Your Life. Your Journey. Your Purpose

A few years ago, Peter Drucker, known as the ‘father of modern management’, together with several other thought leaders such as Jim Collins and Phil Kotler; wrote a book outlining 5 essential questions every organisation should answer to achieve exceptional performance.

Those questions are – 1) What is our Mission ?  2) Who is our Customer ?  3) What does our Customer Value ?  4) What are our Results ?  and  5) What is our Plan ?

Looking through the lens of personal growth, I can definitely see value in applying those same questions to our personal lives.

The first question – What is our Mission ? – is perhaps the most difficult, but also the most crucial question.  If you were to write your own personal mission statement, what would it say ?  Who are you  ?  What values of utmost importance to you would it include ?  What do you want to achieve in your life ?  What is your purpose in life ?  It can be a confronting process but well worth the time and effort.  And I would suggest a regular review and update of your Personal Mission Statement as you journey through significant milestones in your life.

The second question – Who is Your Customer ? – helps us define the relationships we want to nurture in our lives.  In my blog last week, I discussed the value of surrounding ourselves with the right types of people in our lives to inspire us, challenge and support us.  This question will help you get clarity on who they are.

The third question – What does your Customer Value ?  View this as an important reminder to align our expectations with the people we value the most in our lives.  Share and discuss your Personal Mission Statement with your spouse/partner.  Seek to understand his or her personal mission statement – what are his/her values and aspirations ?  Use this question as an opportunity to align expectations and life goals with your life partner.

The fourth question – What are our Results ?  As in business, having specific goals and timelines is useful to guide allocation of our time, energy and resources.  What do you want to achieve in your lifetime ?  What ‘results’ do you want to achieve so that you can look back on your life with the satisfaction of knowing that you have lived to your fullest potential ?

The final question – What is our Plan ? – becomes almost straightforward after that.  Map out the short, medium and long term actions to get you to your life goals.  And take that first step, no matter how big or small, towards creating the life you really want.

Life rewards action.  Begin now by writing your Personal Mission Statement.