01 Mar Mission Possible: Success That Counts

David Lifsey, President and CEO

I wasn’t a Goodwill employee long before I learned that success means many things. Until I came here, I thought of success as having a lot of money, won/lost records and items that I’ve accumulated. But Goodwill has taught me that success is something very different, often not measured in money or things, but in accomplishments, confidence and hope.

Success can be learning to ride a bus on your own, getting to work on time everyday or hanging just one more piece of clothing today than yesterday. Success can also mean earning a fresh start and having paid for past mistakes. It’s gaining new friends who appreciate you for who you are, not what you can do for them, having your own home and supporting family.

Our Goodwill is in the success business. Sure, we open stores, hire more people and build new buildings. That’s really not so much success as it is accomplishments that allow us to achieve our real success which is measured in having more than 1,400 employees who work for Goodwill because of our mission. We served more than 11,000 people last year who turned to us for help finding and keeping a job and building a reputation that allows people to feel good when they donate to us.

There is a needlepoint piece framed on my office wall. It defines success. Among the measures it touts as signs of success are these, “To leave the world a bit better – by a redeemed social condition, (and) to know even one life has breathed easier; this is to have succeeded.”

Our Goodwill is in the success business; success that counts.

How do you define success?