Why Leaders Need a Mission Statement
Travelling by plane via Air Canada has its benefits. This past month I had the privilege of flying to a work conference in Rome. On the way back I decided to watch Moana for the second time.
It was a great flick. Any movie that elicits an emotional reaction is a good movie and this one certainly did.
If you haven’t seen Moana, I highly recommend it. It’s a story about identity. Moana is a young girl who lives with her family on an island. She thirsts for adventure and wishes to travel across the ocean, but her father is holding her back. One day, her island starts to die and she decides to voyage across the ocean and return a relic that will bring it back to life.
Towards the end of the movie, she fails on her first attempt at delivering the relic. Her grandmother comes to her in a spirit and asks her a question, “Moana, listen, do you know who you are?”
Moana then sees in herself who she is. She responds with these lyrics:
Who am I?
I am a girl who loves my island
And the girl who loves the sea It calls me
I am the daughter of the village chief
We are descended from voyagers
Who found their way across the world
And they call me
I’ve delivered us to where we are
I have journeyed farther
I am everything I’ve learned and more
Still, it calls me
And the call isn’t out there at all
It’s inside me
It’s like the tide
Always falling and rising
I will carry you here in my heart You’ll remind me
That come what may
I know the way
I am Moana!
I would consider that song to be her personal mission statement. That is, a captivating statement which connects someone to who they are and who they want to become, while articulating their values and life’s mission.
Moana was able to muster up the courage and conviction that she has a purpose to save her people and bring restoration to her island. I think we are all a little like Moana. We have our struggles in knowing who we are and why we are here. Yet, when we find our connected with our mission, we are able to accomplish great things. Turns out she was able to return the relic and restore the ocean back to its life-giving beauty.
What are some reasons why leaders should have a personal mission statement? Here are a few:
Accomplish great things
Leaders need a mission statement as it helps them through their struggles and challenges. Like Moana, leaders need to have something to guide them when there is an obstacle in their path. When leaders try to accomplish great things, there are inevitably great problems to overcome. A mission statement is like a prayer or a mantra that inspires leaders to be great and to do great things. They would remind themselves of who they want to become and what they want to do with their life during those difficult moments.
Staying true to your identity
Leaders know the question “Who am I?”, “What am I good at?”, and “What is my mission?” Leaders are not merely actors playing some role; they are themselves while displaying true character, integrity, and wholeness. When a leader knows themselves, their identity shines as the noonday sun. People are attracted to real people. St.Catherine of Siena once said, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.”
A guiding compass in leadership
Leaders lead the way. And a personal mission statement acts as a compass to direct their priorities, their values, and their actions. Leaders have to lead themselves first before they can lead others. A statement gives a leader direction in where they want to go and what they want to do in life.
Do you have a personal mission statement? As we begin a new year, why don’t we take time to craft one? It is vital for every leader to have a personal mission statement.