Measuring Success through Charity

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote, “The life of a man consists not in seeing visions and in dreaming dreams, but in active charity and in willing service.”

I have always found charity to be an important part of my life whether I am donating my time, my money or helping organize others into charitable acts. Beyond my own charitable endeavors outside of work, our office participates in two major fundraising drives each year for the March of Dimes and United Way. My fellow team members are always interested in finding out how the campaigns are going – and while e-mail updates are nice, a visual representation really helps people see the goal and how far we need to go to meet it.

The thermometer goal like the one in the picture above is tried and true and does this job admirably. As I say, don’t mess with a classic!

So, I created one, which you can download here. My design actually has two side by side thermometers, one for our team goal and one for the company’s. I like to have both so the team can get the full picture of where we are in the overall effort. Having both “temperatures” also allows us to congratulate the team for doing their part even if the company still has a ways to go before hitting the overall goal. I printed these for us and had themlaminated at FedEx Office with a cool type of lamination they carry that allows you to use dry erase markers on the plastic. (True, most laminations are fine for dry erase markers but they tend to leave a little color residue. This type of lamination doesn’t, so definitely check it out next time!)

By making my thermometers simple, I can re-use this over again for other campaigns. All in all, it is a simple tool but very effective in creating interest and driving people towards a common goal.