Goodwill Requires Confidence

Every day at Goodwill, there are men and women from all economic backgrounds seeking help finding jobs or learning new job skills, students attending class at The Excel Center® to get their high school diplomas, men and women working to return to the community after incarceration and people overcoming their disabilities to find independence and employment.

First, it requires confidence to take that first step toward your dreams. And without confidence, it would be very difficult for anyone to succeed. Constantly doubting your abilities, questioning yourself as a person, feeling inadequate—it can zap the motivation right out of you. But the people at Goodwill, they have dreams, and they’re not afraid to do the work to achieve them—the Goodwill team and clients.

Have you ever been around people like that? People who are driven, who want to succeed and bring others with them, people who know that feeling good about yourself also means making others feel good?

If you don’t have #confidence, don’t worry. It can’t be bought and it can’t be given to you, but the great thing is—it can be learned:

• Surround yourself with people who build you up.

• Don’t be afraid to acknowledge your mistakes and learn from them.

• Don’t be afraid to fail now and again.

• Ask yourself, “What is my dream” and “what do I need to do to achieve it?”

• Be open to advice, get a mentor.

• Give yourself credit for your achievements. It’s ok to be proud of yourself.

How do you know when you’ve achieved #confidence? You’d think it was a difficult question, but it’s really not. Do you spread Goodwill? Chinese philosopher Lau Tzu said it well, “Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.” Go spread kindness.