Instant Mission Statement Recipe

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Nothing makes an entrepeneuer cringe like being asked, “What’s your mission statement?” It’s possible that the only thing more annoying is logo selection or picking out the office furniture.  Mission statements should be easy, but they just aren’t most of the time.

Having a simple, easy to understand mission statement is powerful. It helps focus everyone on your team on the real purpose of your startup. It gives the CEO and board of directors clarity. It helps the management team and workers put their work in context. Here’s one of the best methods I’ve ever seen to create a mission statement that works (and lets you move on and actually get work done):

Step 1: Lose all the cliches. Let’s get this straight. You are in business. All business do certain things like:

• Delivering value to shareholders, customers and employees.
• Getting great people so you can do great things.
• Being the leading provider of whatever you do.
• Making a profit.

None of those things really make a strong mission statement. We are all in business to deliver value to owners, customers and employees. We all like to make a profit. All of those things are part of owning a business and happen if you make a great company. None of those things really are your mission.

Step 2: Figure Out What You Actually Do

Here’s an easy question: What does your company really do?  Boil it down to two words, “we” and what you do:

• We create
• We make
• We provide
• We dominate (this is going to be fun)
• We serve
• We sell

Ok, now we’re half done.

Step 3: Tell us what you are selling.

So, you make stuff.  Great.  What do you really make?  This is a trick question because in many cases, your company makes or delivers a lot of things.  Look for the common thread between all the things your offer.   Then look for the easiest to understand words that best describe it:

• We dominate search …
• We sell networking equipment …
• We deliver packages…
• We solve legal problems…

Step 4: Tell us who you do it for.

• We dominate search for global retailers.
• We sell networking equipment to customers that expect 100% reliability.
• We deliver packages for companies that demand on time, every time.
• We solve legal problems for immigrants and their families.
• We sell cars to people with financial challenges.
• We work for people that don’t have time for work.

Congratulations. You now have an actually useful mission statement. It’s says what you do, and who you do it for.  Everyone in your company can understand it.  When you tell it to customer they will get it. And best of all, the whole process took 10 minutes and you can use the rest of the hour to do something more productive than writing a mission statement.