Blueprint Worksheet 1 – VISION
What is the big, hairy, audacious vision for your social enterprise? How will the world look different in 20 years because of your initiative?
What is your unique value proposition? What sets you apart from the thousands of other organizations in your field? What will be your brand?
What makes your idea transformative?
Help text: The best ideas go beyond the old, divisive, antagonistic ways of resolving problems. They must create win-win solutions that uplift all people. They must seek to transform enemies into allies, hatred into goodwill, and conflict into collaboration. Most of all, they transform systems, rather than just putting band-aids on gaping societal wounds. In other words, you don’t want to be “rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.” You want to offer something that goes to the root of the problem.
What makes it innovative?
Help text: The best social enterprises must have a new approach to doing things that is creative. They aren’t just service organizations, providing the same old ideas to new audiences. As Bill Drayton, the founder of Ashoka, says (playing off a familiar proverb): “Give people fish and they eat for a day; teach people to fish and they eat for a lifetime; but social entrepreneurs will not rest until they revolutionize the entire fishing industry!” (Personally, we would add that, with the current collapse of fish populations and marine ecosystems worldwide, the most innovative social entrepreneurs would offer people a healthier, more ecologically sustainable food source that doesn’t endanger the well-being of future generations.)
What makes it visionary?
Help text: You should have a clear, compelling, inspirational picture of the future you wish to create. You shouldn’t simply be reactive, merely fighting against problems. Instead, you should put forth a better vision of the future: an alternative future
Why do you have the experience and credibility to make this happen?
Blueprint Worksheet 2 – STATEMENT OF NEED
Why is it absolutely compelling and urgent that you start a new initiative? Aren’t there already enough programs out there? Aren’t there more pressing needs in the world?
Give at least 3 statistics from reputable sources to show that there is a compelling need for your new social enterprise.
Provide at least 3 quotes from experts and reliable authorities – ideally some of the leading figures in the field – to prove that your identified problem urgently needs addressing.
Offer some case studies, or research findings, that help persuade potential supporters that this is a project worthy of investment of time and money.
Tell at least one dramatic and emotionally compelling anecdote that touches the heart of the readers, helping them see the human dimensions of this situation.
Blueprint Worksheet 3 – OBJECTIVES
What are your specific, quantifiable objectives for this social enterprise? How can you measure that your project will really make a difference?
What are the most important outcomes that you would want to see from this organization?
Who is your target constituency? What is the ideal audience that you are trying to reach with this project? Why?
How could you measure any of the following things with respect to your issue?
● People’s attitudes
● People’s awareness
● People’s behavior
● People’s performance
● Products
● Quality of the program
What is your deadline for achieving your objectives?