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What are some personal mission statement examples? What are the steps you should take to write your own mission statement?
A personal mission statement defines your values and who you are as a person. Having examples of personal mission statements can be beneficial when you’re trying to pursue your goals in life but don’t quite know where to start.
Below we’ll discuss the importance of having a mission statement and how to create one. We’ll include many personal mission statement examples to inspire you as you write your own.
Why Having a Personal Mission Statement Is Important
To achieve what you want out of life, you need to set long-term goals to get there. These goals will help you identify what’s most important to you and what gives your life meaning.
One way to clarify and pursue these goals is through a personal mission statement. In the book First Things First, Stephen Covey describes a personal mission statement as a written document in which you outline your guiding principles and long-term goals. A personal mission statement reinforces your priorities and reminds you of them through the changing circumstances and demands of everyday life.
We’ll go into more depth about how to create a personal mission statement with examples and steps that can inspire you to create your own. For now, consider the following questions:
- What are three or four “first things” that are important in your life?
- What are some of your long-term goals?
- What are the most important relationships in your life?
- What kinds of contributions do you want to make to your community, society, or the world?
- What kinds of feelings do you want to have (e.g., happiness, confidence, peace)?
- How would you spend the next seven days if you knew you had just six more months to live?
Personal Mission Statement Examples
Before learning how to write your own mission statement, it may be helpful to look at some other statements for inspiration. Below we’ve separated personal mission statement examples into two categories: general personal mission statements and statements used by companies or CEOs.
General Personal Mission Statement Examples
It takes time and deep self-reflection to develop a mission statement, which should serve as an inspiring reminder of your long-term goals and the principles and values that you want to guide your life. An effective mission statement is based on what Covey calls “true north principles”—integrity, moderation, self-discipline, loyalty, responsibility, honesty, and patience— and is realistic enough to be attainable.
That being said, there are personal mission statement examples that are general enough to be shared by multiple people who have similar goals. For instance, many teachers aspire to change the lives of younger generations.
We’ve categorized these general personal mission statement examples into two sections: statements for life and statements for teachers and leaders. Look at these statements if you don’t quite know where to start with writing yours.
For Life
Some personal mission statements are meant to create a better version of yourself. These statements can either help you become more active in your community or to encourage you to work harder at school or work.
Mission statements can also have a religious meaning to them. The Purpose Driven Life book gives a general Christian personal mission statement example, which is that Christians share the mission of spreading the word about God all over the world—just as Jesus did. Like him, they share what they know about God throughout their life to everyone they can.
Let’s look at examples of personal mission statements that Indeed gives that you can apply to your life:
- “To inspire others to achieve great things.”
- “To create new opportunities for today’s youth.”
- “To be a source of hope by offering humility, optimism, and support to everyone I meet.”
- “To bring beauty into the world through graphic design.”
- “To encourage and equip others to live the lives they want to live.”
- “To thrive in my journey through life and learn life’s lessons along the way.”
- “To leave the world a better place than I found it.”
For Teachers and Leaders
Teachers and leaders might have different personal mission statements because they want to change the lives of others with their knowledge. If you’re a teacher or a leader, you might be inspired by one of these examples of personal mission statements:
- “To educate young minds and create compassionate, empathetic, and hard-working members of society.”
- “To support and elevate those around me.”
- “To use my gifts to bring education to women around the globe.”
- “To be a teacher and inspire my students to be the best version of themselves.”
- “To inspire children to be more than they thought they could be.”
- “To serve as a leader by encouraging innovative ideas and forward-thinking so that our team can create technology solutions that will improve the lives of others.”
- “To use my writing skills to inspire and educate others around the world to make a change.”
Company/CEO Mission Statement Examples
Rather than mission statements that are tailored to be more personal for the individual, The $100 Startup by Chris Guillebeau shares the importance of a mission statement for a company’s growth.
In addition to your business plan, you should form a mission statement or an explanation of the central values upon which your company is built. This statement should be no more than 140 characters and should explain in simple terms how your business can help people.
For example, if you run a day-care center, your mission statement might be, “I help working parents feel comfortable with using a day-care center by giving their children personalized, quality care during the workday.”
Let’s look at personal mission statement examples that companies and CEOs use to encourage dedication and hard work.
Company Mission Statements
Companies have their mission statements to inspire their employees to carry out only the best service for their customers. These mission statements are the foundation of what makes a company grow into a successful business, representing its core values:
- Google: “To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.”
- Twitter: “To give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly, without barriers.”
- Kickstarter: “To help bring creative projects to life.”
- Coca-Cola: “To refresh the world…To inspire moments of optimism and happiness…To create value and make a difference.”
- Walmart: “We save people money so they can live better.”
- Asana: “To help humanity thrive by enabling all teams to work together effortlessly.”
- Sweetgreen (as stated in The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek): “To inspire healthier communities by connecting people to real food.”
In addition, many companies had a great mission statement but ultimately couldn’t live up to the vision they created. In the book Bad Blood, Wall Street Journal reporter John Carreyrou explains how the now-dissolved health technology company Theranos used its mission statement to deceive its investors:
- Theranos’s mission statement: “Detect diseases early so no one has to die unnecessarily.”
All types of stakeholders saw what they wanted to see in it, allowing a large suspension of disbelief while Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes was lying about the technology being used to sample blood from real patients.
This is a prime example of why acting upon your mission statement is important. It’s one thing to write down what you want to achieve, but you actually have to work to achieve it. Otherwise, your mission statement won’t mean anything.
CEO Mission Statements
A CEO’s mission statement might be a little different than the company’s mission statement. A CEO strives to be a leader for their employees, supporting them through every obstacle and being worthwhile role models. Let’s look at a few examples of successful CEOs’ personal mission statements:
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s personal mission statement is “If something is important enough you should try, even if the probable outcome is failure.” This statement is much more personal to Musk than Tesla’s statement: “To accelerate the advent of sustainable transport by bringing compelling mass-market electric cars to market as soon as possible.”
- Oprah Winfrey, founder of OWN (The Oprah Winfrey Network), has a very grounded approach to her personal mission statement: “To be a teacher. And to be known for inspiring my students to be more than they thought they could be.”
- Walt Disney, founder of Walt Disney Company, had a simple motto he lived by: “To make people happy.” On the other hand, the Walt Disney Company’s statement is much more strategic and embraces business more than personal desires: “To be one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information, using its portfolio of brands to differentiate its content, services, and consumer products.”

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