On Tuesdays I write about Living my Legend. This section is inspired by The Alchemist and is an account of my journey of living my potential.
Values to mission statement
Last week I wrote about my five personal core values. These values are the things I want to experience in my life. They are the foundation for a mission statement for my life, a timeless translation of who I am and what I want to experience in my life. It gives a sense of direction, quite like a compass, when faced with difficult decisions.
My five personal core values need to be reflected in my mission statement. They are what I want to experience, so if I make a compass to guide me, I should use these values to direct me in the right direction. In the article about my values I already gave away some hints as to how the values give me energy:
- I need love and have a lot of love to give
- I’m here to have lots of fun
- Freedom is a value that’s really strong within me
- The things I do, think and say are in connection with who I am
- I aim for growth in most aspects of my life
Writing the mission statement
These parts need to be combined into a short, bold mission statement. Short because it needs to be easy to remember. Bold because it describes who you are and what you want to experience and most of the people haven’t reached this yet. So it’s perfectly acceptable to put ambition into the mission statement. There are more guidelines to make a mission statement, like it cannot contain dependencies and you should avoid vague wish-words (like want, aim, seek and so on).
The process of sculpting the mission statement is a creative process. Take some parts, make phrases, shuffle them around, combine them, erase parts and so on. There’s no science in this, it needs to be a statement that feels right and has the right words in the right places for you. It may need to mature over several weeks, write a version, let it rest for a week and look at it again. Sculpt some more and let it mature again. It may take a couple of weeks, but it should feel right.
The result
I’ve undergone this process already, so I can present you my mission statement here:
I, Lodewijk van den Broek, love life and have a lot of love to give. I enjoy authentic growth and I help others to grow. I’m here to have lots of fun and enjoy my freedom in comfort and vitality.
So there it is, this is my mission statement. My guide to positive energy. Quite an accomplishment already, but I’m not done yet. This still is pretty high level. To make it usable on a day-to-day basis, I need to translate this into guidelines and goals. I’ll work through that in another post.
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You can be an Original too!
My Get Things Done List » Blog Archive » Why and how I monetize my blog [How to be an Original]
Thu 2007.09.13
[...] I love to do One of the best things in life is to do what you love to do. In my article about my mission statement, you can read who I am and what experiences I want in my [...]
@Stephen
Mon 2007.09.17
That is one of the most positive and concise mission statements I have seen. There are corporations that could learn from you, particularly the one I work for!
The Tip of the Iceberg
Mon 2007.09.17
[...] Using your Core Values to generate a personal Mission Statement [...]
Lodewijkvdb
Mon 2007.09.17
Thanks Stephen! I think that knowing your direction is very important. This goes for people, but for corporations it’s probably even more important, since they have to make sure to align groups of people in the same direction. There are a lot of companies with room for improvement on this area, including the one I work for.
Mastering Productivity: How to Be More Effective With Your Time | zen habits
Tue 2007.09.25
[...] what is not, based on what is important to you. Knowing what your personal values are, knowing your mission statement or mantra, having goals and acting upon them are all aspects of identifying and translating what [...]
Mastering Productivity: Energy
Tue 2007.09.25
[...] energy weíre heading in the right direction. If you havenít defined what your direction (values, mission statement, mantra etc.) is yet, then the activities that give you positive energy will give important clues. [...]
I will change your life . com » Blog Archive » Personal Stories of Change Blog Carnival: Edition 11
Sun 2007.11.25
[...] van den Broek presents This is my mission statement | How to be an Original posted at How to be an [...]
CG Walters
Mon 2007.11.26
ENJOY, Lodewijk!! and prosper…
Developing my mission statement | blog to discovery
Thu 2008.02.07
[...] This is my mission statement [...]
7 Practical Ways To Clear Your Head And Regain Focus - Practical advice on personal development, productivity and GTD
Mon 2008.04.14
[...] your long term vision David Allen calls it the vertical map, others call it a mission statement. Whatever approach you prefer, use it to develop your long term goals and intentions. Clearing your [...]
Outstanding Club » Thinking Through Your Personal Mission Statement
Fri 2008.04.25
[...] van den Broek not only created his Personal Mission Statement, but turned each piece of it into specific goals at his How to Be an Original blog. I like his [...]
Rock Your Day
Wed 2008.05.21
[...] I love everything I currently do. I’m working on aligning my activities with my values and mission, but it’s not an easy process and it requires quite a lot of attention and energy. But the [...]
Aj
Thu 2008.10.23
i m aiming for my own mission statement and from all the online material i searched for developing a personal statement, yours is the one i learned from !!
Personal Stories of Change Blog Carnival: Edition 11
Sun 2008.11.02
[...] van den Broek presents This is my mission statement | How to be an Original posted at How to be an [...]
Rabindra Yadav
Tue 2008.12.02
My mission in life….I want to be a good man not big man. I want to be happy, healthy and creative….