After a conversation about mission statements this weekend, I started thinking about them while driving today. Are mission statements good? And should everyone have a mission statement? To that end, I decided:
Mission Statements should be internally defined and externally obvious.
Take ExxonMobil’s “Guiding Standards” for example [Link]:

Exxon Mobil Corporation is committed to being the world’s premier petroleum and petrochemical company. To that end, we must continuously achieve superior financial and operating results while adhering to the highest standards of business conduct.

What does that mean? Achieve superior financial and operating results? Premier petroleum and petrochemical company? All business-caliber fluff.
I would have to work hard to see that in their day-to-day operations. The mission statement sounds good, but it has little effect on who they are. It’s simply political and business one-liners.
Mission Statements: 0;
No Statement: 1;
Now consider Apple. How do you recognize Apple? I searched their website for a mission statement. None to be found. None at all.
Now I ask you, what do you think of when you consider Apple? I think of simple, easy-to-use software and beautiful design. Their website communicates this. Their products communicate this. Everything about
Apple exudes those two things.
Does Apple have a mission statement? I don’t know. I would think they do, but I honestly don’t have any idea. But I’m sure that their corporate goals are internally defined. It is interwoven in their culture.
What you do with the mission statement is more important than the statement itself. If the statement doesn’t illustrate who you are or where you’re going, then it is worthless.