The team

Our aim

The team behind Flex is Do Something Different. Our shared aim is to help you if you want to change: to be honest, to be courageous and to become yourself.

Since 2010, Do Something Different (DSD) has brought insights from behavioural psychology to an approach that’s helped thousands of people across the world get something different out of life, by flexing their ways of behaving.

the Team at do something different

Our background

The Do Something Different (DSD) approach was originally developed by Professors Ben Fletcher and Karen Pine. Their work had shown how people with higher levels of behavioural flexibility experience higher levels of wellbeing – and that flexing behaviours is far more effective than flexing thinking.

Find out more about the ideas behind Do Something Different.

The opportunity to digitise this approach came through social entrepreneur Ray Richards, who was working on a behaviour change project for a large consultancy firm. Together they launched the DSD programme to 16,000 employees across the UK and overseas, and the project won a host of awards including a European Diversity Award.

Since then the Do Something Different approach has helped people in more than 70 countries to take small steps, through programmes with the public and private sectors, and directly with individuals. Areas in which Do Something Different has demonstrated significant impact include:

Over a decade of experience in delivering Do Something Different programmes has gone into the creation of Flex, a way for people everywhere to take small steps to a life done differently.

  • wellbeing
  • diet
  • physical activity
  • smoking cessation
  • emotional intelligence
  • resilience
  • happiness
  • work-life balance
  • type 2 diabetes
  • cardiac health
  • dementia
  • leadership
  • innovation
  • personal finance

How we work

Do Something Different Ltd (DSD) operates as a conscious business. That means the primary motivation for doing what we do is a belief that we are creating something of value to both people and the planet.

We understand the need for income and a fair return on the investment of time and money made by our investors. But an investment in DSD is not about wealth in a financial sense. Any financial returns will be achieved in the long-term and will be balanced with our purpose: helping people who want to change, to be honest with themselves and others, to be courageous and to become themselves.

What happens to DSD profits?

Currently DSD invests any spare financial resources into the development of Flex. Our investors are financially patient, investing in DSD with the understanding that any short-term return would be the social impact of our work.

One day we hope to provide our investors with a modest financial return on their investment but no one’s banking on it!

Our investors

B. Fletcher, K. Pine, R. Richards, T. Hall, J. Rui Martins, A. Bullock, R, Erasmus, N. Witten, S. Scott, P. Bunkham, N. Jayasinghe, D. Grinstead, J. Ryan, C. Jenkinson, K. Weiner, R. Sutton, D. O’Hare, P. Burden, D. Farrow, C. Patel, T. Barling, S. Domzalski

To find out more about our approach to business feel free to get in touch.

Do something different Founders