Storytelling aligns our work and personal lives in powerful and significant ways. You must own and tell your personal story if you are to live and lead authentically.

Creating your own mission statement is straightforward. But it is not an easy or quick process. It requires a commitment to dig deep and take the necessary time to get thoughts on paper, step away, reflect, and adjust. So, how to begin?

As school leaders we know storytelling brings to life our organization’s purpose and values, conveys a sense of history, and provides insight and inspiration into where we are heading. At the core of our stories is a clear mission that guides our daily decisions and aligns our strategic work. Most of us spend an enormous amount of time creating, articulating, and marketing that mission and telling our school’s stories. How many of us have invested that same amount of time in developing our own personal mission and telling our own story?