Four Steps for Crafting Your Personal Mission Statement

We hear about the importance of a company’s mission statement all the time.

This is because the mission statement can provide direction and purpose for your business. But have you ever thought about what your personal mission statement might be?

And before you even begin to ponder this, you actually ask, do I absolutely need to? And that’s a legit question. And of course the answer isn’t as simple as a yes or no, but rather yes and no. If you don’t, your small business will go on and you will continue to hopefully thrive! But if you do take on that challenge (and we firmly believe that it’s a worthwhile challenge that is rewarding), you can determine how you utilize your time and explore the legacy you wish to create.

Crafting a personal mission statement

You may be thinking “this is pretty intense” and you wouldn’t be wrong, but that’s ok! It’s this way for everyone. And though it may be daunting, it’s a great step in both shaping and fulfilling our future to one we love. See, our brains are naturally inclined to align our actions with our self-perception, a concept known as cognitive dissonance. In essence, our brains are wired to help us become the person that we say we are.

So, how do you begin to craft your personal mission? Here are four simple steps to help you get started.

1. Brainstorm your values.

List everything you value— people, attitudes, characteristics, challenges, life roles, and goals— these are things that ignite your passion. Think of as many as you can and write them down.  

2. Decide how you want to be perceived.

Narrow your list to two to four core values that best describe and represent how you want others to see and describe you.

3. Identify your purpose.

Your core values will guide you to identifying your purpose. This is your why. It includes your motivations, aspirations, contributions to the world, and ultimately your legacy.

4. Establish the problem you’re solving.

Understand how your purpose solves a specific problem, whether personal, communal, or even global. Your mission should be actionable, something you can continually pursue.

Next, take your core values, your purpose and the problem, and combine them into a one to three sentence statement.

Combine your core values, purpose and problem you’re addressing into a succinct one to three sentence statement— and make it truly reflect your best self. This statement should be inspiring and provide a clear direction. A template may include:

• Why: Define your purpose and action.
• Who: Identify who will benefit from your efforts.
• What: Specify the problem you’re addressing.
• How: Describe your approach to solving the problem.

Once you have your mission written down, try to review it each day.

Revisit your mission statement daily to ensure that your daily actions align with your long-term vision. You’ve heard the saying “Rome wasn’t built in a day, ” so, remember, incremental changes lead to significant outcomes over time. A personal mission statement isn’t just a guide to personal growth, but can also be a foundation for developing a business, because it can help integrate personal and professional objectives.

A big thing to remember is just going through this exercise can yield thoughts, actionable steps and results that you may not have otherwise explored or discovered. And a little introspection can go a long way! And we don’t mean you need to put pressure on yourself to get this just right and come up with a bumper-sticker-like mission statement, rather you may find that your mission is actually different than what you thought. And that’s something to think about!