- Deborah Chaddock Brown

How many of your employees (and yes, that includes YOU) are doing something RIGHT THIS MINUTE to support your mission statement?

In a post by Denise O'Berry entitled Do I need a Mission Statement for my small business she says:

"...98% of the 50 most profitable Fortune 1000 companies have mission statements in place."

However, at a meeting of business owners when the subject came up the consensus was that Mission Statements are more for the public than for internal use.  

If that's true - how do you ensure that everyone is working toward the same goal and that each task or action they perform supports the mission? 

Enter the need for a MANTRA - an internal battle cry - a short, quick phrase that employees know, believe in and work toward each and everyday.

If you had a mantra - what would it be?

Guy Kawasaki wrote a post comparing Mantras to Missions. In the article he talks about Wendy's mission statement which is to "delilver quality products and services for our customers and communities through leadership, innovation, and partnerships."

That's a lot to put your mouth around.

He offers a possible mantra of "healthy fast food."  That's easy to swallow.  That's something each and every employee (in the stores and supporting the stores) can understand, promise and deliver.

He shares other famous mantras:
Federal Express:  Peace of Mind
Nike:  Authentic athletic performance
Target:  Democratize design
Mary Kay: Entriching women's lives

So how does a mantra help to grow sales?

If every employee understands the goal (i.e. the mantra) and believes in it and spends each day ensuring the tasks they work on support it - then you are all moving in the same direction:  growing sales.

Or your goal might be adding new locations or being more profitable.

The key is effectively communicating the goal in a simple manner that your entire team agrees to and takes ownership of.  A Mantra.  A Corporate Cheer.  A War Cry. 

Once your mantra is developed then ask yourself:

Is what I'm doing RIGHT THIS MINUTE supporting that mantra?

Need help determining your mantra and developing a communication process to get your team on board?  Call me.  I can help.

330.414.8792