Renjie Butalid

By Dan Heath

Use concrete language. Check out this mission statement from SonicBids, a fast-growing small business: “We want to help musicians get gigs, and promoters book the right bands. … We’re a bunch of people who think that music can truly change the world and make it smaller and better. … We believe that independent music belongs everywhere: on festival stages; in video game consoles; on film screens; in college theaters; on the radio; in advertisements; on club stages and at sporting events.” Wow. It gives you a picture of what they do and tells you why it’s worth doing.

Talk about the why. Most mission statements are all statement and no mission. The whole point is to say why you’re doing what you’re doing. What makes you care? Look at the start of Johnson & Johson’s famous credo: “Our first responsibility is to the doctors, nurses, and patients, mothers and fathers and all others who use our products and services.” Well, okay, that’s worth getting out of bed for. Compare that with ExxonMobil’s. Did you feel that? A little part of your soul just died, reading that.

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