Your Mission...

…Should You Choose To Accept It

Many of you recognize this line from the Television series or movie (or both depending on your generation) called Mission: Impossible. I recently had the privilege of delivering the Keynote Address to a group of military veterans at a career transition event the day after Veterans Day. The theme of mission is one our military veterans clearly understand so I and the other speakers leveraged the same theme throughout the event. It also provides the theme for this issue as we head into the holiday season.

Last month, we talked about information overload and its impact on a leader’s ability to make knowledgeable decisions. I would submit having a clear sense of mission is just as important to making meaningful decisions as it creates the tangible importance of making the decision to begin with. When a leader loses the understanding of importance, the overall mission begins to falter. We see organizations in many corners of our environment that have lost their sense of mission. In recent years we have seen examples of government, financial, religious and educational institutions with documented lapses in their sense of mission.

So how do leaders renew their sense of mission? They must first ask themselves why do they exist. Corporations, Entrepreneurial ventures and Not-For-Profits all exist for a defined purpose. The second question every organization must ask is, “Whom do they serve?” We use the word “serve” specifically because it creates the mindset of service as opposed to asking, “Who do we sell to?” or “Who is in our market?” Whenever I work with clients whose business has leveled off or hit a plateau, I always start with some variation of that same question. In answering the question of whom they serve, they renew the line of thought creating the guidelines for their organization or business.

The sense of mission also implies the entire organization is engaged to effectively complete the mission. Leaders must be able to effectively communicate the mission to their teams and herein lies part of the challenge – they may not know how or they overestimate their ability to do so. A recent survey by Developmental Dimensions International and published in the Wall Street Journal suggests managers struggle with the necessary skills necessary to execute a sense of organizational mission. Of the 1,100 respondents, only 36% felt they were strong in coaching their teams while only 34% felt they were strong in gaining commitment from their teams. Lastly only 32% mentioned delegating as their strength. These types of blind spots can cause an organization’s leaders to lose their way. Leaders cannot accomplish the mission alone and thus must be able to not only communicate the goals of the team but also the purpose as well. The goals address what needs to be done, the purpose addresses why the goal is important to the organization.

What separates the great leaders from everyone else is their sense of mission and the personal accountability they have to the mission and those they serve. As we head into the holidays and time for reflection, what mission will you choose to accept?

Lead Well!