I celebrated 15 years of sobriety this past weekend, which is extremely cool and amazing and I am very grateful and proud! But at the risk of sounding like a LinkedIn Lunatic, here are my thoughts about recovering from drug addiction and alcoholism and….the B Corp movement.A few years into sobriety I got into a debate with someone about 12 step recovery. In retrospect, diving into an argument with my boyfriends cousin who was drunk at the time about whether or not 12 step recovery was a religious cult was not…the best idea. But when this person “attacked” something that was precious, profound, and life altering for me, I felt anger, fear, and a self-righteousness that I could not contain. This debate lasted for over an hour. Point, counterpoint; vague understanding vs personal experience. It was exhausting. And at the end of the day, nothing changed. Neither of us entered into that debate in good faith and therefore neither of us were willing to listen to anything the other person said. I have encountered this narrative many times since that day and I am pleased to report that my response has been much different. “That’s a super common misconception what with the “Higher Power” stuff, so I can see how people might think that. I’d be happy to share more about my experience if you’re interested!”In the past few weeks, with Dr. Bronner’s explosive announcement about decertifying, I’ve seen a lot of “Sarah 4 years sober arguing with a drunk person about 12 step recovery”. I’ve seen fear, anger, wild theories and accusations. The B Corp movement is precious, profound, and can be life altering. So many of us have found careers, friends, community, and hope within the movement. I understand the urge to dismiss criticism, to be angry at the choice, to feel betrayed and want to hop up onto a soap box. But the fact of the matter is, B Corp certification is not perfect and neither is this movement. If those of us who are so deeply passionate about using business as a force for good are not able to critically assess how we’re going about it, listen to and acknowledge criticism, and learn from major moments like this, we aren’t really being true to the values of the movement we claim to represent.On a national and global scale, we’re seeing the detrimental affects of a movement unable to be critical of itself or it’s leadership. Hive mind, group think, herd mentality. I’ve never heard these terms used in a positive way. It is my opinion that we as a community should welcome the hard questions and the tough conversations. We should acknowledge the shortcomings of a global certification and continue asking “How might we…” when thinking about the path forward. And also I swear if one more person tells me “the new standards will fix this!” my head is going to explode!There are dozens of paths to impact and to using business as a force for good, just as there are multiple paths to sobriety. I used to scoff when people told me they were going to a SMART Recovery meeting, a Dharma Recovery meeting, that they were “California sober”, or, god forbid, that they had tried 12 step meetings and had not found them to be helpful. I recognize now that when I rejected other paths to recovery, it was out of fear and self-centeredness. 12 step recovery is what worked for me, it is incredibly important to me, my experience in 12 step meetings has been profound. If someone else had a negative experience, would that force me to take a critical lens to the institution that I have basically based my entire life around?!??!Yeah, maybe! 15 years in, I am able to acknowledge and affirm that some people’s experience of 12 step recovery has not been beneficial to their lives. I am endlessly grateful that my experience has been. These two things to not negate one another. They are both true at the same time! The end point, the goal, is freedom. If someone stopped using heroin because now they only smoke weed sometimes, and that was their path to freedom, that’s a miracle.The primary purpose of 12 step recovery groups is to carry the message to alcoholics. My primary purpose is to fit myself to be of maximum service to others. With this type of laser focus, it is so easy to understand my path forward. If someone comes to me struggling with sobriety, thumping them over the head with the concept that there is one path forward and all others paths are inadequate and lesser is not…being of maximum service. Sharing my experience, strength and hope is. The primary purpose of the B Corp movement is to transform the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet. Infighting, disparaging Dr. Bronner's (and others) criticism and concern, and pretending like this movement is perfect is in no way in line with that purpose. Self-righteous indignation moves us no closer to our goal.Ultimately, I’m proud of Dr. Bronner's. Choosing to decertify was not the easy choice. It was clear in their press release that these concerns have been brewing for years, and their attempt to rectify them has been valiant. Dr. Bronner's has always been “ahead of the curve” in terms of impact. I hope that our community can see this for what it is - a wake up call. Let’s get to work - together.And to shamelessly ignore the tradition of attraction rather than promotion, if you want to hear more about our thoughts on Dr. Bronner's, check out Season Two Episode One of the Sunny Brands podcast that just dropped! And as always, my inbox is open - if you want to talk about any of the topics in this blog, hit me up.Xoxo, Sarah 
