As a facilitator, there’s one acknowledgment I believe all participants must embrace:

The smartest person in the room, is the room.

And if you hold that to be true, regardless of whether the room is real, or conceptual, you can only conclude that every room is made smarter, when everyone participates in whatever is happening within it.

As we are watching play out in brutal reality around the world, it is the nature of empire’s to crumble, and that is as true for the ones that seek to stand over others, as it is for those that seek to stand alone. Our sovereignty may matter, but only in as much as what we do with it. And it is a shallow thing indeed if in claiming our own, we seek to deny it for others.

One of the most common ways in which we rob others of their agency is to use language that diminishes, dehumanises, or others. And from my perspective, there is no more diminishing word in impact than ‘beneficiary’.

This idea relegates the individual to the role of a mindless consumer, rather than as a sovereign individual who can actively participate in the resolution of whatever situation they are living through.

That’s not to say that all organisations that use this language are deliberately perpetuating this idea - they’re not. But surely it's time to rethink its use, just as we have begun to understand how language engenders and perpetuates bias in other areas.

Participation is key to the idea of agency, and not only is it respectful to the individual, more importantly, it almost inevitably results in better outcomes.

It takes a richness and diversity of knowledge, insight and experience to create truly inclusive and effective solutions. And we don’t discover that by talking, but by listening.

In product development, for example, companies that work with their customers directly from the start don’t just create better products—they build more meaningful connections with their communities. This is even more important for impact entrepreneurs, where the end goal is to create beneficial impacts - and thus demands that the communities we serve be deliberately, thoughtfully, and consistently engaged.

By comparison, in the field of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response, affected communities are frequently seen as recipients rather than experts in both understanding and addressing their own needs. Yet local knowledge, skills and resources are often critical in navigating a crisis effectively. By bringing community members into the decision-making process, we can deploy solutions that are culturally informed, locally relevant, and far more impactful. The same principle applies in the field of social enterprise, where customers—too often relegated to mere data points—should be essential partners in shaping offerings that can genuinely benefit their lives.

In a recent newsletter, I discussed how true agency catalyses transformation. The same is true here. People empowered as participants develop solutions that they are invested in, driving them forward with energy, creativity, and commitment that would otherwise be untapped. For this shift to happen, we must break down traditional hierarchies and invite diverse voices to participate in these processes.

There is enormous power in treating others as co-creators, rather than a faceless audience, a mindless consumer, or a disempowered beneficiary. In doing so we don't just improve engagement —we expand what’s possible. Whether in the boardroom, at an event, or in our communities, creating a more just, equitable and loving world requires seeing everyone as integral to the journey and both inviting them, and supporting them, in taking an active role.

Only then will we create solutions that are relevant, resilient, and truly impactful.

Before you go:

End of year is a particularly challenging time for impact entrepreneurs, what with conferences in full swing, sales slowing, and funders often punting on decisions until the new year. And with the recent news about a pending change of government in the USA our collective capacity to navigate crisis is more important than ever. That's why I've put together a free 90 minute webinar for impact entrepreneurs and non-profit leaders that I'll be hosting in a few weeks. To find out more about that, please visit my website here.