Mission possible

Businesses often struggle to come up with a memorable mission and vision statement. Something to keep in mind before you get started:

They’re not the same.

A mission states your purpose. It answers the question: “Why do we exist?” This isn’t always easy to answer. Which explains why so many organizations struggle to write a good one. If you begin to detail *what* you do, you’re no longer writing a mission.

A vision is easy to remember because it’s all about projecting forward…casting a vision. It’s not what you’re currently doing. It’s what you could be. It should be achievable yet bold. Otherwise, why bother?

Mission statements are useful for any audience, from internal team members to people who have no idea what you do.

Vision statements lean internal, mostly because people want to be part of a culture with great ambitions.

Both statements require a bit of soul searching. You’ll need to ask challenging questions to uncover your one true purpose (and, no, you don't have more than one).

One final thought I can’t stress enough: a good mission statement doesn’t need to set off fireworks when you read it. It just needs to be honest, clear, and concise. No hiding behind clever phrases or wordplay. This isn’t the time for that.

A few famous mission statements:

Nike “Bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world”

*If you have a body, you are an athlete

LinkedIn
“To connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful.”

Whole Foods
“Our purpose is to nourish people and the planet.”

TED
“Spread ideas”

Google
“To organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.”

Nordstrom
“To give customers the most compelling shopping experience possible.”

Southwest
“Connect people to what's important in their lives through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel.”

Patagonia
“Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.”