Connecting To Your Higher Purpose The NGO space isn't easy. It's a constant uphill battle to connect scarce resources with the vulnerable. Annelise de Jager has persevered in this space because she's tapped into her personal purpose and values.

Vital Stats

• Player: Annelise de Jager
• Initiative: National Tekkie Tax Day
• Launched: 2013
• Visit: www.tekkietax.co.za

Purpose before profit is not a new concept in business. In fact, it underlines the motivations behind some of the most successful entrepreneurs. It's also not reserved for social enterprises alone.

However, it is in the social entrepreneurship and charitable spaces that living one's purpose first found a foothold, mostly because without a strong purpose, the work would just be too hard, and many would give up.

Annelise de Jager, founder of National Tekkie Tax Day, unpacks how she's used living her purpose to drive her forward, even when she's faced almost insurmountable challenges and disappointments.

1. Make "living a life that matters' intrinsic to everything you do

"I was lucky in that I didn't ever need to sit down and say, "I want my life to matter, so I need to do x, y, z'," says Annelise.

"It was intrinsic for me. However, in the past five years I've become acutely aware of it, and I've seen how important the ability to look beyond oneself is when you're facing disappointment and challenges.

"It helps you look beyond the now, find a solution and keep pushing on, because there is a bigger goal at stake. The biggest revelation for me has been that anyone can figure this out and use it as a tool to achieve their dreams and purpose — you just need to trigger your intrinsic motivators.

"Figure out what's really important to you, and then align this with what you're doing, in both your business and personal journeys. Robin Bank's Mind Power and Shaping your Destiny courses are a great place to start."

2. Don't be afraid to ask what's next

Critical to Annelise's journey has been the realisation that when goals are met, we need to ask ourselves: What's next? "Too many people achieve their goals and then feel adrift. You should meet your goals. Your ultimate vision should change. That's growth, and it's critical if you want to keep moving forward.

"Our experiences inform our knowledge base and world views, and so as you live and run your business, that view should be changing, bringing with it new challenges and perceptions. Don't be scared of it; embrace it."

Annelise went to Potchefstroom University to study social work where she joined the university's musical revue group, the Alabama Student Company.

"Alabama was given the opportunity to tour Taiwan, but I was about to graduate. Travel is high on my personal values list, so I started a second degree in communications to stay in university — and — in Alabama."

Studying communications opened Annelise to a new discipline that she loved. "Marketing and communications are so filled with energy — an energy social work didn't possess. I loved both, and I wanted to find a way to meld them together. This would ultimately shape my business, The Marketing Team, after I'd been a social worker for a few years. Don't be afraid to adjust your plans based on new experiences; they can be the source of our greatest ideas and strengths."

3. No experience is ever wasted

"We spend too much time trying to plan exactly what we should be doing, where and when, instead of following our hearts and instincts," says Annelise. "No experience is ever wasted. Once I discovered my love for communications, I questioned whether I'd wasted four years studying social work. I hadn't.

"Both disciplines became the bedrock of how I would assist the charitable space in South Africa. Experiences open our eyes, our hearts, and our understanding. They give us empathy and patience. They allow us to view things from other perspectives. If you want to really make a difference in other peoples' lives, these traits are invaluable."

4. Be open to finding answers in unexpected places

"By 2004 I felt rudderless," says Annelise. "I'd been running my own business, handling communications and marketing for NGOs, developing campaigns and even assisting NGOs to run more as businesses than under-funded organisations, but it didn't feel like I was doing enough.

"Part of the problem was that you can only give people the tools to work with, you can't make them use them. Another problem was under-funding. Corporates spend billions each year on CSI projects but they don't like to fund salaries and basic operational expenses.

"It's frustrating because volunteers can't do what needs to be done — most households need two breadwinners, which limits the availability of volunteers to assist.

"I was looking for a way to add more value. Should I start my own NGO? Where could I make the biggest impact? I'd been offered an excellent coaching position, which would allow me to walk away from the problems this sector deals with daily. It was tempting, but it wasn't what I wanted.

"At that time I attended the Global Day of Prayer in Argentina on behalf of a client. It was at that conference that I had an almost supernatural experience. I left knowing exactly what my purpose was.

"How these realisations come to you is less important than the fact that you're open to them. Deep down I knew what I wanted and needed — I just needed the courage and fortitude to follow my path. My experience in Argentina gave that to me because I allowed it to."

5. Always find the strength to persevere

Nothing worth doing is ever easy. In the NGO space, this is particularly true. "I developed the idea for National Tekkie Tax Day because NGOs constantly asked me to help them develop funding campaigns. I developed this fundraising model when I launched Casual Day and ran the project successfully for 18 years.

"But I also believe the NGO space can benefit from a more unified mindset to overcome donor confusion and fatigue. This is my new focus, but it's difficult to get organisations to shift their mindsets. National Tekkie Tax Day is a step in this direction.

"It encompasses 12 national NGOs and 1 000 regional organisations across five categories — but there's one product and one national marketing drive. Donors can choose a category to support.

"I've needed to persevere to help NGOs see the benefits in working collaboratively, and corporates to see the benefits of supporting the operational costs of NGOs.

"I don't have a high profile job at a top company. People don't call you back in my world. And yet you need to keep pushing forward against incredible headwinds.

"I wake up each morning and repeat the mantra that my success helps everybody; my failure helps nobody. There won't always be easy wins, but with the right purpose you can persevere. You can make a difference."

Available at Toys R Us, Clicks and Babies R Us or online at www.tekkietax.co.za