This past year has been one of reflection for many. We are each experiencing the “stay home” mandates differently. Some are busier than ever while others have spent this time pondering their future and the changes they want to make or those that are being forced upon them.
Whether overwhelmed or underwhelmed, one way to bring focus to your business and the decisions that lay ahead is to develop a mission statement. The process of writing one helps identify those things that are most important to you and your business. A mission statement should define who you are, the values you represent, and the problems your business solves. The value of a mission statement is that as opportunities become available it simplifies decision making. Does the new opportunity tie-in with your mission? Is it a fit with your values? Does it further your purpose? If not, much time and disappointment can be saved by walking away. If yes, then you and your team can move forward with confidence.
Here are a few tips to get you started:
1) Define yourself, your business, your product. Write down specifically what you do or provide; what problem your company solves or if you’re an artist/maker, consider how you see your work enhancing a customer’s life
2) Be distinctive. What sets your business/service/product apart from others? As an artist/maker, what is your style? How is it different? What emotions/messaging do you hope to inspire in others?
3) Be authentic. What is the very kernel of what you do, why you do it and for whom.
For some of you this will be a quick and easy assignment. Others may struggle, which is why this is such an important exercise. It may take some serious self-reflection to truly define what you do, what you offer, and why.
Honeybook is an app specifically designed for small business and creative freelancers to provide basic business management tools. Their software manages bookings, offers contract templates and invoices in a system that automates these functions. They also have a useful page about writing mission statements that includes tips, examples and even a free mission statement generator.
As an example, here is the mission they crafted based on my input: "Our mission at Mudge Media is supporting small business & artists toward success with wit, humor, and whimsy." While this may take some tweaking, it fairly accurately reflects the heart of my business. To go from mission impossible to mission possible simply follow this link to generate your own mission statement: https://www.honeybook.com/mission-statement.
Image credit: ID 170727729 © Ognyan Chobanov | Dreamstime.com
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