Five Steps to Creating a Personal Mission Statement

A personal mission statement can be a great help in keeping you motivated and committed to your ideals, especially when times are tough.

It does not have to be grand or even particularly eloquent: it simply has to describe you, your activities, and how and why you carry them out. A good personal mission statement is as valuable to the individual who creates it as it is to the wider world which will read, digest and form opinions from it.

It is, if you will, the highest level of affirmation, a regular reminder of your own values, dreams and aspirations. In times of conflict or challenge it can help you to realign yourself with the ideas and concepts in your life that really matter to you.

If you have lost your way or feel disillusioned or disheartened, re-reading your personal mission statement may just give you the lift you need to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and start all over again.

To create your own personal mission statement, follow these five simple steps. Do not spend too long thinking about each step; just go with your first thoughts.


Jot down, five attributes or characteristics that best describe you.
Now write down, in no particular order, the five areas of your life that are most important to you.
Write down the five things you want to achieve before you die.
From the three lists you have generated, select the attributes, areas and achievements that move you most forcefully.
Write your mission statement in the present tense and in positive language, using the following as a guide:

Paragraph 1: Who I am and what my purpose in life is.
Paragraph 2: How I am fulfilling that purpose and how I will continue to do so.
Paragraph 3: What values I hold dear and how I apply them to my activities.
Remember, your personal mission statement does not have to be full of long words and complicated ideas. You only need to be clear and straightforward about who you are, what your aim in life is and how you have decided to go about it.

You may be surprised by the powerful effect this simple exercise has on you and on your motivation