this week we are writing our mission statement and putting together all the info from previous weeks to create a user-friendly business plan

What’s Your Mission?

A mission statement articulates a company's purpose. It announces to the world at large why your company exists. Every business should have a mission statement as a way of unifying the organisation. A mission statement is a combination of what your business does and how and why it does it, expressed in a way that encapsulates the values that are important to you. Your mission statement is personal to you, it has to make sense to you and your customers, outlining your purpose and how you provide value. It should be concise and specific and include the following 4 points

• What do we do?

• How do we do it?

• Who do we do it for?

• What value are we bringing?

A mission statement is important to have early on in your business because it helps you get your overall vision for your business down on paper. It helps gain clarity and it can act as a guide of where you want to go and what you want to do.

Writing A Business Plan

Having a business plan is important for applying for funding and support, but more importantly it will keep you on track with your business as it grows. It doesn’t have to be long or complicated, just clear and concise and easy to amend and adapt as your business grows and changes. Below are some tips for writing your business plan.

• Be concise

It’s really important that you can understand what your business is all about from a quick glance at your plan. Use concise and simple language throughout.

• Be specific

Being specific is just as important as being concise. The details will help you drill down into how you will actually deliver your plan.

• Know your market

A big part of knowing whether your business will be successful is understanding your audience. Make sure your plan is clear about your target market – who will you be selling to and how many other companies are already selling similar products?

• Know your finances

The other essential part of a business plan is the finance section. If your business isn’t going to make any money, it won’t be successful so you need to be very clear on how you will make a profit. Use it to your advantage – your plan will be incredibly useful when it comes to securing funding and support as well as helping you personally to understand your objectives. 

writing a mission statement exercise

A mission statement is important to have early on in your business because it helps you get your overall vision for your business down on paper. It helps you gain clarity and it can act as a guide of where you want to go and what you want to do. 

In this exercise we will be breaking the process of writing your mission statement down into different sections and then at the end bring it all together as a draft that you can edit and refine.

Writing a business plan exercise

This week we are pulling together all the info from previous weeks into a clear and concise business plan that can be used when applying for funding and support and more importantly to keep you on track with your business as it grows.

week 11 book

This week’s book is Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined by Scott Sonenshein. This book teaches you to rethink what you need to succeed, and do more with what you already have, changing the way you work and live.

week 11 podcast

This week’s podcast is The Confidence Podcast a podcast for women who struggle with perfectionism, self-doubt, and a self-critical voice. If you know you have potential and purpose, but you still secretly feel like you’re behind, not enough, or even an impostor, then this podcast is for you. In each episode, world-renown Confidence Coach Trish Blackwell will teach you how to live confidently and courageously. This podcast is your weekly resource to train your thoughts, take them captive, and use them to help you live with joy, abundance, peace, power, and, of course, confidence.