Inspiring A Movement of Kindness with Matthew Hoffman
Release Date: 02/28/2023
Transform Your Business with an Annual Client Audit
Mission Driven Business
Understanding your client relationships is more crucial than ever in today's fast-paced business environment. The that can help you gain clarity on your client base, enhance your business relationships, and ultimately drive growth. In this episode, Brian Thompson focuses on how a thoughtful client audit can transform your business. He emphasizes that this process is not about hastily cutting ties with clients but rather about thoughtfully evaluating client relationships to enhance business growth and personal well-being with a simple three-step process. The Importance of a Client Audit...
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Reclaiming Your Time with Boundary-setting
Mission Driven Business
In this solo episode, Brian Thompson outlines practical steps for business owners to take back their time, including auditing their calendars, defining a 'hell yes' filter for opportunities, using scripts to say no gracefully, and starting small with boundary-setting. He stresses that reclaiming time is an ongoing practice that requires accountability, energy tracking, and celebrating small wins. By protecting their time, entrepreneurs can create space for joy, clarity, and purpose in their lives and businesses. Why do boundaries around time management matter Time is your most valuable...
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Close The Books, Open The New Year
Mission Driven Business
In this solo episode, Brian breaks down one of the most overlooked but essential parts of running a mission-driven business: year-end bookkeeping. You’ll learn a simple, practical framework for cleaning up your books, organizing your finances, and setting up systems that actually support you and your business. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by accounting software, unclear categories, or messy receipts, this episode will help you start the new year with clarity and confidence. Episode Highlights Why year-end bookkeeping is a big deal The way you close this year directly affects how you...
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How To Define Your Niche with Theresa Pablos
Mission Driven Business
Brian Thompson chats with Theresa Pablos, CFP®, about the early-stage realities of building a business. A former journalist and freelance marketer, Theresa transitioned careers to financial planning in 2023 and ultimately earned the CFP® certification mark in 2025. She recently joined as an Associate Financial Advisor and is just starting to build her client base. In this episode, Theresa and Brian discuss the excitement, fear, and the uncomfortable but necessary work of defining a niche. You’ll get practical tips for finding your target audience, learn how to provide real value, and...
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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 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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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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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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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....
info_outlineBrian chats with Matthew Hoffman, the founder of You Are Beautiful, a Chicago-based company that uses art to provide kindness, compassion, and community when it’s needed most. On the episode, Matthew shared how he became an accidental entrepreneur and some of the hard lessons he’s learned as a business owner and artist. He also digs deep into using feedback to grow and refine your business.
Episode Highlights
Mission-driven businesses have a message.
When Matthew started making his signature You Are Beautiful stickers that would eventually become a business, he had a clear message that he wanted to share with the world. He thinks the same kind of purposeful messaging separates mission-driven businesses from the rest.
“It’s all about having a clear mission or message and trying to share that with the world,” Matthew said.
You can be an “accidental” entrepreneur.
Some people start a business with the desire to be an entrepreneur. But other entrepreneurs, like Matthew, don’t originally dream of running their own businesses. In Matthew’s case, growing demand from his community was the catalyst to take his sticker business online and for profit.
“I say I am sort of an accidental business owner because for the first years, the stickers were absolutely free, then people were begging me to let them buy them,” Matthew said. “I finally began to offer them for sale on the website … and that began growing the community even bigger.”
Treat customers and employees well.
One tip that Matthew shared throughout the podcast is the importance of treating people the way you want to be treated. Recognizing that he can’t build a business alone, Matthew tries to cultivate a family-style company culture that is fun, drama-free, and supportive. He also prioritizes the customer experience with dedicated customer service and an online review system.
“To find those people that support you and help fill you up is critical,” he said.
Grow from your mistakes.
While Matthew always strove to overdeliver through his business, his track record hasn’t been perfect. After his stickers appeared on Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday program, You Are Beautiful got so many orders that he couldn’t fulfill them all and his payment system didn’t allow him to reach customers with updates. That experience led him to overhaul his approach to e-commerce in order to deliver the premium service he wanted to give customers.
“I didn’t want to disappoint or upset, and I always want to overdeliver,” Matthew said. “That allowed me to set up a really successful and rigorous system.”
Resources + Links
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.