You Can’t Change What You Don’t Track
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson loves a good spreadsheet, and in this episode, he’s sharing some of his best tips for tracking metrics in a manageable, mission-aligned way. You’ll learn how intentional tracking can help mission-driven entrepreneurs gain clarity, celebrate progress, and make better decisions. Drawing inspiration from investor and writer Sahil Bloom’s Five Types of Wealth, Brian offers practical tools to help you track progress without it becoming a full-time job. Episode Highlights Tracking creates accountability Tracking transforms assumptions into awareness. If you’re not measuring...
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Building Businesses with Purpose and Profit with Rachel Bernier-Green
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson chats with Rachel Bernier-Green, founder and CEO of the Economic Justice Consortium, a Chicago-based firm that helps mission-driven businesses sustain and amplify their impact through financial and operational excellence. A recovering public accountant turned social entrepreneur, Rachel has dedicated her career to closing the racial wealth gap and redefining what it means to lead with purpose and profit. In this episode, Rachel shares her journey from climbing the corporate ladder in public accounting, to running a social enterprise bakery that partnered with Whole Foods and...
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 102: The Power of Clarity
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson takes a deep dive into one of the most important tenets for mission-driven business owners: clarity. Clarity may sound simple, but it’s not easy. If done well, clarity can be the foundation for building a business that truly supports your mission and your life. Once you find clarity, everything else becomes easier, and this episode gives you tips on how to do just that. Episode Highlights Clarity enables mission-driven entrepreneurs to build their business around their life. Building a business — particularly a mission-driven one — is filled with ambiguity. There’s no...
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 101: 101 Sketches To Start Meaningful Conversations with Carl Richards
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson chats with Carl Richards — Certified Financial Planner™, creator of The New York Times “Sketch Guy” column, and bestselling author of “” and “.” Carl’s simple Sharpie sketches have transformed how millions of people think and talk about money. In his latest book, “”, he shares 101 drawings and essays designed to spark deeper conversations about money, values, and what matters most. In this conversation, Brian and Carl dive into the emotional side of money and debate whether money actually can buy happiness. Episode Highlights A good sketch can start a...
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 100: 10 Conversations That Changed My Business And My Life
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson marks a major milestone with Episode 100 of the Mission Driven Business podcast! In this special retrospective, Brian reflects on 10 standout episodes that made a lasting impact and continue to resonate in his business and life. Whether you’re new to the podcast or a long-term listener, Episode 100 captures the heart of the conversations that Mission Driven Business is all about. Episode Highlights 1. Mike Michalowicz put profit first In , Mike Michalowicz flipped the traditional profit formula, redefining how business owners can approach cash flow. Mike’s episode gave...
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 99: How To Do A Mid-Year Money Check
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson returns for a solo episode packed with practical advice to help entrepreneurs take charge of their numbers. In this mini masterclass, you’ll learn how to use your profit and loss, balance sheet, and reconciliation reports more effectively. Whether you love or loathe spreadsheets, this episode gives you the tools to pause, reflect, and make strategic financial decisions to set yourself up for success in the second half of the year. How To Conduct A Mid-Year Financial Review 1. Reconcile and clean up your books First, set aside at least 90 minutes to focus without distractions....
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 98: Don’t Make These 4 Startup Mistakes With Amy Cosper
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson chats with Amy Cosper, former Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, award-winning journalist, and author of the new book, “The Ultimate Guide to Startup Success.” In this episode, Amy brings fierce honesty, contagious energy, and deep wisdom about what it really takes to build a mission-driven business in uncertain times. You’ll also hear some of the biggest legal and financial mistakes founders make and be reminded why entrepreneurship can be a radical act of hope and defiance. Episode Highlights Mission-driven businesses don’t have to be altruistic. Amy describes a...
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 97: How To Stay Visible When It Feels Safer To Hide
Mission Driven Business
In this special and timely episode, Brian Thompson calls on fellow mission-driven business owners to embrace their identities and own their values. Highlighting real messages from clients, Brian explores the challenges and uncertainties facing entrepreneurs, especially those from LGBTQ+ backgrounds and other marginalized groups. He challenges the myth that being neutral is the safest option in the current political environment and shares practical steps to get clear and bold about who you are and what you bring to the table. Episode Highlights Your identity is an asset -- not a liability....
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 96: Writing Your Own Business Story With Faye Ziegeweid
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson chats with Faye Ziegeweid, founder and CEO of Queen Fayzel, a greeting card company for people who want to send messages that are unique, sassy, and sincere. Faye built her values-aligned greeting card company after realizing she couldn’t be her authentic self in her old career as a public health project manager. In this episode, Faye gets real about the personal side of entrepreneurship, including how self-discovery and personal growth are necessities for sustainable growth. She also shares how articulating your values clearly can attract the right clients and create a...
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The Mission Driven Business Podcast Episode 95: Empowering The LGBTQ+ Community With Sean Ebony Coleman
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson chats with Sean Ebony Coleman, founder and CEO of Destination Tomorrow, a grassroots agency and LGBTQ+ center in the Bronx borough of New York City. Destination Tomorrow empowers the most vulnerable LGBTQ+ community members through educational, financial, support-based, housing, and health programs. On the episode, Sean details how he and his organization are addressing some of the real challenges facing the LGBTQ+ community. He also shares how he starts his mornings to stay focused and touts the value of lived experience for organizations. Episode Highlights Mission-driven...
info_outlineIn this very special episode, host Brian Thompson opens up like never before. He shares why he started his own mission-driven business, and some of his highs and lows he encountered in the process. You’ll also learn the difference between strategy and tactics, and why entrepreneurship isn’t necessarily more risky than being a W-2 employee. If you’ve wanted to know more about Brian and his own story, this episode, hosted by Latarsha Stewart, is for you.
Episode Highlights
Mission-driven businesses serve.
For Brian, mission-driven businesses have both a purpose motive and a profit motive. Brian wants clients and listeners to know that you don’t have to run a non-profit in order to run a business that does good and makes an impact.
“The underlying current of all this is that mission-driven businesses serve. And you can make money and make a good living by serving,” he said. “That's been my focus and why I try to meld these two together. Because you don't have to do one or the other. You can do both.”
Things happen at the right time.
Brian had been working at a tax law firm when everything in his personal and professional life shifted. The partners of the law firm split up; his long-term relationship ended; and marriage equality was making huge strides. Brian ended up using the uncertainty to forge the future he wanted.
“So you have this moment in time to say — What do you actually want to do? What do you want to do with your life?” he said. “Having the support of my friends and my ex-husband and all that just came together at the right time.”
Find your niche.
During this time of uncertainty, Brian decided to start a financial planning firm focusing on LGBTQ couples. But he soon learned that his core audience was a target market and not a niche.
When looking at his client base, Brian realized his roster included a lot of business owners who were coming to him because of his background in tax law — and he enjoyed the complexity of meeting their needs. So he redefined his business focus as helping LGBT business owners who run mission-driven businesses.
At the same time, Brian is passionate about closing the racial wealth gap, which is 3:1 for people of color who are entrepreneurs versus 11:1 for non-business owners. He sees his niche and business as an opportunity to fulfill that motivation as well.
“You have to serve a specific amount of people, so you should make sure that those people are the people that you want to serve and the people that you want to hang out with and the people that you want to talk to,” Brian said. “It's a very significant mind shift that really freed me up and allowed me to really enjoy the process.”
Let go of perfectionism.
One of the hardest lessons Brian had to learn on his entrepreneurial journey was to let go of his perfectionism and live in the moment.
"I had to do it out of necessity because nothing was perfect. And nothing was exactly the way that I wanted,” Brian said. “I learned how to adjust and pivot and navigate. I had to be okay and get okay with things not being perfect, and things needing to just go.”
Now, Brian is used to constantly trying things out and learning from them. He resonates with the metaphor that running a business is like building an airplane while trying to fly it.
“You just don't either have enough time or energy or space to try to do everything perfectly,” he said. “Which is actually a huge relief for me to realize it actually doesn't need to be perfect, and things still happen, and things still go.”
Resources + Links
- Mission Driven Business episodes with Mike Michalowicz and Ron Saharyan of Profit First Professionals
- Brian’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrianFinancial
About Brian and the Mission Driven Business Podcast
Brian Thompson, JD/CFP, is a tax attorney and certified financial planner who specializes in providing comprehensive financial planning to LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs who run mission-driven businesses. The Mission Driven Business podcast was born out of his passion for helping social entrepreneurs create businesses with purpose and profit.
On the podcast, Brian talks with diverse entrepreneurs and the people who support them. Listeners hear stories of experiences, strength, and hope and get practical advice to help them build businesses that might just change the world, too.