Applying Permaculture to Business

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Can business be a force for greater good? Oftentimes, business and entrepreneurship are vilified as pursuits that only care about the bottom line. We, however, believe that there is a better way. In our ethos, a business can be both ethical and profitable, by basing short-term and long-term actions on a philosophy far separated from the world of business. 

What is Permaculture?

Permaculture (with the term being coined by Bill Mollison, is a agglomeration of permanent agriculture and permanent culture) is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people — providing their food, energy, shelter, and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way. Without permanent agriculture there is no possibility of a stable social order.

The overlying concept of permaculture can, in turn, be broken down into three main principles: care for people, care for the environment, and fair share. As you can see, the focus on permaculture is to make a positive impact on all actors involved, and work with our existing resources in a harmonious manner, not against them. While we do change the tenets of permaculture slightly to better apply to a business environment, the overarching philosophy is the same.

Care for People

Without people, there is no business, and it's as simple as that. With that said, what people are we referring to exactly? At first glance, it's easy to assume here that the people centered focus is really directed at a business's clientele. Of course, the clientele is one of the sustaining factors of any enterprise, and they need to be taken well care of. 

However, if a business can be viewed as an ecosystem, a business's employees and collaborators are its real lifeblood. It's been said many times that the most important resource that a business has are its employees, who are the people in charge of turning a concept into a reality. They are ones who keep a business running, and the time and cost of finding an employee who is a good fit for an organization is immense.  My empowering your employees, allowing them autonomy and promoting goal-setting, those same employees can find a sense of purpose within an organization, and in turn, help it grow. 

Care for Quality

This one of the tenets of permaculture that has been slightly changed to better fit the business environment. At the same time, a "green" business and a successful business can synonymous.  For example, Idiomatic as a company has gone completely paperless and consumes energy only produced from sustainable sources. 

Back to the idea of care for quality, what is the true motivation of your business? At its essence, the motivation for starting a business cannot and should not be money. Money is important, but it's an extrinsic motivator. There will be times where money comes in, and there will be periods of famine. Conversely, the motivation of any successful successful entrepreneur is problem solving. You've identified a problem or lacking in the market -- whatever that may be -- and you've created a solution to address it. 

Even more so, the goal here is to not just solve that problem you've identified, but to solve it well. This is where the care for quality comes in. An entrepreneur needs to take pride in the level of service they give to their clients. To put it in another way, the money you make from offering a solution to a problem is a representation of your good work. Money is finite, and if people are willing to part with their hard-earned cash, that means that your service has value to them. When it's your business that you've built from the ground up, that realization is supremely satisfying. 

Fair Share

And finally, let's discuss fair share. In permaculture, fair share refers to the idea of sharing your bounty with others. If you have a tree that gives apples, some are for, some are for your neighbor, and some you leave for the birds and nature. The same concept holds true for business, especially if you want to be around in the long-term. A viable business is based on fairness between everyone involved: you offer your employees and collaborators a fair wage, and you charge the client a reasonable amount for your service or product. People will become aware of this, which in turn, fosters trust. Trust is hard to earn and easy to lose, so by being transparent and reasonable, you're being both ethical and growing your business. 

If you'd like to join the Idiomatic team and put these principles into practice, check out this link for more information. 

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