Writing Your Mission Statement (And Using It!)

So do you really need a mission statement in your business? Yes!

Your mission statement isn’t just part of a business plan, in reality, your mission statement, like your
core values, is a critical part in defining a successful brand and building a solid foundation for business growth and marketing.

It must convey your core values, your beliefs, and what you stand for, and it needs to communicate why your business exists and what you hope to achieve.

If your mission statement has meaning to you, it can be a powerful tool in guiding your company’s forward movement and your decisions. The key is infusing your mission statement into the everyday operations of your business and every aspect of your brand.

The problem is that most mission statements tend to be all statement (boring) and no mission (motivating).

The reason your mission statement exists is to succinctly communicate why you do what you do, why you care, why you believe it is important, and why you want to reach your goals. It also needs to address and mean something for your ideal clients or target market.

But how do you write a mission statement?

Get as specific as possible when describing why your business exists, who you serve, and what you want to achieve. Your mission statement needs to use concrete, clear words and action verbs so anyone who reads it will quickly understand your why, your ideal client, and your goals. Be careful not to get too vague. Don’t try to be everything to everyone. That doesn’t work.

To keep it simple, your mission statement sets an expectation of performance and needs to address:

• Your Purpose
  Ask yourself: Why am I in business? What purpose do I serve? Who do I serve? What needs, issues, or problems do I exist to solve, change, or fix?
• Your Business
  Ask yourself: What do I do? What is my unique skill, talent, or gift? What results do I create? How do I change the world, change a life, or change a business? How do I solve the needs, issues, or problems? How am I different?
• Your Values
  Ask yourself: What are my core values? What principles guide my work and my actions? What is most important to me?

Your mission statement should inspire you, motivate you, and get you fired up. It should serve as a positive reminder of why you started your business and that what you are doing matters.

Your mission statement should act as a promise to your ideal client. It sets expectations for your brand. Loyalty and trust are built on the expectations you set and how you deliver on those expectations.

When clients can recognize, connect with, resonate with, and respect the values, and mission associated with your brand, you will strengthen their loyalty and turn them into raving fans and brand ambassadors that refer you business and spread the word about you to their friends, family, and network.

Don’t worry about writing too much or too little.

There isn’t a requirement as to what your mission statement looks like. In fact, you don’t have to ever show it to anyone! Just make sure that it is meaningful to you and that when you read it, you feel something strong, like a knot in your gut, butterflies in your stomach, a tightening in your chest, emotions bubbling up inside of you.

Whether it’s one sentence or ten sentences, a powerful, personal, meaningful mission statement will fire up the passion inside of you and inspire to you to make a difference in the world in your own way each and every day. It will also help keep you focused on what you do, why you do it, and what you want to achieve.

Please don’t write your mission statement and file it away in a cabinet, stick it in a binder on a bookshelf, or save it in your digital archives.

Keep your mission statement in a place that you will see it and read it daily so that your mission becomes your daily affirmation or mantra.