Demystifying the gap between ideas & execution to collapse time & accelerate results.
MIND THE GAP
The mission & vision statements are not as hard as they seem.
A clear brand identity and corporate ethos are crucial in today's business landscape. A well-crafted mission statement is a strategic asset beyond a mere formal declaration. It communicates your business's core purpose, guiding principles, and the value it aims to provide its customers, employees, and stakeholders. A vision statement, on the other hand, outlines your business's long-term aspirations. Together, these two statements encapsulate the essence of your brand's identity and strategic direction.
If you are a shop of 1 or 10,000, having a mission and vision is important to crafting your strategy and delighting your stakeholders.
CLOSE THE GAP
I’ve witnessed organizations and individuals get wrapped around the axle trying to craft the perfect mission or vision statement. Some of the biggest brands in the world have the most straightforward statements.
By the end of this edition, you will understand how to craft a mission and vision statement that inspires your stakeholders.
Easy-to-follow guidelines to craft mission and vision statements that inspire stakeholders and moves mountains
A mission statement doesn’t necessarily correlate to better financial performance
It’s a long-held belief that having a mission statement leads to better financial performance. A study of peer-reviewed journals by Rice University’s business school found no statistical significance among thousands of companies.
The lack of correlation may be due to the mission statement's ultimately inward focus and intended to reinforce the beliefs of the company's founders.
Learn more about this research here.
Wait! That doesn’t mean you should abandon having a mission statement. A Gallup study shows that 71% of Millennials expect their employer to provide a sense of purpose for their jobs. Organizations with a strong sense of purpose and a clearly communicated mission tend to have lower turnover rates. A study published in the Journal of Business Ethics found that a strong corporate mission can significantly affect employee retention, particularly when employees identify with the company's values.
Companies that align their mission with their strategy inspire their employees and tend to achieve better financial performance. Ultimately, people drive financial success.
Customers also appreciate a mission statement to see if a company aligns with its values. According to a Cone Communications study, 87% of consumers would purchase a product because a company advocated for an issue they cared about.
📍Don’t write one you don’t mean to because you think you need it. Eventually, people will realize it's a fake sentiment. It’s better not to have one than to have a fake one.
Uncover your W.H.Y.
Whether you are an entrepreneur working alone or a startup team, you have built something you strongly believe in. You might feel conflicted because you want to create more options for yourself or your family. But that’s not a sexy mission statement. However, you strongly feel that your product serves a purpose. The added benefit of that purpose is the freedom that you are seeking.
While Simon Sinek's concept of starting with why is well-known, I have put my own spin on it—uncover your W.H.Y. Grab a journal or start a blank document on your computer and answer some questions. Some questions are geared toward individuals or founders but still apply to larger organizations.
Who you are: what inspires you, your core values, strengths, weaknesses, superpowers. Questions to ask yourself:
List your superpowers (gifts). List your unique value proposition if you’re a startup or a larger company.
What are your core values?
What are your heart virtues? This one is more for individuals or founders. You’ll know it’s a heart virtue because you get upset if someone violates it. Mine, for example, are loyalty, justice, and courage.
What does success look like to you?
What energizes you?
How much you care: your years of commitment/service, your results, your learnings, and the number of people you have helped.
Describe your expertise, years of experience, service, and dedication to an area of work.
How do you measure your life? What’s in your dash?
Describe the outcomes you want to get for your customers.
Describe the outcomes you want to get for your employees and other stakeholders.
What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve results in your business?
Your story: Where have you been? What are your pain points, struggles, wins, and who is your authentic self?
What have been the significant pivots or turning points in your life?
What are your most significant life lessons so far?
What has brought you the most pain?
What has brought you the most joy?
What do you want your customers to know about you?
What’s your W.H.Y in one sentence?
My why is to do good in the world by helping do-gooders do good in the world. ❤️
It’s you. You’re the do-gooder.
Your story is the seed from which gardens grow.
These answers are the building blocks of your story. I’m willing to bet that the most meaningful part of your story or chapter of your life is what drove you to create your business or company.
Everyone loves Canva, or at least they should. It started in 2007 when Melanie was at university teaching her classmates how to design using programs like InDesign and Photoshop—programs that many people at the time were really struggling to learn, let alone use. Melanie believed the problem wasn’t with people not understanding the software but with the software itself. She didn’t set out to create a unicorn, she was trying to help her classmates.
The idea for Netflix was sparked when Reed Hastings, one of the founders, was annoyed at getting a $40 late fee for returning a VHS movie. (How late was that movie, lol?)
I was a Board Advisor to a medical device start-up that was founded by two men whose friend was paralyzed in a car accident and didn’t have access to the best type of therapy for his injury because it didn’t exist. So they created it.
I started my newsletter, coaching, and advisory business after I was laid off without a backup plan. I realized I had been too focused on plan A (college, good job, etc.) and had no other options. I never wanted to feel that way again, and I didn't want anyone else to experience it. It bothers me when organizations claim to invest in developing their people but only offer opportunities to their favorites. I aim to democratize opportunity by spreading information to enable people to power their personal economy.
Time to write the mission statement.
Take the pieces of your story and write a mission statement. While mission statements are inherently inward-focused, remember that you ultimately want to solve a problem for others that either you have had, witnessed, or are in a position to solve.
Be specific. Resist the urge to be general to attract everyone or almost everyone. Your message is meant to resonate with your ideal customer.
Future focused. What does the world look like to you in the future?
Provide direction. What does the company stand for? What are people working toward? Why does their work matter?
Unique. It’s based on your values and story, and no one else has your story.
Keep it short and to the point. Resist the temptation to write paragraphs. If it helps to write paragraphs first, great, but then narrow it down to 1-3 sentences.
Include your values. Why does this matter to you and to those you wish to serve?
Easy mission formula = what + why + for who
Microsoft: To empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
Life Is Good: To spread the power of optimism.
Canva: empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere.
TED: Spread ideas, foster community, and create impact
sweetgreen: Building healthier communities by connecting people to real food.
Project your values into your vision.
While your mission statement grounds your business in its current identity and values, your vision statement is your beacon, inspiring you toward future success. You will use your mission as the foundation of your vision. You can also think of a vision as a BHAG, a big, hairy, audacious goal.
When you crafted the mission statement, you’ve already done most of the work needed to create a vision statement.
Here are the four considerations for crafting a vision statement.
Aspirational and ambitious. Your vision statement should be aspirational and showcase how your business will grow and its impact on the world.
Realistic and achievable. Don’t set the vision so high that it’s beyond the realm of possibility. It should be a stretch that will eventually be within reach.
General. Like an umbrella, your brand's vision should be broad enough to encompass your mission statement and company objectives.
Actionable. Creating a strategy and plan to achieve the vision is doable.
Like the mission statement, the vision statement should be clear and concise. Play around with it, and ultimately shoot for 1-3 sentences.
Easy vision formula = how is the world different + for whom
Alzheimer’s Association: A world without Alzheimer’s and all other dementia.
Teach for America: One day, all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education.
LinkedIn: Create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce.
Southwest: To be the world’s most loved, most efficient, and most profitable airline.
Chipotle: We believe that food has the power to change the world.
THE GAP DĒMĬSTəFĪED
If it doesn’t support the mission or vision, it’s a ‘no.’
When done well, the mission and vision statements work harmoniously to create a well-loved brand. Remember, that alone doesn’t guarantee success. Your strategy and plan should be designed to achieve your mission and vision. Anything that doesn’t support the mission and vision is a ‘no’.
Mission statements describe a company's current purpose. They often mention the company’s function, target audience, and key offerings.
Vision statements are a glimpse into a company’s future or overarching vision.
What if you’re a big corporation? A Fortune 100 company I worked for had an overarching mission statement, and each business unit had its own vision statement. This worked very well.
Here’s how mission and vision statements work together.
Starbucks
Mission: To inspire and nurture the human spirit -one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.
Vision: To establish Starbucks as the premier purveyor of the finest coffee in the world while maintaining our uncompromising principles while we grow.
Uber
Mission: Uber's mission is to bring transportation - for everyone, everywhere.
Vision: Smarter transportation with fewer cars and greater access. Transportation that's safer, cheaper, and more reliable; transportation that creates more job opportunities and higher incomes for drivers.
Amazon
Mission: We strive to offer our customers the lowest possible prices, the best available selection, and the utmost convenience.
Vision: To be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online.
TL;DR
A mission statement provides the purpose. A vision statement is the impact the company has on the future.
Mission statements and financial performance—it’s a myth that companies with mission statements perform better. Companies that align their values with strategy and inspire their employees tend to perform better.
Uncover your W.H.Y.—my spin on Simon Sinek’s starting with why, is Uncover your W.H.Y. Who you are, how much you care, and your story. This becomes the building blocks of your mission and vision.
People want to know your story—people today want to know who they’re doing business with or buying from. Tell your story. Chances are it’s the reason you started this journey in the first place.
Components of a mission statement—above all a mission statement should be clear, concise and communicate your purpose and values.
Your values and your vision—based on the mission statement, the vision should be bold and maybe even a little bit scary. It inspires those around you to make change.
Bring the mission & vision statements together—the mission and vision are meant to work together. See some real-world examples of clear, concise, and complementary statements.
Sneak Peek 🕵🏽
May: How to use the business model canvas
June: Craft proposals and price your product or service
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The design modifications in this edition were inspired by feedback from readers.
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Nile Harris | Executive Consultant + Coach
I empower mid-career professionals, entrepreneurs, and businesses to transform passion and purpose into P.R.O.F.I.T.
