Sunshine supporting autism.

Green is a long-standing buzzword, but what does it mean for your business and community? It’s different for every business and can be difficult to know where to begin. While there is no silver bullet for going green, many great resources are available to help you achieve sustainability.

GoHuman has partnered with Green Globe, providing the premier global certification for sustainability since 1993. Green Globe pioneers what it means to be sustainable and has developed several programs to help businesses achieve sustainability across the planet. They provide independent verification that your business is operating sustainably and in line with Green Globe certified businesses around the world.

Respond today to receive a 10% discount off your Green Globe membership and enjoy these benefits:

• GoHuman Local Marketing Consultant support – we’ll register your business and provide 6 months free at our $5 monthly subscription level.
• Immediate access to the Green Globe Certification System
• The Green Globe benchmarking tool: Green Globe Index
• The Green Globe Environmental Trainings Program
• Listings as “Green Globe Member” on all Green Globe websites
• Access to accredited Green Globe Consultants and Auditors to pursue certification
• Marketing Services provided by Green Globe Marketing
• 10% membership discount applies each year you renew

GoHuman is a marketplace devoted to helping local communities achieve sustainability. Local energy and ideas serve as the foundation for the site’s growth and allow for mutual prosperity. Read more from CEO Wade Fransson about why green energy matters.

Launching a business requires knowing the cost and expenses associated with startup operations. Business owners planning to expand an existing business usually need additional financing. Being undercapitalized is one of the most common mistakes business owners make. Attempting to work on a financial shoe string is not only stressful but can impede the growth of the business for years.

The first step most companies take when seeking private capital is the creation of an executive summary and/or a business plan. Executive summaries and business plans typically provide general information about the company, its business model, goals, etc. While this information is important to investors, it does not provide a basis or structure for accepting capital investments, especially from multiple investors. Business plans are important, especially for start-up companies, but should not be relied upon as investment documents.

Here is the “Best Kept Secret in Funding.” The Regulation D series of funding allows you to efficiently raise the funds necessary for your business, in legal compliance with Security & Exchange Commissions laws. Whether it’s $50,000 or millions, there is a Reg D to answer your requirements.

Offering equity in a privately held company, such as a corporation or limited liability company, without proper exemption from the Securities & Exchange Commission, is in violation of offering securities. The Reg D series of private placement offerings are the exemptions. A Reg D 504 Private Placement Offering is ideal for raising $1 million or less. It’s cost effective, has few restrictions, and is easy to comply with.

Ken Hollowell, CEO/President of Profran Consultants, Inc., is sponsoring this issue by offering a free Reg D 504, a $10,000 value. To apply, provide a one or two paragraph description of your business with the amount you wish to raise, up to $1M. Ken will select the business he feels is the best candidate to generate investor interest, from among the first 20 responses. The other 19 candidates will receive a personal counseling session on how to improve their pitch. GoHuman.com will also upgrade your subscription to our $9 Enhanced Subscription Level for 6 months, free of charge.

You owe it to yourself to learn about methods of raising funds for literally any type of business. Respond today to increase your understanding of funding options to chart your path toward business growth and expansion.

What does green mean to you as a business owner or consumer? It’s certainly a buzzword that gets a lot of attention, especially this month as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day.

In 40 years have we accomplished as much as we could to sustain a sustainable ecosystem for our planet? Probably not, but it’s human nature to move incrementally until disaster strikes.

GoHuman is a marketplace devoted to helping local communities achieve sustainability. Local energy and ideas serve as the foundation for the site’s growth, and allow for mutual prosperity. Local means:

• Fewer resources to transport goods and services is better for the environment
• Money spent by the community stays in the community
• Services tailored specifically to the needs and challenges of the community
• Reduced costs due to lower overhead of the individual provider
• Greater flexibility for better quality of life
• Bringing back the unique downtown communities this country has lost
• Helping the economy-at-large by feeding it at the smallest level
• Taking the current crisis into your own hands rather than waiting for someone else to fix it

If you are a green-certified service provider, you’re one of us. So why not join us? I welcome you to post your services to GoHuman and join a growing community of like-minded businesses and community members. Together we can help local communities and the environment.

Thank you for making a difference in your community and ours. Read on for ideas on marketing a green business.

GoHuman is all about empowering small businesses and independent professionals by connecting them with the right customers in their community to establish a more sustainable economy. We’re not the only ones with this idea, which is a great thing. We can’t do it alone, and we depend on people everywhere who believe there is a better way.

But how do we do it?

Word of mouth has proven time after time to be the single most powerful form of marketing. People trust people like themselves, who are typically people they know well like friends or family.

At this stage in GoHuman’s growth, we are connecting with as many small businesses as possible in Chicago; L.A.; Madison, WI; Knoxville, TN; and Vancouver, Canada. You might ask why we’ve chosen those particular areas and I would tell you that in a way they chose us.

We believe in involving people who share our vision for a better, more equitable world, no matter where they are. We’re looking for people to join our grassroots marketing teams, whether they are in one of our existing markets or if someone has the gumption to get a new market going. It’s happened before, and we welcome anyone who is up for the challenge and the rewards.

Businesses everywhere are hurting. People everywhere are being shut down by the powers that be. GoHuman.com represents a genuinely better way for business to work to support themselves and their community.

There is nothing more inspiring than meeting new people who want to join the cause. Some have established themselves in their community and others are just looking for a way to help make things better. Either way, it’s the fuel that moves us forward and gives us hope that our dream can work.

And guess what? People just like you are growing GoHuman.

If you’re interested in joining our team and becoming a Founding Member of GoHuman.com, just email refer@GoHuman.com for more info. We guarantee that an actual human will respond.