Success vs. Significance

Posted on June 16, 2008

On Saturday I listened to a speech given by Deepak Jain, the Dean of NWU’s Kellogg School of Management. There was one morsel that I just can’t shake.  It got me bounding out of bed this morning and charging into work.  Jain explained to the recent graduates that they now had all of the tools that they needed to be a “success”, but then he challenged them to make an impact beyond the material to the social & global.  He challenged them to be “significant”.

When I think of those individuals who have become “successful”, the list is long.  When I think of those who are “significant” it is a whole different matter.  It is a far more select group ranging from Ghandi and Eleanor Roosevelt to Jim Henson, Steve Jobs and Walt Disney.

Who is on your list of “significant” individuals?  Let’s build a running list.  Weeks from now we can pull it apart and distill it down into the common essence.  It can be a roadmap to follow. Fuel for inspiration, aspiration and perspiration.  It can be a North Star to guide us.

Cause two things are for certain; none of us are here to just to pick up a paycheck, and all of us have limited time to make the kind of difference that we are uniquely armed to make together.

Who is on your “significant” list?

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