A personal mission statement serves as your North Star when it comes to your life’s work. And by “work” I don’t just mean activities that you get paid for. Your life’s journey is a combination of the work that you get paid for and the “work” that you do as a member of society.
A personal mission statement helps you be clear on your values and beliefs and provides you with a compass for life whenever you find yourself at a crossroads. To make decisions is never easy, but it will become easier if you have crafted a personal mission statement that you can refer to for guidance and focus in times of uncertainty or renewal.
Our careers are more uncertain than ever as we are moving from The Information Age to The Conceptual Age – but we can thrive in this new age of right-brained processes, like intuition and creative thinking if we are willing to embrace this new way of working and find our place in it. I suggest reading Daniel H. Pink’s 2005 book “A Whole New Mind” if you want to learn more about this idea of right-brainers ruling the future of work.
Your personal mission statement is a powerful tool in your career toolbox when it comes to defining your role in this new world of work. So, let’s see how you can create your personal mission statement.
Ask Yourself Some Questions
In order to get some clarity on how you see yourself and your contributions to our world, you want to ask yourself some key questions:
- Where do I focus my energy, actions, and behaviors at work and in my personal life? Another way to arrive at the answer would be by asking this: “What do you happily spend your time on – regardless of getting paid for it?”
- What are the most important roles I have now or wish to have in the future in service to others?
- What is my core set of beliefs and values? What do I stand for? If this is hard for you to answer, you could also start by asking “What qualities and values do my role models have?”
- What’s the main impact I want to make in my life? What do I most want to contribute to the world? Another way to approach this question is by asking yourself “How do I want people to remember me?” or “What would I have to achieve to consider my life a success?”
- List your top 10 talents or strengths that will be an asset in the conceptual age? To get a more well-rounded answer, ask others for input. You could create a survey and send it to selected family members, friends, and work colleagues.
Craft Your Actionable Personal Mission Statement
Once you have your answers to the questions above, you want to start crafting your unique personal mission statement. There is no right or wrong way to write your mission statement but I find this structure helpful:
- Your mission (What’s the main impact you want to make in life?)
- Why is making this impact important to you?
- Which essential character traits, strengths, and beliefs will you need to fulfill your mission?
- Roles that will take center stage in the fulfillment of your mission
Examples of Personal Mission Statements To Inspire You
Here are some examples of personal mission statements to inspire you – but don’t simply copy them because you think “Oh, that applies to me too!” I highly encourage you to go through the questions and arrive at your mission statement using your own words.
Malala Yousafzai
Malala’s mission is to champion every girl’s right to 12 years of free, safe, quality education so that we create a more equal world by making sure all girls can go to school. She founded the Malala Fund in 2013 together with Ziauddin Yousafzai.
Oprah Winfrey
“To be a teacher. And to be known for inspiring my students to be more than they thought they could be.”
Although Oprah has not spent her time in a traditional classroom, her work as an interviewer, motivational presence and author fits within the framework of her personal mission statement.
Muhammad Yunus
I had the pleasure to meet Dr. Yunus at the 2018 Global Social Business Summit in Wolfsburg, Germany, and while I was listening to him sharing his ideas on social business and a new economic system that works for all people and the planet, his personal mission can be summarized like this:
“To foster a new economic system that unleashes altruism as a creative force and results in zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions.”
Make It Brief, Make It Actionable
Your personal mission statement can be brief. Three to five sentences are sufficient. Make it a screensaver on your computer; save it on your smartphone or print it and hang it over your desk.
Your mission statement is meant to guide you in your day-to-day activities and help you move forward confidently in the direction of your goals.
Want to get my free worksheet to craft your personal mission statement? Download it here.
My Personal Mission Statement
I want to share my personal mission statement with you so that you can see how impactful it is not just like your personal “GPS” but also as a personal branding tool that helps others understand and support your mission. First, my personal answers to the questions shared above:
Where do I focus my energy, actions, and behaviors at work and in my personal life?
I focus a large part of my energy on understanding how people operate in the world, how we communicate and how humans make decisions. In my life and work I have always been passionate about the art of storytelling – listening to and covering other people’s stories during my years as a journalist, creating and sharing stories for brands, and amplifying people’s stories as they share inspiring insights and perspectives that expand our understanding of the world.
My personal life experiences have led me to explore yoga and mindfulness practices. My chosen family is incredibly important to me and creating friendships and engaging in communities that are built around the idea of being of service while having fun (Hello, World Domination Summit!) drive my energy and actions.
What are the most important roles I have now or wish to have in the future in service to others?
I am a woman, a wife, a mother to an angel son, a dog mom. I am a coach and consultant to my clients. I am a rebel for good as I believe that we can come up with better solutions for every global and local problem when we question the status quo and stay curious and open to change.
I am environmentally conscious and do my best to keep my C02 footprint low. I am an animal lover and don’t eat meat. I am a social justice and equality advocate. I am a global citizen.
What is my core set of beliefs and values?
I believe that love is at the core of all our actions. I stand for living a well-balanced life that respects all people, animals, and the natural world. I believe that kindness is a superpower and an underused marketing tactic.
I value people who are honest, heart-centered, and present. I value experiences over possessions and constantly aspire to own less and be more. I support the Fridays For Future movement and stand with Greta Thunberg. I ditched my car 4 years ago and I have been using public transportation, my bicycle, and my legs ever since.
I believe words have the power to inspire positive action.
What’s the main impact I want to make in my life?
I’m here to help people and businesses share their voices courageously and wholeheartedly with the intention of promoting positive change. I see myself as an ambassador for the idea of business as a force for good. When we embrace a value-driven and impact-focused mindset, we can use our personal power and our organizational power to inspire others to do better.
Let’s build [personal] brands that rebel for a new status quo, lift up underrepresented voices, and shatter glass ceilings.
List your top 10 talents or strengths that will be an asset in the conceptual age?
Learner, empathetic, connection-seeker, clarity-maker, writer, creative problem solver, great listener, storyteller, connecting the dots, playful.
Put together, this is what my personal mission statement looks like:
To help people and businesses share their voice boldly and wholeheartedly with the intention of promoting positive change because the world needs a diversity of passionate and real voices to make EVERYONE feel heard, represented and supported in our efforts to create a just, inclusive, and sustainable world. I do this by using my passion for writing and words and my curiosity for the stories and experiences of others. I am a coach and consultant to my clients and an advocate for stories yet to be told.
Now it’s your turn. Care to share your personal mission statement with the world? If you end up writing a blog post or an article on Medium, let me know. Or simply share your mission statement on social media as I did on Instagram. I look forward to seeing what your mission in life and work is!
Want to get my free worksheet to craft your personal mission statement? Download it here.
