Dolphins!!
And A Poll Question For You
“There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” CS Lewis
Hello Extraordinary Person! Happy Saturday! Thanks for stopping by my Substack.
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Laying Some Groundwork
GoodSeed exists to energize an emerging ecosystem of human flourishing.
We believe that seeking the welfare of our neighbors is both an extension of the Good News and an opportunity for the Gospel.
Historically, charitable donations have been the go-to option for folks wanting to do good. And it works well in providing short-term relief (e.g., disaster relief). But traditional charity has also proved to be insufficient in providing durable, sustainable, and scalable solutions to things like disease, housing, food/drought/famine, etc.
Charity is dependent on future streams of replenishment. If the grant gets pulled or goes unfunded, or if donor fatigue sets in, the program stops. It’s not sustainable.
Further, energy grids, communications networks, laboratories, studios, technologies, and physical infrastructure are prerequisites for sustainable solutions to be rolled out. These are not the kinds of things we pass the plate for on Sunday mornings.
GoodSeed sees investment in companies doing these kinds of things as complementary to the Gospel. They are a prerequisite to address human flourishing. For a quick check, open the Bible app on your phone. How did that just magically appear?
To that end, there has been an increasing availability of things like publicly traded impact funds that seek to provide financial AND social returns. Check out Inspire Funds as just one example (there are many more).
But we also recognize the important role of private equity in addressing human well-being. These types of investments are at the leading edge of innovation and don’t show up in your 401(k)’s. They are private transactions. And in the US, private equity investment has been legally confined to high-net-worth folks (i.e. accredited investors) since the post-Depression 1930s.
But that changed in 2012 under the JOBS Act. Now, everyday folks can take part in private equity investment for as little as $100 in most cases. Startup and early-stage companies now have access to a new class of investors to draw from.
GoodSeed hopes to inspire thousands of everyday Christians to collectively invest millions of dollars over the coming years in startup companies that promote the physical, social, and/or spiritual well-being of our neighbors.
From Shark Tank To Dolphin Tank
When you hear private equity, you likely think about the TV show Shark Tank. A bunch of rich folks sitting around a table, cherry-picking the best deals for investment from startup founders. Or you think of Silicon Valley. And unicorns.
But now, in addition to a few sharks, the law allows big schools of dolphins to sit at the table - or to jump into the sea - of investment. Dolphins are what I’ll call the millions of everyday investors who can be just as intelligent as sharks when it comes to private equity. They just need information and opportunity.
I have been working in this space for 3+ years. I was part of a platform that helped to launch EquityVest, an equity crowdfunding portal that connects founders with dolphins. Here’s a short video I put together that helps to explain how private equity crowdfunding works.
So now you know. Note that I have not yet provided much in the way of how, specifically, Christians can utilize private equity for the purpose of advancing human flourishing. I’ll have more on that later. Stay tuned.
My GoodSeed Week
There have been 3 main accomplishments this week in laying the groundwork for GoodSeed.
Website development is set to begin thanks to a generous and unsolicited offer from a friend (more on him later)
Founder surveys have been developed & distribution channels identified. What does that mean? Well, truthfully, I have no idea if startup founders are interested in pitching to a pool of Christian dolphins (see video above). It’s a big assumption I have to validate. It SEEMS like a no-brainer… what founder who's already using crowdfunding wouldn’t want access to more crowds? But it’s far more nuanced than that. So I’ve found a way to directly contact up to 450 current founders to evaluate their interest in “pitching” to a crowd of Christians.
Logo and tagline. I’ve already settled on the name GoodSeed for the company. A way-too-early logo design is below. But I’m messing around with taglines. And you can help.
Substack limits polls to subscribers (followers can’t participate). But here are some early logo mock-ups along with taglines. Vote if you are a subscriber!
Not a subscriber? Just leave a comment.
Or, you go ahead and subscribe here.
Strengthening My Resolve - Because It Falters Daily
On earth as it is in heaven
Matthew 6:10 (NIV)
Ran across a brief note somewhere this week commenting on this verse. “That’s not poetry. It’s a job description.”
Just mull this over for a bit. See where it takes you. I think it has taken me to GoodSeed.
It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” - JRRT
What I’m Reading This Week
The Undiscovered Country: Triumph, Tragedy And Shaping of the American West by Paul Andrew Hutton.
The epic of the American West became a tale of progress, redemption, and glorious conquest that came to shape the identity of a new nation. Over time, a darker story emerged—one of ghastly violence and environmental spoliation that stained this identity.
A Quick Shout Out
Again, thanks to Fika Coffee House in Parker, CO, for becoming the unofficial Cairns hangout. Fika is a Swedish verb which, loosely translated, means “to meet over coffee.” Been doing the majority of my writing/posts there. Shouting out to both locations - thanks for the space and lattes.
Be Swell Extraordinary People!!
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Jerry, I wish I had read this before we met this morning. Very helpful introduction.
I really like the logo. Clean and simple. As far as taglines, I voted for the first one because it was more active, but I think your tagline would be better without repeating the word that’s in the name. In the spirit of brainstorming, here are a few ideas to bounce off you:
Raise Your Impact
Stimulating Startups
and my favorite suggestion…
Sowing Startup Success
Carry on my friend!