Sandra Nomoto, founder of Conscious Public Relations, hadn’t planned to be an entrepreneur. In her 1,000+ Stories profile, she says she launched her Canadian firm in 2012 because she “was very disillusioned about the corporate world” and an unfulfilling marketing career. Her mission: to promote the work of ethically run companies through storytelling campaigns.

Today, her company is a certified B Corporation. She has added social media management to her services, developed an online public relations class, and built a small staff that helps select companies of all sizes develop thoughtful outreach efforts. Going forward, Nomoto hopes to take her firm to new heights through additional hires and strategic partnerships.

Building her brand has involved personal sacrifices, she says, but “tough times have truly made me a resilient and confident person.” And with her venture now on a steady growth path, she’s able to appreciate even more the positive contributions she makes. “By choosing to work with clients with a social or environmentally positive purpose and helping them tell their stories, I know that my efforts and skills are contributing to a better world.”

She feels more like herself than she ever has before, Nomoto adds. “Having a purpose-driven business has helped shape me into the person I probably always was deep down — someone who cared about people and the planet.”