I’m sure many of you have heard Simon Sinek talk about connecting to your why in business. After reading his books, I felt compelled to take action on my own why in recruitment.

I used to think my purpose was to get things or being able to do things like: buy a house, become successful, work for myself, and enjoy a nice lifestyle (with plenty of holidays!).

But looking back, that wasn’t really purpose, it was more about survival and providing. Nice holidays aren’t survival, but as recruiters we all know we need some respite for our mental health!

Over time, I’ve come to believe that true purpose must be bigger than you. It needs to light you up in a way that a big commission slip never could. It’s purer, more emotional, and when you’re truly connected to it, you’re fuelling yourself from a different source, one that enables you to achieve even more.

My Why

At its core, my purpose is to make the world a little fairer and a little better. I’m driven by justice, and I’ll always take a stand on things that feel wrong.

It’s how I started my own company, after witnessing something awful in a previous role, I simply couldn’t stand by and do nothing.

I’ve also always loved travel. Exploring the world inspires me, and I’ve been especially drawn to Africa. During my first Kilimanjaro summit with friends, I was shocked to see porters at -15 degrees without proper cold-weather clothing or footwear. I was also aware from previous trips to East Africa that much of the tourism industry is owned by non-locals, with profits leaving the country instead of benefiting local communities.

This is why eco-tourism became a passion of mine.

Harness My Purpose at Work: Introducing Project Purpose

Fast forward to 2025, and we launched Project Purpose, taking a group of recruiters we had placed to Tanzania to summit Kilimanjaro, giving them an experience of a lifetime and tapping into a source of purpose.

In terms of levelling the playing field, fostering connection, and giving people an opportunity through which they have to conquer themselves, Kilimanjaro gives it all.

But in this blog I want to focus on Sam, our local tour operator.

We partnered with Samwel Masaga , who is committed to giving back to his community. I spoke to a few businesses in Tanzania when deciding who to use for our Kilimanjaro trip and Sam shone through.

The guy has a heart of gold, and I just knew I could trust him with our trip from the first few minutes of our call.

Sam’s not from money, he’s just smart and hardworking. Having worked for a larger company, he decided to go it alone a few years ago. He’s been able to support himself, but to thrive he needs more marketing budget. Competing with the often foreign-owned operators on Google ads is, as you can imagine, very hard for a local start-up.

Together, we’ve begun to explore ways to grow his business and increase the marketing budget.

Our Plan

We’re looking to invest in an iconic Toyota Land Cruiser, a second-hand safari vehicle costing around $50,000.

Once purchased, Sam will rent it to other safari companies for $250 per day, while also saving him safari vehicle rental costs. Over a couple of years, the goal is to pay back the cost and reinvest future profits into marketing Sam’s business. Sounds exciting, right!?

Beyond a larger marketing budget and more bookings, the purpose is job creation, offering fairer wages and providing social mobility to the local community.

It might sound a bit far-fetched, but Sam does know another tour operator who went solo, managed to buy a Land Cruiser and is now scaling his business really quickly, it’s definitely possible.

At Hypha Recruit we plan to arrange bi-annual Kilimanjaro and Safari trips for recruiters we have placed and for any recruiter or recruitment teams that wish to self-fund and join us.

This will help raise some money for the Land Cruiser. Beyond that, a percentage of Hypha’s profit will also be going towards the purchase.

This Is Where You Come In

Recruiters, if you get placed through us, you’ll be directly helping me generate the profit to buy that Land Cruiser.

My goal is to make this happen within the next year, and I need your support to get there.

If you’re considering a move in recruitment and would like to be part of something bigger, please message me and let’s arrange a call!

Thanks for your support,

Vicky

07737590316