Your Life Depends on Vision, Mission and Purpose
You're rolling your eyes. I can feel it.
I know because I'm a former Vision and Mission eye-roller. Innumerable pundits opine on the centrality of these concepts in creating strong organizations, doing impactful work and living lives of meaning. Fifteen years back, I didn't buy it.
Years before, I had settled into a well-suited urban real estate development career. I loved the complexity, the cat juggling, the interweaving relationships, and the opportunity to build better, more vibrant, and equitable cities. Through 2007, my work was humming, but on September 15, 2008, the growth facade collapsed along with Lehman Brothers. The world fell into the Great Recession.
Many lives were ruined. Mine was not. Still, I found myself without a job in a career with no immediate prospects. I had also newly arrived in my wife's home state of Wisconsin. Outside of her family, I knew no one. I set out to meet people.
Eventually, with much luck and serendipity, I was hired as the Executive Director of the not-for-profit Wisconsin Bike Fed, one of the country's oldest statewide bicycle organizations. The role felt like a perfect fit. I had ambitions to lead an organization and long enjoyed riding a bicycle. As I looked around the world, my favorite places were filled with people riding bicycles. The formula felt simple: more people riding bikes = a better Wisconsin.
Up until that point, I had only worked for for-profit corporations. Success, I had been bred to think, was found exclusively in quantifiable metrics: profit, sales, and year-over-year growth. I carried a bit of intellectual arrogance into my role. "I'm going to show these non-profit types how to run an organization," I thought.
In my first two years, "success" came to the Bike Fed as the team grew the budget, attracted many new members, and garnered new corporate sponsorships. The board, the members, and the public seemed energized by the Bike Fed's progress. But I felt lost and was asking big questions:
"Are we making any difference?"
"How do we know we're succeeding?"
"What guides our daily work?"
"Is profitability the penultimate goal?"
We were profitable and growing our reserves. Profitability is, of course, important, though acknowledging that is like acknowledging that humans need water to live. Or, best said by author and publisher Tim O'Reilly:
“Money is like gas in the car—you need to pay attention, or you’ll end up on the side of the road—but a successful business or a well-lived life is not a tour of gas stations.”
I felt empty. We were doing good work, but I wasn't convinced that the parts added to a better whole. If I were leading a for-profit corporation, I don't believe I would have had any crisis of conscience. Running a not-for-profit organization [1] compelled me to look beyond profit to question our true impact.
Enter a friend, an experienced not-for-profit executive, who asked: "What's the Bike Fed's Vision and Mission?" I had no idea.
I dismissed this type of "non-profity jargon" when I started my role, but now, I felt embarrassed that, as the organizational leader, I had no clear idea what was guiding us. I had no clue how to judge our performance beyond financial measures. "You can't run an organization unless you're clear on the big problem you're trying to solve and your role in solving that problem," my friend challenged.
I crossed the threshold. What I learned at the Wisconsin Bike Fed has since guided my life and the organizations I support.
Vision, “The What”
Always start with the Vision. The Vision is the big idea, the big problem to be solved.
At the Wisconsin Bike Fed, we crafted this Vision:
“Millions of Wisconsin residents and visitors of all backgrounds choose bicycling as an integral and convenient part of daily life.”
Ideally, a Vision is so big it will not be solved in your lifetime or many lifetimes.
Visions must be significantly large because a big vision creates a big tent of possible collaborators. You need others. Don't define your Vision so narrowly that it's a sole pursuit.
When possible, define a Vision that encompasses the world or a world as large as possible: "A world where..." "Worldwide..." or "In a world..." [2] For instance, some organizations are fueled by a Vision of "A World in Complete Peace," something our species is unlikely ever to reach but a Vision that stirs many hearts.
Mission, “The How”
Mission is your and/or your organization's role in realizing your Vision. Unlike a Vision, a Mission should be specific to you and/or your organization. Be very clear and specific. Mission statements should also imply action.
The Bike Fed established this mission:
“To inspire, motivate, and unite a strong community of civic, business and political leaders, motorists and bicyclists to move bicycling forward in Wisconsin.”
Mission clarity marks your spot in your Vision's big tent and compels you to appreciate other people's and organizations' roles in realizing the Vision. For instance, Trek Bicycle, based in Waterloo, Wisconsin, shares the Bike Fed's Vision of making Wisconsin a great place for bicycling, but their role in this vision is to sell great products that get more people on bicycles. It's a very different role, but it supports the same Vision.
A Bit on Purpose, "The Why"
Clarifying your "Why" is essential (Simon Sinek has built a self-help empire touting the importance of purpose). Purpose is the fuel that drives us to chase big visions and to do the hard work.
“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.”
We need to start with why. But, when collaborating with others on big ideas, we should be careful how we express our purpose. While at the Wisconsin Bike Fed, I heard many purposes from others. To wit:
I want to race my bicycle more often on better roads.
I want to sell more bicycles.
I want the bicycle to be a comfortable form of regular transportation.
I want to reduce our carbon footprint.
I want to increase the tourist economy.
I hate cars.
I want to rip more gnarly trails in the woods.
Each of these Purpose Statements is satisfied by the Mission Statement above, but not everyone who supports the Mission does so for the same Purpose. Be careful how you insert your Purpose into your Vision and Mission. Don’t risk alienating someone who would otherwise support your work.
Vision, Mission, and Purpose exercises rightfully get a bad rap because the results often lack inspiration, clarity, and integrity. You must take the time to get it right. The process could take years before each word is perfect. You must believe what you’ve written. Once you’ve reached clarity, use these statements to guide your work and to lead others.
Want to ensure you arrive at an effective Vision, Mission, and Purpose? Treat the process like your life depends on it. Your life—your time on this earth, the strength of your movement, the success of your organization—depends on how you define your What, How, and Why.
Notes
[1] I avoid the term "non-profit," preferring "not-for-profit." Not-for-profits are organized in our tax code for "exempt purposes" rather than organized for the purpose of generating a profit (organized “not for (the purpose) of profit”). Regardless of how your organization is recognized by the tax code, it needs to generate income in excess of expenses (profit). Organizations that consistently have expenses above income (“non-profit”) do not last.
[2] I'm reminded of Hal Douglas, the famous "In a World" voice actor, in this movie trailer.