Create your Personal Mission and Vision

Creating and having a personal mission and vision statement provides purpose and can help guide you through your life, serve as a foundation for what you stand for and your beliefs, the decisions you make, how you treat others, and the goals you pursue. This blog post will show you the steps I used and that will help you create your personal mission and vision.

I first created a personal mission and vision statement many years ago when I first read Stephen R. Covey’s book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.” In Habit 2: begin with the end in mind, Covey said “The most effective way I know to begin with the end in mind is to develop a personal mission statement or philosophy or creed. It focuses on what you want to be (character) and to do (contributions and achievements) and on the values or principles upon which being and doing are based.” Covey encouraged the reader to create a mission and vision for themselves. So I did.

How I Created My Personal Mission and Vision Statement

I first identified my top five values that were important and vital for me and wrote them down. Next I wrote down my key life areas that I also learned from reading “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and that I also apply in my goal-setting process.

My key life areas are: career, personal/self, health (physical and mental), home, family/relationships, financial, and travel.  For each value and life area I wrote out the reasons why they were important to me. I also found some quotes that resonated with me. I filled up many pages in my journal. But I eventually summed it all down to a visually pleasing and inspirational one-pager to look at and refer to when I needed reminders and guidance for myself.

Defining your personal life mission and vision does not need to be done every year. Once you have created one, it is then something that you can review year over year to help guide and remind you of what is important to you. It can also motivate you to continue to reach your goals and be your best self. After several years, you might find that you will want to adjust your mission/vision as your life progresses forward.

Now, many years later, my first one-page mission and vision statement that I created is hidden somewhere amongst my many boxes of journals and papers kept over time, so I felt it was time to update my mission and vision statement this year. I found that at the core, my values and life focus areas have not changed, however they have evolved , so this year is the perfect year to revise and upgrade my new evolved life mission and vision.

Read on to follow the steps I used to create your own life mission and vision.

Step 1: Determine your Top 5 Values

Values are things that help guide one through their life and experiences according to what is most important to them. Values are deep-seated beliefs and often do not change. Brainstorm a list of different values that are important to you. What drives you? What is important to you? Some examples of values are:

Integrity/Honesty

Work Ethic

Stability

Freedom

Family

Relationships

Wealth

Personal growth

Personal Development

Humor

Fun

Spirituality

And More…

Most likely, you will be able to list several values that are important to you.

Now, from your list of values you just created, what are five values that you feel deep in your core and stick out as being the most important to you and your life? Those will be your top 5 personal values.

List those top 5 values down on a sheet of paper or in your journal.

Step 2: Determine your life focus areas

Next, what are the major focus areas in your life right now? Write down a list of the things that you are focused on in your life and that you want to focus on in the future. Examples could be that you want to increase your wealth, buy a home, become an author and publish a book, launch a blog, travel more, etc. Where do you want or need to focus your attention in order to feel fulfilled? What interests and passions make you feel fulfilled? List these focus areas, interests and passions on a sheet of paper or in your journal. Remember to think about where you are now as well as where you want to be in the next 5 years or longer.

Step 3: Identify your why’s for each core value and main focus areas.

For each of your 5 top values and main life focus areas, write down 2-5 reasons why these are important to you. Why do you want these in your life? These will eventually become your vision.

Step 4: Create a one-sentence mission statement

By doing and reviewing steps 1-3 above, you will now be able to see a common theme that shows who you are, your personal beliefs, your purpose, and why. Summarize this into a one-sentence mission statement.

Step 5: Compile a one-page mission & vision document

Now, on a single document, compile your top 5 values, your main life focus areas, and your why’s (vision). This document can be however you wish to create it. It can be either hand-written and decorated nicely on a piece of paper or on a word or Canva document. I used a Canva mood board template. See figure 1 below of what my personal mission and vision document looks like. Decorate your one-pager with pictures and quotes that resonate with your values, life, and future self. Finally, print it out and post it where you can see it, put it in your life binder, or other place where you will be able to refer to it often.

Conclusion

Having a long-term vision and guiding personal mission statement can significantly help in reaching your goals and dreams. Additionally, it will serve as a foundation for what you stand for, your beliefs, decisions, how you treat yourself and others, and your goals. In summary, here are the five steps to creating your own personal mission and vision statement:

1. Determine your top 5 values
2. Determine your main life focus areas
3. Identify your why’s for each core value and main focuses.
4. Create a one-sentence mission statement
5. Compile a one-page mission & vision document

Related Posts by Bloom Brilliance

If you haven’t set your year goals yet, take a look at my post Goal-setting methods that work.

To learn how to create a personal timeline, check out this post: create a personal timeline.

Also, to delve deeper in your own self-reflection, see Bloom Brilliance’s Reflect series here.

Sage