Mission statements are those inspiring words chosen by the leader to clearly communicate the direction of an organization. This is a great method to communicate your intentions and motivate your team to a common vision. With a mission statement you can define your organization’s purpose and objectives. The key point to remember is that the primary function is internal not external. Your mission statement needs to define the key measurements of your organization’s success.
Here are some tips in defining your mission statement:
1. Work first to identify your businesses “winning idea”.
2. This is the idea that will make you stand out from the competition and it becomes the reason your customer’s come to you and not your competitors.
3. Identify the key measures of your success. Makes sure you choose the most important measures (and not too many of them!)
4. Combine your winning idea and success measures into a tangible and measurable goal.
5. Refine the words until you have a concise and precise statement of your mission that expresses your ideas and desired results.
Crafting a mission statement first comes from defining your winning idea. It takes a lot of effort to find, shape and test but the benefits far outweigh the cost and energy it requires in communicating your winning idea!
