Comments on: Why I Hate Mission Statements

By: Bret Treasure

Bret Treasure — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:15:27 +0000

Mission statements can actually be wonderful if you have a “real” one as well as a “public” one. I have a friend who worked for a systems integrator in Sydney. The sales department invented their own “real” one: ’suck ‘em in and fuck ‘em’.

By: getluky

getluky — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 16:04:29 +0000

I like your style, Joe.

By: Labnotes » Rounded Corners - 162

Labnotes » Rounded Corners - 162 — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 06:50:35 +0000

[...] Missionary. Why Gordon hates mission statements: In fact, I can’t think of a single catch-phrase that motivated individuals through an extended period of time, except for perhaps “Go forth and multiply,” but one could easily see that the instruction wasn’t really necessary, just the equipment and instinct. [...]

By: Wally Punsapy

Wally Punsapy — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 18:22:59 +0000

Check out Guy Kawasaki’s talk on innovation and his spiel on mantra and mission statements (somewhere in the middle of the podcast). Good stuff.

By: Joe Grossberg

Joe Grossberg — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 13:40:44 +0000

Often times, the catch-phrase (some overlap with mission statements) is nonsensical:

"Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing."

"We have nothing to fear, but fear itself."

What mission statements are good for, especially at a small company, is providing insight into the boss's psychology: priorities, self-perception, values, how far out-of-touch with reality they are, etc.

Really, the only plausible mission statement for most companies would be: "Achieve some combination of maximizing short-term profitability, long-term profitability and CEO satisfaction."

By: jr

jr — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 00:01:32 +0000

My fear of mission statements is the lingering doubt that there are folks that feel they need to consult such blindingly obvious statements before taking action.

“Hmm… Well I was going to send trained, rabid howler monkeys to the homes of our customers so that they can steal their belongings and infect their pets at 2AM, but you know, after reading the mission statement…”

By: Biao

Biao — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 21:38:30 +0000

I think the fact that I know the reason for your post makes it all the more enjoyable for me. I don’t usually hear much objections to mission statements (other than the fact that they don’t make much sense and seem pretty cliched) but you’ve put it very succinctly.