The world has changed. The trajectory of your business doesn’t have to
You know, one of the reasons I wanted to revisit my book, TeamWork, with all of you is because of how many things have already changed since its publication, which was just about a year ago at the time of this writing.
There’s no denying that the world has changed, and what I’ve noticed with a lot of business owners that we work with, is that their immediate response to these changes — economic changes, inflation concerns, the possibility of a recession, etc. — is one of fear.
I get it. But I certainly don’t recommend it. Why? Well, believe it or not, you really do have control over these sorts of fears. You do, but you’ve been conditioned by all sorts of factors in your life to focus on the negative instead of the positive.
The way that you can control these fears will not only give you an advantage in the marketplace over your competitors, many of whom most certainly are lost in a fear mindset, but it also presents you with the opportunity to show your sense of leadership with your team.
When times are tough, there’s always an opportunity in its midst. In fact, there are probably several opportunities. One, is the opportunity to dominate your market by paying close attention to what your customers are thinking, feeling, and needing, and delivering on that understanding.
Second, is continuing to grow and develop your team despite all the fears that might exist out there. My assumption here is that you’re already growing and developing your team, so you’re adapting that development to the current economic climate, and you’re also showing them what leadership in the midst of an economic downturn actually looks like.
Again, the majority of your competitors just won’t be doing this. They’ll be distracted by their own fears. There’s just no doubt about it. You, however, already have a system in place for growing your team members, serving your clients, and identifying new ways in which you can dominate your market.
So, what’s holding all of this together? It’s your mission, of course! Let’s get into it.
Why your mission matters so much to your business
If you’ve already read TeamWork, then you might remember the story I shared about feeling quite embarrassed for not knowing the mission statement of an organization I was working for early in my career.
While I’d wager that most employees of most organizations also don’t know the mission statements of the organizations they work for, what this experience taught me is that, 1) This particular organization took their mission seriously, and 2) By placing such an emphasis on their mission, it completely changed perception of the work I was doing.
I suddenly realized, “Man, these people are serious about what they do.” And isn’t that exactly what you want each and every person in your company to think about the work that they do? That it’s serious? That they have the power to make an impact on people’s lives? That the mission is so clear and so infectious that people are actually enthusiastic and engaged?
This, ladies and gentlemen, is what creates a healthy cultural environment in your company. It really does. And the reason that I’m specifically highlighting the word “healthy” is because you can choose to do nothing and you’re still creating a culture in your workplace.
Again, you have a choice. You have a choice in influencing how people feel about the company, your offerings, your clients, and their coworkers. By creating a clear mission and holding everyone accountable to the spirit of that mission, you’re setting the tone for each and everything you do.
So, instead of putting out redundant content, especially if you’ve already read TeamWork or if you’re about to, what I’d like to share with you instead is all of the feedback that we’ve heard from real-life Cardone Ventures clients you have established a mission statement and followed the criteria I lay out in the book and go into even greater detail with at our live events.
There are some real success stories here, so I think it would be interesting to share a handful of the mission statements that I’ve helped those clients develop.
Real-life mission statements that work
When I’m helping clients develop their businesses, one of the first things that I do is work with them to establish a mission statement.
For those of you who might not be familiar with how important it is to have a mission statement, I want to reiterate that a mission statement acts as your organization’s North Star. It’s the why you do what you do statement about your business that creates total clarity for yourself, your team, your clients, and your competition of why you exist.
At Cardone Ventures, our mission is to help our clients achieve their personal, professional, and financial goals through the growth of their businesses.
I love this statement. It’s simple, direct, clear in its intent, and is succinct. We encourage our clients to create a statement of purpose for their business that is equally direct while being specific to what it is they do and why it’s different from their competitors.
Here are some examples:
Balance WellSpace, a medical practice focused on Integrated Medicine, has a wonderful mission statement. It is, “We transform the medical paradigm in our community through our focus on function, empowerment of our patients, and helping our patients achieve true health and wellness.”
Flawless Dentistry, a state of the art, complete oral care dentist practice based in Savannah, GA, also has a great and very succinct mission statement. Their mission statement is, “We create an amazing experience for every patient.” Short, sweet, and to the point!
The Simple Life, a Colorado-based real estate agency’s mission statement is, “We transform real estate agents’ lives through developing teams with multiple streams of income and creating generational wealth.”
Don’t these get you excited? They excite me. Alright, let’s cover just a few more.
Aero & Marine Tax Professionals mission statement is, “We help people gain financial freedom by eliminating their tax liability.” Seriously, sign me up. I love how clear that is. You understand precisely what they do. There’s zero gray area there.
Okay, let’s do one more. Inland Mechanical Services, who are one of our partners in the HVAC space, has another great one. “We provide state-of-the-art heating, cooling, and automation solutions that offer reliable comfort to the customers we serve.”
Again, this couldn’t be clearer. I get exactly what they do, and I love how they put their customers just as much at the forefront of what they do as they do the products and services that they provide.
There’s so much more we need to cover on this topic, that’s why I’m making the mission statement chapter of TeamWork a four-part series!
In the meantime, I would encourage you to subscribe to the WorkWoman podcast for more great content about work, life, and teambuilding!
And if you haven’t gotten your FREE copy of TeamWork, you can do so by going here and following the instructions.