In a speech by previous United States Forest Service chief Tony Tooke, Tooke noted that the challenges facing the Forest Service include “lack of capacity to keep our forests healthy and resilient. Caring for forests takes work.” Tooke also said “We have to actively manage forests to restore them to health and resilience.”
This speech is the perfect analogy for building a mission-driven business. A mission-driven company takes consistent work to keep it healthy and resilient.
Why Build a Mission-Driven Business?
Although operating a mission-driven business may feel like a commitment to an idealistic “sentiment,” mission-driven companies have been proven to drive more business. According to a Gallup study, “a strong mission promotes brand differentiation, consumer passion, and brand engagement.”
The same study also found that only about four in 10 (41%) employees know what their company stands for. Which is unfortunate, since a strong mission can also serve as a beacon for attracting and retaining top, engaged employees.
Even before the global pandemic led to the onset of the “great resignation,” employees had already started verbalizing an increased interest in working for a better corporate culture. A 2018 LinkedIn survey found that 71% of employees said they would take a pay cut to work for a company that has a mission they believe in.
What’s Your Why?
Building a mission-driven company starts with defining your personal why.
"Purpose-driven businesses are founded out of the desire to make a change -- for the consumer, an industry, or even the world."
–Bansi Lakhani, founder and chairman, Healing Hands, Via Inc. Magazine
Defining your personal why goes hand in hand with understanding the challenges that face your community and building solutions to meet those challenges.
While it may seem easy to define a problem and to build solutions to solve that problem, you may also wish to consider if your problem is a real one. Or are you merely building solutions you believe will do well and/or net a lot of sales?
Richard Banson says finding your passion boils down to asking yourself two important questions: “what do I love” and “what do I dislike?” The first can help you build a business you love and the second can help build solutions to real problems.
To build your why, you must have a personal investment in the problems you are looking to solve. If you don’t feel motivated by your mission, you will struggle to maintain your commitment to that mission. What’s more, you will have a hard time keeping employees engaged in the mission.
Once you have your “why” in place, ensure it is as visible as possible, both for your employees and for your potential customers and partners. Seeing the “why” every day can ensure employees are aware of and remain aligned with the mission.
Build a Peer Community
When it comes to implementing your why, another forest analogy comes to mind–that of missing “the forest for the trees.”
Sometimes when you get caught up in focusing on the day-to-day details (the trees), you may forget about the greater “why” that guides you. In other words, you’ll miss the beautiful forest that surrounds you because you’re so busy focusing on just one tree at a time.
“We all have blind spots – those areas for improvement and growth.
–Rhonda Louise Robbins
Having a business support network or peer group can help overcome your blind spots.
For example, your peer group can help you ensure your values are aligned with your why. If your mission is to create a more sustainable world, for example, but you drive a gas-guzzling vehicle or drink from single-use beverage cups, your actions will outweigh the “why” that guides your greater vision. A peer group can help keep you on track.
Find a Business Coach Who is Passionate About Helping Your Find Your Why
At a certain point, the blind spots between your why and the mechanics of building and growing your business may go beyond the capabilities of your peer network.
When your business starts to grow rapidly, it can be easy to lose sight of the reasons–the why–that you started the business to begin with.
This is where having a dedicated, laser-focused business coach can help you find your blind spots. Successful business coaches have worked with numerous CEOs across many industries, which gives them the clarity to see recurring patterns and possible trouble spots as you creatively produce solutions. Because they aren’t involved in your day-to-day operations, they have a clearer vision of where the blind spots may be.
If you’re looking to build a healthier, more resilient forest, we would love to talk with you about your why and vision for your company. For more information on business coaching, please contact us so we can talk with you about your mission and vision.