In many ways, things have never been better. We live longer, equality is rising, innovations are incredible, and we have extraordinary access to everything.

But, despite this positive outlook, people are feeling very pessimistic about the future. There’s bad news everywhere, systems are collapsing, pollution is out of control, and no one seems to be able to control the fire.

As the world keeps moving forward at a frenzied speed, people’s rising concerns about the “long-term impact” are forcing us to hit the breaks and re-think. Not the best formula for smooth progress.

Fixing this misalignment is shaking our systems to the cusp of radical change. We need big ideas and new models that guarantee a productive and sustainable future. This is why the appetite for new ways of doing things is exponentially increasing.

So is the belief that the business community has great potential to stir things around. This is a challenge, but also a surprising vote of confidence. People want businesses to take an active role in being the primary drivers of a huge transformation. More interestingly, they want to co-create this impact with them.

From a business standpoint, the capacity and the leverage to make this happen are solid. Companies can lead, fund, and monetize ideas that have a positive impact while looking to create new schemas that are practical, sustainable, and profitable.

Rising to this challenge demands a rethink of fundamental concepts inside our companies, and branding can be the key to igniting this transformation.

In fact, some companies are already on the boat. Shaping things for the better with new practices and healthier visions, and engaging their communities to be the change they want to see in the world. Brands like Patagonia, Energi Mine, and Fenty Beauty add a lot to this conversation.

These organizations making headway are going for what’s difficult, what’s far-reaching. They’re rethinking conventional wisdom and seeking long-lasting change. And business-speaking, they’re doing pretty well too.

After taking a closer look, we identify 5 key areas that are making a huge difference for those pushing for positive change.

See beyond profits.

Before you say “meh”, let us get this clear. Profits ARE NOT the problem. Being blinded by a greedy need for more profits at any cost, THAT’S the problem. This is a strategic shift of focus to widen our vision and sharpen our competitive advantage.

Profits alone are pretty good. They drive ambition, efficiency, innovation, and globalization; and we need more of that. But focusing only on profit, get us short-sighted. We no longer care for good practices, long-term impact, or healthy strategies. Our business adopts a selfish attitude and that will be reflected everywhere around our company.

On the outside, this will kill our reputation. People are now very conscious of the long-term impact of their lifestyles and they are supporting businesses accordingly. They won’t buy from anyone doing nothing to create a better future -worse yet destroying it. And believe us, they will now.

On the inside, it will hit our resourcefulness. In moments where lateral thinking is critical, having a wider vision can help you come up with solutions that indirectly benefit your goals. Focus on only one thing -like profits- will become a barrier.

Co-create with people.

This change is about moving away from the “behind-close-doors” decisions to sharing control and empowering others. People are increasingly looking for opportunities to have some influence on decisions that affect them -and they often have great ideas. This includes customers and employees.

Sharing (methods, ideas, visions...) and collaborating will expand the possibilities of what can be done. Mostly because we’ll be having additional input and skills that can make the outcome way more accurate.

This will also create a sense of belonging. Feeling part of the process increase the engagement and drives the extra effort needed to achieve better results. Plus, people tend to love the things they help to build.

Try to have inclusive processes, invite everyone to participate, learn to manage feedback, and make everyone feel they were heard. You’ll be building a network of valuable data and happy sidekicks.

Aim for value, not quantity.

One thing we must solve now to have a better future is the proliferation of useless crap. We have too many options, and most of them are just ridiculously wasteful -of energy, money, time, and space.

A radical change in this area is as simple as stopping the production of pointless things. Cheap things that end up polluting the planet. Things that are built at the cost of social exploitation. Things that create harmful addictions. Things that feed vanity, ego, and stupidity. Things that will be used once but never biodegrade. The less the better.

This way we will be helping everyone build better, smarter, more ethical purchasing habits. Most of them will appreciate being saved from this paradox of choice.

Besides, this over-production also takes resources, energy, and focus for your business. Pareto will be helpful here. Reduce that 80% that is only bringing 20% of the results, and use it to level up the 20% that is giving 80% of the value.

Go long, not fast.

Every action we take today will somehow have consequences decades from now. As responsible businesses, we have to take time to consider what those consequences will be and who will be affected by them.

Don't focus on doing things fast and with little thought. Plan for the long-term impact and the legacy we’ll leave future generations. Adopting a long-term mindset is beneficial on both ends.

For businesses, it means building endurance to stay in the game for as long as possible. This translates into fuel for innovation, sustainability, efficiency, relationships, good practices, and even multi-planetary ideas. For the world, it means seeing things getting better over time instead of the big collapse we walking towards now.

Consider the world.

The last fundamental change is about taking into consideration the welfare of every living thing when we make decisions about the future.

It’s a common habit to only think in terms of target customers or small demographics when designing products or services. But in reality, everyone and everything will be affected somehow. By the product, by the production, by the selling, by the distribution. One single idea will touch many.

When businesses consider a larger portion of the planet they will be closer to bringing solutions that add value on a bigger scale. By doing this we could create more inclusive services, reduce friction on the acceptance of a product, expand easily to other niches, and gain the trust of the world -you know that means more business, right?

How branding can help with this?

The creative industry is in the middle of a big shift too. Branding went from cool designs and shiny logos to deep strategic thinking and rigorous product-market fits. Brand designers now pay special attention to business-related data before jumping into their creative process. All to give designs a tangible purpose in the company.

In this attempt to make creativity less intuitive and more data-driven, brands are touching foundational pillars inside businesses’ structures. Things like vision, values, positioning, and value propositions. They build up the company’s culture and model behavior and communication inside and outside the organization.

This ability to meet our businesses at their core and reorganize their foundations is the very thing we need to scaffold radical, long-lasting transformation. Branding can help businesses adapt for the future and do well by doing good.

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This for sure will be an exciting challenge. Complex and long-term. That will need lots of prototypes, enthusiasm, and sharp vision. And especially, the contribution of everyone inside and outside the business community. But if we all put our five cents, well get there in no time.

And before you leave thinking this is not for you, let us address the two biggest objections we’ve heard so far.

#1.- No. This is not a thing that only big corporations can afford because they’re rich and powerful. Money is not relevant to getting started. You can start with small changes, run your own ideas, and get more committed as you grow. Profits will come.

#2.- Yes. These changes can be tested in companies of any size. Don’t aim to change the world at once. Scale down, apply what you feel is good for you, and start from there. Millions of small businesses driving positive change in their communities will soon have the power to change the whole world.

Lastly, by taking action on the problems that are most important to their people, businesses can achieve the most resilient form of relevance: They can become what the world really needs.