You’ve been doing good all along. It’s time to let it work for you.
You donate. You volunteer. You show up for causes you care about — and you have for years.
But your giving has been doing its work quietly, in the background, mostly disconnected from the business you’re building.
That’s about to change.
THE PROBLEM REFRAME
You care. You give. So why doesn’t it feel like enough?
You write the check. You show up for the volunteer day. You sponsor the gala table. And it feels good — because it IS good.
But somewhere in the back of your mind, a question nags: Is this making a real difference? And honestly — is it doing anything for my business?
The answer to both is probably: it could be doing a lot more.
Not because you’re giving wrong. Because no one ever showed you how to give in a way that connects — to the causes you care about most, to the way your team shows up, to the customers who choose you because of who you are, not just what you sell.
That’s the gap. And that’s exactly what The Good Difference closes.
WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT?
This isn’t a course. It’s not a certification. It’s a smarter way to do what you’re already doing.
Most advice for small business owners falls into two camps: vague inspiration (‘give back and good things will come!’) or enterprise-level frameworks built for companies ten times your size.
Neither one was built for you — a founder-led business with a real team, real values, and a real desire to make giving count.
I built The Good Difference ecosystem specifically for businesses like yours: a playbook, a scorecard, and practical tools that help you give with intention, track what you do, and let people know about it without it feeling like a press release.
HOW I HELP
Here’s what we do together
A giving plan that actually fits your business
We figure out where your giving is scattered, where it’s strong, and how to focus it so it does more — for your community and for your growth.
Visibility that feels honest, not braggy
The Strategic Impact Intensive is a Your story deserves to be told. We build the language, the page, and the approach so you can talk about what you do with confidence — not cringe.
A practice that grows with you
Giving shouldn’t plateau. We build a simple rhythm so your community impact grows as your business does — without requiring a whole new effort every year.
WHY THIS MATTERS NOW
Your customers are paying attention. Your team is paying attention. Are you?
Nine in ten small business owners already give to their communities. But fewer than half of their customers know it. That’s not a generosity problem. It’s a visibility problem — and it’s costing you.
The businesses that will stand out in the next five years aren’t the ones that spend the most on ads. They’re the ones people trust. The ones whose values show up in what they do, not just what they say.
You’re already doing the work. The Good Difference helps you make sure people can see it.
Founder, Big Purpose Big Impact, Ltd. Author · Speaker
“I’m not a coach. I’m a practitioner — and there’s a difference.”
ABOUT SUE HYATT
My dad was a sociology professor at Bangor Community College. He used to tell me: be as nice to the janitor in the building as the President of the United States. I grew up thinking that was just common decency. It took me years to realize it was also a business philosophy.
In high school I worked with the Youth Conservation Corps in Maine. Our environmental educator was a young Gary Hirshberg — who most people know as the founder of Stonyfield, though that was still years away. One day he told a group of teenagers something I’ve never forgotten: we are all stewards of this planet and this world. About twenty years ago I got to thank him in person at a conference. I’m not sure he knew how much that one sentence had done.
Two ideas. One from my father at the dinner table. One from a future pioneer in the woods of Maine. They’ve been driving my work for fifty years.
For decades I lived that conviction through national service and the social venture world — learning what real impact looks like from the inside, and what it doesn’t. I started working alongside businesses and community organizations about twenty years before I ever wrote a word of my first book.
Strategy for Good came out in 2011 — five years in the making. Apparently it was good enough that at least one competitor handed it to their own clients. But it was built for organizations with the time and staff to absorb it. Most small business owners don’t have that luxury.
The Good Difference is the book I always meant to write. Shorter. Sharper. Built for founders who are already giving and just need the map.
Those two ideas have been driving my work ever since. I’m stepping up to hand them to you.
THE GOOD DIFFERENCE ECOSYSTEM
The Good Difference ecosystem
One mission. Four entry points. Start wherever you are.
The Good Difference — The Book
The playbook for small business owners who are already giving and want their giving to do more. Available August 1, 2026. Pre-order now! gooddifferencebook.com →
The Good Difference Scorecard
A free self-assessment to see exactly where your giving is working and where it’s leaving impact on the table. Takes 10 minutes.
Take the Scorecard →
Count Your Good – the phone app
Track every dollar, hour, and in-kind gift your business gives — so you always know your number.
countyourgood.com →
Do Well. Do Good. – the newsletter
Real stories, practical moves, and one question per week to help you give smarter. Tuesdays at 7am MT. Subscribe on Substack →
WHAT LEADERS HAVE SAID ABOUT THIS WORK
“For-profit business can be a powerful force for good — but few leaders know how to approach impact strategically. Sue Hyatt brings the clarity and experience needed to align community engagement with business strength.”
~ Jeffrey Swartz, Former CEO, Timberland
“Sue Hyatt understands how strategic community engagement can strengthen brand loyalty and create mutual benefit for businesses and the causes they support.”
~ Bonnie Harvey & Michael Houlihan, Founders, Barefoot Wines
HOW WE CAN WORK TOGETHER
Ready to work together?
Whether you want to dig in with a private working session, join a cohort of founders working through the playbook together, or bring this work to your team or conference — there’s a path for you.
Good Difference Strategy Intensive
A focused, half-day [virtual or in person] working session to assess where your giving stands, identify your highest-impact focus, and build a plan you’ll actually use.
The Good Difference Lab (Cohort)
A small group experience for founders who want structure, accountability, and a community of peers doing this work alongside them. [Enrollment opens August 1, 2026.]
Speaking & Workshops Sue brings The Good Difference framework to conferences, retreats, and leadership events. High-energy, practitioner-led, and built for audiences who are already doing good and want to do it better.
NOT SURE WHERE TO START?
Start with the Scorecard. Free. Ten minutes. You’ll know exactly where your giving stands — and what to do next.