The 6 storytelling tips for a powerful mission

With a mission, the foundation for your corporate story, you tell who you are and what you do. You zoom in on your right to exist. What do you want to mean to whom? Who is your customer and what generic need do you meet? Who are your stakeholders and what do you promise them? Finally, your mission statement answers the question of what you stand for as an organisation and what you can be called to account for. It is about norms, values and convictions, about intentions and ambitions for the future. So much for the theory.

Let's move on to everyday practice. The answers to all these questions can be found there. But to summarise these answers in an intriguing and inspiring way into a clear vision, without coming across as woolly or vague, is something else. So here are the 6 best storytelling tips for that!

Tip 1 - First motivate the 'why', then the 'how' and 'what'.

In a mission statement the DNA of the organisation is enclosed. A mission therefore goes further and deeper than just describing 'externals' such as products and production methods. Why does an organisation do what it does? And for whom are you doing it? Only when you have the answers to these questions can you really touch people. Want to know more about 'why', 'what' and 'how'? Google Simon Sinek and his 'Start with why'.

Tip 2 - Make your mission exciting

Write your mission in such a way that customers and (other) stakeholders are only too eager to experience what you have to offer. Building up a bit of excitement can't do any harm. In that context, stories, however short, are always remembered. Better than dry facts and statements. Use this knowledge to your advantage.

Tip 3 - Be honest and credible

Promise in your mission only what you can deliver. Of course you can let your ambition resound in it, as long as it is realistic. Dreaming of travelling to the moon or promising that by 2020 you will offer the first moon travels? The first shows a healthy ambition, the second is - for the time being - idle chatter. Unless your name is Richard Bransson, of course!

Tip 4 - Write down your mission as simply as possible

When people hear simple language, they think of Jip and Janneke-like texts. But leave those for what they are, your customer and your (other) stakeholders are not little children. At the same time, you should try to avoid jargon and management abbreviations, such as terms like 'profit maximisation' or 'maximum shareholder value'. So formulate your mission clearly and comprehensibly.

Tip 5 - Keep your mission concise

A powerful mission easily fits on a single A4 sheet. That is also the only way to ensure that your customers and (other) stakeholders remember your mission. Always focus on the main points. There are plenty of ways to communicate in more detail at a later stage.

Tip 6 - Share your mission with the world

Always remember that you have a lot of beautiful things to offer the world. So, be good and tell it! Show that the mission is more than just words on paper. Let people experience what the mission means for them and the world. Use the mission as a mirror for your own corporate story: is our mission still meaningful? Provide stories that underline that statement.

Getting Started

Do you want to start storytelling right now? You can start by taking a look at our websites storytellingpeople.nl, storytellingpeople.com or corporatehistory.com.

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For more than 30 years Storytelling People has been recording corporate stories and bringing them to life with storytelling and community building.

Storytelling makes the abstract corporate story accessible in stories by and for people.

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