How to Write a Personal Mission Statement that Inspires You?

The secret to living your most meaningful and fulfilling life isn’t just to set and achieve more goals. It’s about finding a deeper purpose in what you do. To understand why you do what you do in the first place.

Crafting a personal mission statement can help you do just that. 

The most inspiring personal mission statement meets the crossroads between what’s important to you and the impact you want to make.

Imagine waking up every day with a sense of purpose. 

You jump out of bed with excitement, ready to tackle the day ahead.

A personal mission statement excites you to work on your craft and improve yourself. It also makes your setbacks and challenges more meaningful. 

That’s the power of identifying your life’s mission.

In this article, you’ll learn how to write a personal mission statement to gain a sense of purpose and direction.

Are you ready to enrich your life with meaning and joy?

Then let’s dive in!

First, what is a personal mission statement?

A personal mission statement is a clear, concise declaration of your purpose in life. It reflects your highest values and the impact you want to make.

Unlike personal goals, your mission centers around the big-picture vision that reflects the difference you seek to make in the world.

The cousin of a mission statement is a personal vision statement. While your mission focuses on your values and purpose, a vision statement emphasizes who you aspire to become in the future.

What is the value of a personal mission statement?

Similar to having a mission statement in business, a personal mission statement helps you to prioritize tasks and focus your energy.

Having a personal mission statement will…

1. provide clarity on what to focus on in life.
2. provide direction that guides your decisions and actions.
3. empower authenticity by making choices that reflect your true self.
4. increase self-discipline to maintain consistent effort even when you experience setbacks, face challenges, or achieve short-term goals.
5. build self-esteem and confidence by aligning your actions with your core values, building self-worth and trust in yourself.
6. inspire continuous self-improvement as you must learn, adapt, and grow to the ambitions of your mission.

Ultimately, determination and your ability to focus on what matters without being distracted are key to your success.

A personal mission statement ticks both boxes.

20 Famous personal mission statement examples

Who do you admire most?

You probably have a pretty good sense of what they stand for. That’s because almost all inspirational people have a clear purpose for their life.

Take a look at the following personal mission statement examples:

1. Elon Musk: If something is important enough you should try, even if the probable outcome is failure.
2. Walt Disney: To make people happy.
3. Albert Einstein: To seek and explore the mysteries of the universe, and use that knowledge for the betterment of humanity.
4. Mahatma Gandhi: To be the change I wish to see in the world.
5. Richard Branson: To have fun in my journey through life and learn from my mistakes.
6. Mark Zuckerberg: To connect the world.
7. Jeff Bezos: To make earth’s most customer-centric company.
8. Oprah Winfrey: To be a teacher and to be known for inspiring my students to be more than they thought they could be.
9. Maya Angelou: My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.
10. Stephen Covey: To live with integrity and to make a difference in the lives of others.
11. Martin Luther King Jr.: To inspire and empower people to take action for positive change.
12. Marie Curie: To advance the understanding of science for the benefit of humanity.
13. Nelson Mandela: To end the injustice of apartheid and inspire future generations to fight for freedom.
14. Sheryl Sandberg: To build a world where more women can have their voices heard.
15. J.K. Rowling: To bring magic to the lives of children and remind adults that they once believed in magic too.
16. Steve Jobs: To create products that inspire and empower people to change the world.
17. Mother Teresa: To serve the poor and show compassion to all, recognizing the humanity in every individual.
18. Serena Williams: To be the best version of myself on and off the court, inspiring others to pursue their goals with passion and perseverance.
19. Jane Goodall: To foster a greater understanding and compassion for the natural world and inspire action to protect all living beings.
20. Eleanor Roosevelt: To live with courage, always advocating for human rights and justice, and encouraging others to do the same.

And here’s my mission statement to conclude this list:

21. Mick de Boer: To be free and free others.

How to write a personal mission for yourself?

Did the personal mission statement examples of famous people inspire you? 

While they gave me ideas, they also felt somewhat cryptic.

These examples are so simple and clear, yet writing my mission statement was still quite a challenge.

So I broke the process up into 5 manageable steps.

Step 1: What are your most important values?

Identifying your core values provides a solid foundation for writing an authentic and fulfilling mission statement. 

What inspires you?

Answer the following questions:

1. What are the 3 most important values to you?
2. Why do these things matter so much to you?
3. How would your life change if you prioritized these?

Need more help?

Here’s a comprehensive list of core value examples.

Step 2: What problem bothers you the most?

The most impactful purpose aims to solve a problem or need beyond your life goals, needs, and desires.

Reflect on the issues or challenges that you’re passionate about:

1. What bothers you in the world – and why?
2. What technologies or innovations excite you – and why?
3. What personal challenges have you overcome – and how?
4. What change do you wish to see in your family, community, or globally?
5. If you had unlimited resources, what problem would you solve first?
6. What’s one issue or problem you can’t stop thinking about?
7. What injustices anger or upset you?

The answers provide a deeper understanding of the burning problems that motivate and inspire you. A good personal mission statement reflects one of the problems that deeply matters to you.

Also read: Simple ways to make a difference in the world

Step 3: How can you make the greatest impact?

Your personal strengths and natural talents often reveal how you can make your best contribution. 

An alternative angle is to think about your passions. When you pursue your interests, you’ll experience more joy when learning the craft, even when you face setbacks or challenges.

Answer the following questions:

1. What are my strengths and talents?
2. What skills do I already have?
3. What are my passions and interests?
4. How do I currently spend my free time?
5. What topics would I love to learn more about?

You can dive deeper with my guides on finding your passion and a list of personal strengths. Another fast track to self-discovery is by taking one of the best free personality tests.

Get more self-insights in 30 minutes

Step 4: Write drafts with personal mission statement templates

Personal mission statement templates are useful to get started. Simply inject your insights from the previous steps into the following templates:

1. To create [positive change/key value] by using my skills in [your talent/skill/interest/passion] to [the impact you seek to make].
2. To continuously grow in [personal or professional area] while helping others [positive action or outcome].
3. To live a life where I prioritize [core value] while contributing to [cause or problem].
4. To use my [talent/skill/passion/interest] to positively impact [community or group] and create lasting change in [area or cause].
5. To inspire others to [value/action/mindset].
6. To explore and express my creativity through [craft or passion], pushing boundaries and inspiring others to think outside the box, while making a positive impact in [industry/community/cause].
7. To overcome challenges and setbacks with resilience, using my experiences to grow stronger and help others do the same while staying committed to [value] in both good times and bad.

Personal example for the personal mission statement templates

Here’s one example of myself for each of the templates above:

1. To create freedom by using my skills in writing to inspire others to live a more authentic and fulfilling life.
2. To continuously grow my writing skills while helping others live a more authentic and fulfilling life.
3. To live a life where I prioritize freedom while contributing to others to live more authentic and fulfilling lives.
4. To use my passion for self-improvement to positively impact young adults and create lasting change in their levels of joy and fulfillment.
5. To inspire others to unlock freedom – both internally and externally.
6. To explore and express my creativity through writing, pushing boundaries and inspiring others to think outside the box, while making a positive impact in redefining what success means.
7. To overcome challenges and setbacks with resilience, using my experiences to grow stronger and help others do the same while staying committed to pursuing freedom and joy in both good times and bad.

Step 5: Refining your personal mission statement

Do you already feel excited about one of your drafts? While I recommend you explore further, you might already have your final version.

If you created many drafts but feel unsure about any, ask yourself:

• What is the most dominant theme that shows up?
• What is the core essence of most of your drafts?
• What is the most common value, skill, passion, interest?

Decide on the single most important aspects in each area and plug them back into the templates.

Finally, refine your statement with the following rules:

1. Shorten your mission statement by removing words or using more powerful synonyms without changing its core essence.
2. Experiment with being more specific or more generic.
3. Use strong, positive, and action-oriented words.
4. Use emotional words that inspire you.
5. Keep it simple.

Another vital tip: Let your mission statement rest for a while. Don’t think about it. Come back after a couple of days to redefine it. 

Taking time off does wonders.

Finally, writing your personal mission statement is not about perfection, especially if it’s your first time creating one. Instead, see your mission statement as a guide to help you focus your time and energy.

Your mission statement can evolve as you grow and gain new insights about yourself and life in general. I’ve also redefined and refined my mission many times.

How long should your personal mission statement be?

While there’s no specific length for your personal mission statement, keeping it simple, short, and concrete is most impactful.

The most famous personal mission statements are formulated in a single sentence. But when you look closer, you notice that some are strung together with comma’s or a semicolon.

The average word count is 14 – but the longest consists of 26 words. 

And although you may resonate with some more than others, none of the mission statements is better than the rest.

The conclusion?

There’s no exact science here.

What’s most important is that your mission statement inspires you.

• Does it focus on the core essence of what’s most important to you?
• Does your personal mission statement feel complete?
• And does it fire you up or at least inspire you to act?

If you can answer all the questions with a yes, that’s perfect.

Remember: Even if you still doubt your personal mission, you’ll gain more insights through action, which enables you to refine your statement.

The goal isn’t perfection; it’s to gain clarity and direction.

How to live your personal mission statement?

Once you’ve written your mission statement, it’s time to live by it. 

The first step is to set goals that align with your mission. While your personal mission statement provides direction, goals provide a plan for action.

Finally, check out these resources to realize your mission:

• Get the best goal planner to take consistent action.
• Use the best guided journals for self-reflection and growth.
• Read the best books about finding purpose for more inspiration.

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