Enterprenuer
Ben Keene, a founder of Rebel Book Club, is a social impact guru who has spent 20 years exploring how to make a positive impact through building startups, communities, and adventures.
Ben has helped 1000s of people and organizations do work that matters to them (& the world) – whether through starting an impact business, building an exciting career, or growing an intentional community.
His current projects are in Rebel Book Club (global nonfiction community) + Raise (funding climate startups).
Where did the idea for Rebel Book Club come from?
One tap on amazon and bang, there it was on my kindle.
It was a bad habit. I’d fleetingly read a review and, before I’d considered a sensible swipe-by, my curiosities or aspirations had slapped me around the face, and it was too late. I’d become a heavy book download user.
We needed to fix our problem of starting but not nonfiction finishing books. Rebel Book Club was about to begin.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
5 am mediation. 5:30 am run. 6 am juice. 6:30 am clean inbox. 7 am start zooms.
Bollocks to that.
Three kids and a puppy and a few years of productivity experiments mean my mornings are family chaos management followed by strong coffee and an amble to my office (10 meters from the front door).
Then I check dashboards, socials, inboxes. Deal with anything urgent.
Then crack on with projects in 1-2 hour blocks. Usually a call or two, and 3-4 times a month, I’m hosting evening events in-person or virtually.
How do you bring ideas to life?
We wanted (and needed) to keep the format super simple. Every month:
One nonfiction book
One meetup
One book inspired drink
Lots of forward-thinking people and conversation.
We charged £15/month for membership. That was May 2015. We’re now on our 81st book.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Startups that exist to solve real social and environmental problems.
Purposeful business is finally going mainstream.
As someone who has been part of social enterprises/impact startups for 20 years, this is a relief and overdue.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
Reading.
Seriously.
Before Rebel Book Club started, I’d read four books a year tops. Now it’s 40-50.
Yes, it is partly my job, but also I love it. The diversity of ideas, knowledge, and stories challenges and inspires me and connects me to unique humans.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Don’t listen to your older self.
Sometimes I think we over-prescribe life advice. The best thing to do is go out and live your best version.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.
Reading the news is good for you.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Deliver the service promised to our customers and members.
The basics done regularly are worth so much more than brilliance done occasionally.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?
Consistency + being genuinely interested in our members, not just for revenue.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
This could be a thesis.
I am not hiring early enough. Too often, I’ve focused on protecting cash flow overspending on talent. It’s a fine line, but I’m trying to push it.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Any solution that helps solve the climate and nature crises, well-executed, will be successful. Pain points are everywhere.
How can you help people and organizations change the way they:
shop
dress
eat
waste
power
travel
learn
communicate
everything.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
Zip wire for the kids.
What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?
Canva. Fantastic tool for value.
I use it daily for decks, socials, community comms, branding, etc. whole visual toolkit.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
One?!
Here’s a top 5 from 2021:
- 4000 weeks, time management for mortals
- This one wild and precious life
- The good ancestor
- Consumed
- The green grocer
