Lately, I feel like I’m doing so many things and none of them very well.

When I get overwhelmed, I’ll admit, my first impulse is to give up.

Do you ever feel like that?

But today I remembered two things: 1) It’s Presidents’ Day, and neither Washington nor Lincoln ever gave up and I know their lives were far busier and more complicated than mine.

2) I have a secret weapon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s one you can use, too, when you’re feeling overwhelmed.

It’s a mission statement.

Suzanne Lieurance of www.writebythesea.com recommended I create one.

Honestly when she suggested it, it felt like one more thing on my to-do list.

Until I created one, that is. (Suzanne knows what she’s talking about.)

What exactly is a mission statement, you ask.

It’s a sentence, phrase or set of words that home in on what your purpose is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is your purpose as a writer or an artist, a teacher or a parent, a blogger, or a human?

What are your values in your role?

Who you are “performing” for.

If you’re an artist for children, you’re not going to waste time painting nudes.

If you’re a parent of teenagers, you’re not going to read articles about toddlers.

If you’re a blogger for readers and writers of middle grade novels, you’re not going to spend time writing about or writing adult fiction.

I made two mission statements, which I’m still tweaking.

The first is for my fiction writing: “Uplifting kids—as they strive to find belonging and support—while pointing out the magic along the way.”

The second is for my blog: “Discuss creative processes, promote good children’s books, and seek out the magic that exists in the world.”

A mission statement could also be a word, like a word-of-the-year, or several words to keep you focused.

Something like “Entertain, Inform, and Inspire.”

That’s part of The Walt Disney Company’s mission statement: to entertain, inform and inspire people around the globe through the power of unparalleled story telling.

Here are some others:

Scholastic: to make quality and affordable books available to all children and to open a world of possibility.

Target: to help all families discover the joy of everyday life.

Starbucks: With every cup, with every conversation, with every community—we nurture the limitless possibilities of human connection.

Driscoll’s (berry company): to continually delight berry consumers.

Instagram: to capture and share the world’s moments.

A mission statement is a fine way to focus squirrel-brain attention.

Say your mission statement out loud and focus.

It’s like a meditation.

And it helps to pare down a to-do list.

If an activity doesn’t fall in line with your mission statement, you don’t need to do it.

Thanks to Suzanne for the advice.

She was right.

Now it’s your turn.

Come up with a basic mission statement for yourself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See if it helps you focus your day and get things done.

Until next week,

~ Gail

Countdown: 45 weeks left of 2024

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