Whatever Happened to Making a Difference?

By Rick Zwetsch, Founder – LiveImpact.io

“I just want to feel like what I’m doing actually matters.”

It’s a common refrain, often said with a sigh. The cause was worthy. The march was crowded. The petition got 100,000 signatures. But… what changed?

In an age of always-on outrage, where taking a stand is as easy as changing a profile pic or resharing a tweet, making a difference has started to feel more like a mood than a measurable outcome. We’ve gotten great at expressing support. Less great at tracking whether anything actually moved because of it.

So, what happened?

The Shift from Action to Attention

Let’s face it: we now live in a world that confuses visibility with impact.

The tools we use to express support—social platforms, hashtags, viral videos are engineered for amplification, not accountability. They reward what gets noticed, not what gets done. And as a result, activism has increasingly become a performance: curated, ephemeral, and emotionally exhausting.

You can be louder than ever, and still not know if you’ve actually changed anything.

The Overwhelm Is Real

Part of the problem is sheer overload. There are so many causes. So many issues. So many urgent crises vying for our attention that it’s hard to know where to start, let alone stay committed.

In this chaotic environment, caring deeply can feel paralyzing. We bounce from one heartbreak to another, hoping that a donation here, a march there, or a retweet will tip the scales.

It’s not that people don’t care. It’s that they don’t know if their care counts.

The Trust Gap

We also have a growing trust issue. Between misinformation, politicized nonprofits, shady fundraising tactics, and corporate “impact” campaigns that feel more like PR than purpose, people are right to be skeptical. Too often, impact is claimed but never verified. Change is promised but never shown.

When we stop believing that our actions make a difference, we stop acting altogether.

What if We Could See the Difference?

This is the question that led to building LiveImpact.io—a platform grounded in a simple but powerful belief: People want to do good. They just need a clear way to act and a way to know it matters.

What if there was a public dashboard—not of headlines, but of hope? What if you could see how many others donated to the same cause you did? What if you could track your efforts across different issues without selling your data, getting algorithmically nudged, or needing to align with someone else’s politics?

Not to prove your virtue. But to stay motivated. To stay honest. To stay engaged.

A Different Kind of Platform

LiveImpact.io doesn’t claim to solve every problem. It doesn’t tell you what to care about, or judge what you choose to support. It simply gives people a place to:

- Make a pledge
- Take a real-world action
- Be counted on a public dashboard

No ads. No agenda. No gatekeepers.

We built it because we were tired of the same question: “What did that actually do?”

And we’re betting we’re not alone.

Ready to turn intention into action?
LiveImpact.io is people powered, and people funded.
Support the build: https://www.gofundme.com/f/liveimpact

TL;DR

Making a difference used to mean something measurable. It still can. We just need better tools—and a little more trust in each other.

[Photo by Ian Schneider]