Some months later, I returned. With the snow falling fast, and already so thick on the ground that the road was invisible, I realised what those posts were there. They showed where the road was! And, by implication, told you know if you were about to head off of it. They were a very good predictor of where the cars were going to drive, mostly.

Values are like those markers. They are the beliefs which act as boundary guides on the road that is the mission. Cross them, and you’ll know that you are off course; the going gets bumpy and you forget where you were going.

Let’s say your mission involved raising money to sail around the world. You could go out and rob a bank to raise the cash. Bear with me a minute on this one, I know you wouldn’t do that, but it is an example to make the point: There will be some ‘bounds’ that shape how you execute the mission.

Unfortunately values aren’t always as visible as those marker posts. Even if values aren’t written out, there is a set of values at work. And don’t assume that the values written on that employee badge represent the actual values in play.

The only way to assess values is by examining actions. Intent is interesting, but action is telling. Where are resources (time and money) allocated? How are decisions made? These reveal the true values in play, anything else is a desired value. Desired values need inspection. Are they truely desired? If so, what is stopping them being put into practice? Or are they misguided.

True values surface in the hard decisions that are made, in the conflicts that are resolved and the comprises are made. Once you know the values, it becomes easier to predict decisions. This is why executive teams should make values part of the management process.

If all employees understand the (true) values, decisions made down the chain will be more aligned. It works at a personal level too. If you know my values, you’ll have a good sense of how I will prioritise things. That makes me a little easier to predict, and much easier to trust.

Different people, unsurprisingly, have different sets of values. Companies operate most effectively when the people within them operate under similar sets of values. If people believe or value similar things, then they act in complementary ways. Collective action, in a common direction, with broad agreement.

A company full of people with conflicting values will get pulled in different directions and is unlikely to get far. A little bit of diversity is good, but too much means problems down the line. There is no point hiring a talented individual with values that conflict with the rest of the business. It only means problems down the line.

Values can hold us back, or they can propel us forwards. Just as conflicting values within a company cause friction and slow progress, so conflicting in our own personal values can cause stress and hold us back from our goals. We get stuck in internal arguments or constant shifts in direction. If you aren’t making progress towards your goals, I can almost guarantee that you are holding some unresolved value conflicts.

Related Posts

• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part III – Mission
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part II – Vision
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part I
• Mission Vision and Value – On Purpose

The mission statement springs out of a clear vision statement. It plots the course towards the vision, describing the nature of what has to be done to get to there. It should address at least medium turn. A mission statement that only covers the next few months is more of a thumbnail plan than a mission.

The mission statement should address the what and the why, describing the purpose of the business or individual. An agreed mission statement is one of the key factors of success for businesses and non-profits (some research here, subscription/purchase required).

At an individual level, a mission statement is obviously not about focussing disparate teams, but it is about aligning the different roles that we serve in our daily lives. The fundamental questions are the same:

• What is the problem that is address?
• Why is that problem being addressed?
• Who are the beneficiaries?
• How do they benefit?

The answers may not be directly called out in the mission statement, but they are addressed. For example, one of my favourite mission statements is from Wal-Mart: “To give ordinary folk the chance to buy the same thing as rich people.”

It appeals to me because it covers a lot of ground in just a few words. We can see who will benefit, and sense what the problem and benefit is. It may not be perfect, but it has served the company well.

A mission statement is not always this ‘pure’, in the sense that it may contain elements of the vision too. That isn’t specifically a problem, unless the mission statement becomes long and rambling.

A good mission statement is clear and memorable, it only needs to be a few sentences. Is effectiveness depends on it being lived and breathed. If the mission isn’t remembered, that it is not likely to happen.

Watch out for the ‘and’ trap in mission statements. If you are doing ‘this’ and ‘that’ and ‘the other’ are you really committed to them all? It is difficult to fight a battle on many fronts, as it divides resources and creates the risk of conflict. Is there something that needs to be dropped, or are all of these things part of a higher level purpose that should be stated instead?

There is one additional piece that should be covered in the mission statement, that was missing from the Walmart example… We’ll cover that in Part IV.

Related Posts

• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part IV – Values
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part II – Vision
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part I
• Mission Vision and Value – On Purpose

The challenge for businesses is that there in the ideal outcome there is no end – an even greater cause of discomfort when it comes to planning your life! A vision statement isn’t always about a final destination, more the furthest point we can feasibly conceive. Depending on the rate of change and what is known, this is most likely 3 to 5 years out. A vision statement describes the ideal, but achievable, situation at this future point.

Vision Statement

Creating a picture of the desired future distils our hopes and sets them in a practicable context. There will be some hard constraints or specific beliefs that shape our view of this future. Most business management teams have strong opinions about where their industry is headed, and what the company’s place is in that industry. This provides a skeleton for the vision, that can then be fleshed out with relevant detail. Where is the world going, from your perspective?

Placing Your Bets

These opinions and beliefs are the basis of ‘the big bets’ you have to place to be successful. Right now, in the software and communications industry, there is a huge deal of uncertainty. These times of change are the best moments to place these ‘big bets’, if you can call the changes, you’ll come out ahead.

Not everyone will come up with the right answers. That means there will be winners and there will be losers, and you will have to make adjustments. In business, as in life, we don’t always get it right first time, but we still take our best shot. Remember, no vision is the default ‘do nothing’ position, and it is a losing one.

With the economy in the US on the turn, and uncertainty in the economy, having a strong vision is key to getting through. In the same way, a strong personal vision gets you through tough times and helps to hold you true to your beliefs.

Somewhere to Head to

A vision statement captures this view of the future and documents your preferred place in it. Just as importantly, it acts as a reference to re-evaluate your core beliefs with over time. This works just as well at a personal level as it does at a company level.

To use a sailing term, vision provides a ‘point to steer’. However the tides and storms may push, you keep on adjusting course towards that point. It may not be the ultimate and final destination, but it is the course for right now. Once you get to it, or perhaps just near to it, you may choose to switch to a new course for the next section of the journey. This is the way that a ship charts its course as it tacks against the wind.

Once the vision is determined, the mission will fall in to place.

Next, Part III – the mission statement…

Related Posts

• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part I
• Mission Vision and Value – On Purpose
• More on the Death of Free – Marketing
• Three Reasons Free Will Eat Itself
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part IV – Values

Serendipity is putting mission and strategy in the middle of my world. They are curiously emotive terms, dividing people into either cynics or firm believers in a single breath.

My passion for strategic planning has caused me to dig into these topics many times over the years. I firmly believe that you get the best results by being focussed, and by playing for the long term. Taking short cuts and only acting tactically results in burn outs and blow ups. This series of posts walks through a framework based on vision, mission and values, exploring how they are constructed and how they function.

Is Mission a Dirty Word?

The ‘mission’ word, like the ‘strategy’ word, is often abused these days. Recently I heard someone say “we have a strategy of handing out leaflets”. That isn’t a strategy. It is doing things. Doing things is valid, but don’t be fooled into thinking that doing things is the same as having a strategy. Herb Kelleher, of Southwest Airlines, once said “We have a strategic plan. It’s called doing things” – that probably says a lot about the airline industry. To be fair, Kelleher’s preceding words were “‘Strategy’ overrated, simply ‘doin’ stuff” underrated”, and I’d agree with the sentiment. All strategy and no doing is not going to get you far, but neither will doing with no strategy. The majority of people and small businesses don’t have a mission statement, and so end up all ‘doin’ and no strategy. Big businesses, in contrast, often end up all strategy and little doing. To be effective, you need a foot firmly in each camp.

Writing off the Mission

A strategy is the series of plans carried out to achieve the mission. Many people don’t like the idea of having a formalised, written ‘mission statement’ and see them as nasty, cheesy things. Good mission statements are actually exciting, motivating and empowering. Sorry to drag films into it, but if you aren’t convinced about the power of mission, think about great spy film heroes, think Mission Impossible II or James Bond. But this isn’t the stuff of fiction, studies have revealed strong links between clearly written mission statements and success. If you want to get to ‘mission accomplished’ you need one foot in the doing camp, and one foot in the strategy camp

Don’t Waste Any Time

Mission gives purpose to how time is spent. It guides actions and informs plans. If you haven’t got a mission, you can’t have a strategy, and if you haven’t got a strategy, then you are just ‘doing stuff’. There is much more to life and business than spontaneous actions, driven by life’s random events. Writing down things down flushes out differences of opinion. In the case of personal mission statements, it can surface internal conflicts. These hidden tensions hold up progress and waste valuable time.

When mission statements are implicit, people often believe that everyone is on the same page. That belief is misplaced. The process of writing thoughts down makes things explicit and concrete, enabling clarification and debate. Only then do the hidden conflicts surface – sometimes to the great consternation of those involved. People realise that there are different things in different people’s heads, at different times. Writing things down crystallises thinking and is the first step to resolving these conflicts and creating consistency.

One Step At a Time

Getting to a mission statement and building out a strategy is a process. All it requires is a few simple steps and the upfront investment of some time. Are you ready to accept your mission?

In part II, what is vision, and why do you need it?

Related Posts

• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part II – Vision
• Mission Vision and Value – On Purpose
• More on the Death of Free – Marketing
• Three Reasons Free Will Eat Itself
• Is Broadcasting Something to Shout About?

Kate of Blog to Discovery and Stephen of HD BizBlog started this one off.

Stephen and I exchanged emails and though this would be a great carnival topic to raise awareness and provoke some more discussion and debate, and I am 26 minutes late with my post!

Most companies have a vision and mission statement, which speaks to the purpose and the path for the business. Should individuals have a personal mission statement? Do you have one? As it turns out, it is a bit of a controversial topic, as Kate found when she posted about developing her mission statement.

Stephen is collecting mission statements: submit your own mission statement, which should provide some inspiration. I would love to hear your views and what has or hasn’t worked for you.

Others are participating too:

• Getting Things Done.
• How to be an origional.

It is very interesting to see what has come in so far…

Have a think, and I’ll share some of my experiences and how I have used vision, mission and values to guide change and increase productivity.

Update: Check out the series on mission, vision and values: part I, part II, part III, part IV and other posts on mission.

Related Posts

• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part II – Vision
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part I
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part IV – Values
• Where Are You Going? Vision, Mission and Values – Part III – Mission