Unless You Know Where You Are Going, You Can’t Get There.

In 1992, Vice Admiral James Stockdale was Ross Perot’s running mate for President. In the Vice-Presidential debate he began his comments by saying: “Who am I? Why am I here?” He was greeted with laughter and near universal scorn in the media. They opined that anyone so naïve as to ask these questions clearly wasn’t qualified to be Vice President. A professional politician would never expose himself to such a question.

As usual, it was the media that was clueless. Stockdale was not a politician. He was one of the most highly decorated naval officers in history. As the senior POW in the infamous Hanoi Hilton, he survived seven years of torture and near starvation. In the process, he set an example of character, integrity, and leadership that gave hundreds of other POW’s the strength to survive. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his courage in captivity.

Even more important than a medal, however, was the impact he had on those who followed his example in prison. They took those lessons home with them and, as changed men, had an impact on others. No one will ever know how many thousands of people today are stronger because of the character of one man whose body was broken, but whose spirit was untouched.

Stockdale was able to do this because he had asked himself the questions: “Who am I? Why am I here?”

Many of us are as clueless as the media’s understanding of Stockdale.  Business text books say we should have a mission statement. Most organizations ignore the need for it. Many executives dismiss it as a meaningless bureaucratic exercise. As El Bandito said in the “Treasure of Sierra Madre” when he claimed to be a policeman, “We don’t need no stinking badges!”

Other organizations go through the motions and produce a mission statement that is so general that it doesn’t say anything and that everyone ignores. They merely prove that the cynics are right. They waste the organization’s time and delude themselves.

No one would think of getting into a car and start driving without knowing where they are or where they are going. Yet, that is the way they run their organizations.

Leadership is not possible unless you can bring people together to work for a common purpose. An effective mission statement that is actually used within the organization is one of the single most important tools on building an understanding of who are we and why are we here. It builds a common sense of purpose. It establishes a common standard of behavior that allows the organization to evaluate its effectiveness.

Without a common sense of purpose, an organization can never excel. Without it, an executive becomes a herder of cats and not a leader of a team.

Below is the mission statement I use for my own organization (a consulting firm). Like everything, it could be improved, and we are always seeking to do so. It has become an important communications and team building tool. I urge you to look at what you are doing in your own organization. If you haven’t invested the effort to answer Stockdale’s questions, how can you ever reach your full potential?

Here’s my mission statement:

The Austin Group exists to support its clients. Our mission is to take a genuine interest in our clients, understand their objectives, and meet or exceed their expectations. We dedicate ourselves to these values: 

• For our clients, we will work hard, provide superior services on a timely, effective, and efficient basis, and maintain the highest standards of professional integrity.
•  For our office, we will foster an enjoyable working environment, based on open
  communication and mutual respect, and will encourage initiative, innovation, teamwork, and loyalty.