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When one thinks of nonprofit work, the mind usually conjures up images of well-meaning young people taking a gap year from college to build water pumps in poor rural villages, or wealthy socialites filling their days by planning elaborate dinners with proceeds going to disease research. However, there is another, newer nonprofit archetype fast coming to prominence in the 21st century: the business executive-turned-philanthropist.
Embodying this new mould is Michael Amin, a Los Angeles-based entrepreneur and investor who turned his attention to the charitable sector in addition to overseeing his various commercial interests. The creator of several businesses, including Top Attorneys Directory, Primex Talking Yellow Pages, and Primex World Inc., as well as the co-creator of QuickPix One Hour Photo, Michael harboured the dream of making the world a better place for as many people as possible. In 2001, he began implementing a plan to do just that by founding Maximum Difference Foundation (MDF), a nonprofit organization designed in an atypical fashion.
“Although I had the idea to establish a nonprofit for a long time, I waited to found Maximum Difference Foundation until I figured out a way to do it so that it made the most sense to me,” says Amin. “Then, one day, it occurred to me! Why not employ the principles of return-on-investment, or as it’s commonly known, ‘ROI’, which have worked so well in the private sector, to the world of philanthropy?”
And so he did, deriving MDF’s name from the very concept that brought it into existence: using the resources available to make the maximum possible positive difference. In the twenty-five years since its inception, MDF has undertaken a wide variety of worthy projects and has partnered with charities and nonprofits of all types (Doctors Without Borders, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the Innocence Project, the ACLU, the National MS Society, and the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, to name only a few). But one of its hallmark initiatives is particularly symbolic of Michael Amin’s stated philosophy: advocating for the parents of young children to educate themselves about the art and science of good parenting.
“The theory of ROI dictates that resources should be directed in a way that generates the greatest possible return for every dollar invested,” he says, explaining further, “In the case of MDF, instead of dollars, we use something I call ‘units of positive change,’ which is how we measure our overall impact.”
At one point, Michael had a moment of inspiration. He realized that the best way to achieve optimal ROI with the resources available to his foundation (and to create units of positive change) was to mount a campaign to influence future generations to become happy, healthy, well-rounded people. “That way, they are much better positioned to make positive contributions to society, which brings with it the potential to do an exponential amount of good in countless different ways,” he says. “The positive impact could be enormous and felt for decades to come.”
So, how does MDF manage to do this?
In the words of Michael Amin, “Through advertising and publications, MDF works to motivate parents to learn the art and science of good parenting by reading related books, watching videos, going to seminars, and if needed, talking to a therapist.”
It’s difficult to contradict that advice. For the parents of young children, self-education is about as close as there is to a silver bullet against common but preventable parenting missteps that can shape a child’s long-term development. By equipping themselves with proven, science-based approaches crafted by specialists and experts, parents can make more informed decisions that support their children’s emotional, cognitive, and social well-being over time. And this is exactly the message that MDF and Michael Amin endeavor to spread to as many parents as they can.
“After achieving success in business, I think it’s natural to want to give something back to society. In my case, it was really just a question of what form that would take,” he muses. “Although I am quite busy with Primex World Inc., I want to make a positive impact on the lives of both parents and children. I am not a religious man, but I am spiritual. I believe in humanity and in the power of good. Through MDF, I’m just trying to do my part to spread a little more good around and make sure there’s no shortage of it for future generations.”
If you are in the non-profit sector, you may find it beneficial to introduce the same ROI strategy into your non-profit operations, as Michael Amin has done with MDF. His philosophy on positive change is influential, and one can’t help but be motivated by this.
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