Personal Mission Statement: Definition, 35 Examples & How to Write

You may have heard of companies and non-profit organizations creating mission statements, and documents that define the organization’s goals, purpose, and vision. However, individuals also can benefit from the power of a mission statement. A well-defined personal mission statement can be a powerful tool that helps you reach your goals by keeping you focused on your purpose as well as your unique strengths. A personal mission statement is a clear, concise declaration of your values, goals, and purpose that serves as a guide for decision-making and personal growth. A personal mission statement provides clarity, helps align your actions with your core beliefs, and enhances focus and motivation in both your personal and professional life.

A great way to start designing your own personal mission statement is to take an inventory of your personal strengths. Taking a strengths assessment like the HIGH5 test can provide valuable insights into your natural talents and abilities, allowing you to craft a personal mission statement that aligns with your authentic self. By understanding and capitalizing on your strengths, you can create a compelling mission statement that propels you toward achieving your aspirations. When writing a personal mission, there are a number of items to take into account to make the most of this powerful tool. In this article, we will describe the meaning and benefits of creating a personal mission statement, offer tips about writing personal mission statements, and provide specific examples for both students and leaders.

What is a personal mission statement?

A personal mission statement can be defined as a clear expression of your objectives and guiding principles. It’s a written declaration of your intentions or purposes that demonstrates how you define success. By taking the HIGH5 strengths assessment, you can gain a deeper understanding of your core values, motivations, and what truly drives you. This self-awareness can help you craft a personal mission statement that genuinely resonates with your authentic self and leverages your natural strengths to achieve success on your own terms. The main aim of a personal mission statement is to show why your life goals are so important to you and how you plan to achieve them. As Austrian-American author and management consultant Peter F. Drucker believes, every mission statement should contain three important aspects:

Opportunities: A mission statement should define what our purposes are, what we would like to achieve, and how we plan to pursue these goals.
Competence: A mission statement should show how competent we are, and how our strengths apply to our greater purpose.
Commitment: A mission statement should make clear why we do what we do, how dedicated we are to this vision, and why we want to be remembered [1].

Pro Tip From HIGH5

When crafting your personal mission statement, consider taking the HIGH5 strengths assessment to identify your top strengths. Reflect on how these strengths can contribute to your mission and incorporate them into your statement. For example, if one of your top strengths is “Strategist,” your mission statement could highlight your ability to devise innovative strategies to achieve your goals.

Importance of personal mission statements

A personal mission statement is accompanied by plenty of benefits for everyone from college students to business executives. It doesn’t matter whether you are in the process of determining your career goals or already know exactly how you want your life to look, a personal mission statement will help you better plan your life and pursue your dreams. For example, people often experience stagnation in their career paths. Recent research indicates this is in large part due to both a lack of communication regarding advancement opportunities as well as poor prospects for gaining new skills for career advancement [2]. Thus, since career development is a crucial factor for job satisfaction, these employees feel they lack engagement with their careers. A personal mission statement helps to prevent career stagnation because it’s a useful instrument for focusing on long-term goals and planning our careers productively.

Another obstacle to career advancement is that people may believe they are unable to change. Self-doubt and uncertainty may keep them resistant to growth and personal development because they lack clarity regarding their true purpose and motivation in life. According to Forbes, self-doubt, fear of failure, and rumination on past mistakes are some of the reasons for this resistance to career advancement, and a personal mission statement can provide you with the mindset needed to break out of those anxieties [3]. Another main reason people fail at work is that they don’t have clear goals, which makes them lose focus. A personal mission statement can be used as a guide for the journey through life. It helps people determine their life principles and shows them where exactly they want to go in life. That’s why successful people tend to realize the benefits of having a personal mission statement. This one small statement will help you maintain focus, set long-term goals, and track your progress. As a result, you make clearer, more effective decisions during your entire career.

Pro Tip From HIGH5

Leveraging your strengths can significantly enhance the benefits of having a personal mission statement. Take the HIGH5 test to uncover your unique strengths, and then explore how you can leverage them to maintain focus, set meaningful goals, and track your progress more effectively. For instance, if “Time Keeper” is one of your top strengths, you can use it to stay committed to your mission and overcome any obstacles that may arise.

How to write a personal mission statement?

Creating a powerful mission statement requires thought, time and effort. However, a successful personal mission statement is well worth your time. Here are five steps to crafting an outstanding personal mission statement:

Identify your values

The first step to crafting a strong personal mission statement is to identify your fundamental convictions. Think about what truly matters to you in your day-to-day life. Take time to brainstorm and list anything that feels significant, whether it’s connected to your career or simply reflects personal interests. Once you’ve made your list, organize your values by priority to clarify what guides your decisions and actions.

Focus on your goals

After identifying your values and priorities, now it’s time to set the real goals. What are the biggest professional or personal goals you have always dreamt about? How do you imagine your future career path? What would you like to achieve in the future? Because neuroscience proves you need to write down your goals if you want to actually achieve them, writing down your specific goals will help you follow through [4].

Inventory your skills

What is your superpower? What makes you stand out from other people? Where do you most often succeed? Think about your strengths. It could be anything from creative thinking to expressing empathy towards people. Try to be objective and ask your peers about your strengths. Write down the core skills you want to use in the way of achieving your goals.

Choose the target audience

When you think of your strengths and talents, who are the people you would like to benefit from your strengths? Do you want to improve the lives of children, victims of a specific kind of violence, people in financial crisis? Picking the population you hope to serve will help you to narrow your focus and determine your exact plans.

Add details to your personal goals

The last step is to add specific details. Narrow your focus by adding precise details that align with your overall personal mission. Think about the milestones in the process of achieving your goal, but keep in mind your general vision. Which skills are you going to use to get what you want? How do you want to make changes? How will you reach out for support to keep you on track?

Pro Tip From HIGH5

When setting your goals, think about how your unique strengths from the HIGH5 test can help you achieve them more efficiently and effectively. For example, if “Creativity” is one of your top strengths, you could leverage it to pursue goals that involve innovative thinking or artistic expression.

25 examples of personal mission statements

If you’re unsure how to structure a personal mission statement, reviewing examples of possible goals can provide clarity and inspiration. These examples will help you understand how to begin crafting your own statement, whether you choose to focus on your career or broader life principles.

Here are some of the powerful personal mission statement examples you can rely on:

To use my skills to educate women around the world
To create new opportunities for students who need help
To help as many elderly people as possible
To be a life coach and inspire people to become the best versions of themselves
To use my creative potential to create stories for children
To use my empathy to help people recover from mental problems
To provide opportunities for men, women, and children living in poverty
To bring education to women around the world by creating innovative software applications
To save lives
To provide job opportunities for the unemployed people
To help today’s youth grow and develop
To help every person I meet become more confident and use their full potential
To use my empathy to help people increase their psychological well-being
To provide resources for students to find their objectives and build their career paths
To express unconditional love and treat everyone equally
To encourage women to become entrepreneurs
To offer support to those around me who are experiencing pain.
To inspire teachers around the world
To use my medical skills to save lives
To inspire people to become politically active citizens
To make the world a better place
To inspire children to pursue their dreams
To write stories that educate and inspire
To be a leader and encourage my team to develop innovative solutions
To share my expertise in leadership and team management

Pro Tip From HIGH5

As a leader, taking the HIGH5 strengths assessment can provide valuable insights into not only your own strengths but also those of your team members. By understanding the collective strengths of your team, you can craft a personal mission statement that leverages everyone’s unique abilities to achieve your shared goals more effectively.

How to use a personal mission statement?

Incorporating your personal mission statement into various aspects of your professional life can be highly beneficial. Here are some examples of ways you can consistently act in accordance with your own principles by applying your mission statement to a variety of situations.

How to use a personal mission statement in your job interviews?

Leveraging your personal mission statement during job interviews can significantly impact how you present yourself. It allows you to articulate your values, differentiate yourself from other candidates, and answer questions with a clear sense of purpose.

Articulate your values and vision: Use your personal mission statement to clearly express your core values and long-term career objectives. This helps interviewers understand your career motivations and how they align with the company’s goals.
Differentiate yourself: Highlight unique aspects of your mission statement that likely set you apart from other candidates. Emphasize specific strengths or experiences that contribute to your personal and professional identity.
Answer behavioral questions: Use language from your mission statement to answer behavioral interview questions and then back up your answers with specific examples from your professional experience of when you lived by these values. This can demonstrate your commitment to your priorities and how they influence your professional decisions and actions.

How to use a personal mission statement in your CV or resume?

Incorporating your personal mission statement into your CV or resume can make these documents more impactful. It offers potential employers a clear understanding of who you are professionally and where you’re headed in your career.

Professional summary: Include a brief version of your personal mission statement in the professional summary section of your CV or resume. This should communicate your core professional values and aspirations.
Align with job description: As long as the job description is not at odds with your personal mission statement, tailor the wording of your mission statement to align with the job description. Highlight elements of your statement that meet the specific needs or values of the organization you are applying to.
Get inspiration for your cover letter: Use your mission statement as the foundational message of your cover letter. Provide a narrative that connects your personal values and career aspirations with the opportunities the position offers.

How to use a personal mission statement in your career?

Your personal mission statement can serve as a guiding tool throughout your career. It helps ensure that your professional actions and decisions align with your priorities and long-term objectives.

Career planning: Regularly review and update your mission statement to guide your career planning. It should help you identify when opportunities align with your long-term goals.
Professional development: Choose professional development activities that align with your mission statement. This ensures that your skills and knowledge development support your overarching career objectives.
Networking: Communicate your mission statement in networking situations to attract like-minded professionals and opportunities. This can help build a professional network that supports your career goals.

By effectively integrating your personal mission statement into these aspects of your professional life, you can maintain a clear and consistent focus on your values and objectives, enhancing your career progression and satisfaction.

Personal Mission Statement Examples for College Students

Personal mission statement FAQ

What are the 3 parts of a mission statement?

A powerful personal mission statement consists of 3 elements:

Target audience: First you need to define the key market you want to focus on to achieve your mission.
Contribution: Point out the results you’re planning to achieve.
Distinction: What makes your mission stand out? Why should your audience prefer your service over others?

What is a good mission statement?

A good mission statement must be a clear declaration of your core principles as well as your future objectives. When writing your personal mission statement, you should focus on values that promote your integrity and well-being as well as your strengths and aims.

Can my personal mission statement change over time?

Yes, your personal mission statement can change over time as your values, experiences, and goals evolve.

Is it necessary to share my personal mission statement with others?

It is not necessary to share your personal mission statement with others, but doing so can help you get feedback so you can clarify your goals and create alignment in personal and professional relationships.