What Do You Stand For?

Have you ever spent time thinking about what it is you stand for? Put another way, do you clearly understand your personal mission?

If my question catches your interest, raises your eyebrows or leaves you scratching your head, then please take the time to read on. I believe this article may bring you real value.

[box type=\”shadow\”]\”To forget one\’s purpose is the commonest form of stupidity.\”

– Friedrich Nietzsche
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Intensely thought provoking

Some years ago, while in corporate life, I attended a leadership training programme that, in parts, was intensely thought provoking. One of the exercises that has stuck in my memory, involved getting each delegate to elucidate exactly what he or she stood for as a leader.

One by one we were called on to describe to the assembled group of about 30 senior and middle managers, in as few words as possible, what we personally stood for. In most cases a lot of questions were asked and constructive criticism given with the aim of sending us back to re-think, re-evaluate, clarify and/or refine what we had come up with until the statement represented a simple yet powerful and authentic statement.

I found this to be an eye opening exercise that required deep introspection and a coming to terms with what defined me as a leader; what set me apart; what drove my actions and behaviors.

My personal mission

Here\’s what I came up with …

\”As a leader in [this business] I stand for inspired people. My personal mission is to use my position to make a difference that enhances the quality of life of the people I am privileged to lead.\”

I listened to the other delegates say their pieces and was struck – and impressed – by the variety and uniqueness of the personal mission statements that I was exposed to.

Tremendous value

As we compared notes in the break, it was clear that most of us taking part in this exercise had derived tremendous value from the process of thinking really deeply about our driving force as leaders.

Context specific

The concept of a personal mission is closely linked to one\’s life purpose. But whereas life purpose can be seen as the overarching raison d\’être for one\’s existence, a personal mission is more context-specific. In other words, you may have different personal missions for different areas of your life.

So, you might have a personal mission within the context of your business life, one that relates to your family life and one that relates to your community, for example.

Unique Selling Point

New Insights life coach trainees are encouraged to do a similar exercise to the one I went through, except that the outcome is used to express the aspirant coach\’s unique selling point (or USP) which is an important marketing tool.

In today\’s competitive world it\’s important to stand out of the crowd. Write \’life coach\’ on your business card and perhaps you\’ll generate a flicker of interest from the recipient. Add your personal mission, or what you stand for beneath that, in language that is succinct, honest and powerful and you\’ll have a far better chance of capturing your prospect\’s interest and imagination.

An invitation

What\’s your personal mission?

I\’d like to invite you to think of an important area of your life right now. If you\’re a coach then think about your practice. If not then what about your role as a parent, your position in your company, your role in your church or in your community – whatever.

Now, what is your personal mission? What do you stand for? What is meaningful about that? What will you do to give life to your mission?

Allow yourself time to think deeply and authentically about this. When you\’re ready, write the answer down in no more than a couple of sentences. Adapt and fine tune it if you need to and when you\’re done find someone that you can proudly tell it to and see what effect it has.

Your point of reference

I think you\’ll find that your personal mission becomes a clear point of reference against which you can measure and judge the relevance and effectiveness of your actions. That alone should help to bring real meaning and substance to the area of your life that you are contemplating.

If you feel comfortable to share what you stand for in one or more areas of your life – or in general, I feel sure that other readers will enjoy hearing from you!

I know I will.