Making Your Passions Their Passions
Your business might be doing well, but if your workforce doesn’t feel any sort of personal connection to your business’s mission, it could prevent lasting success. You want to boost employee morale and make them happy about their work. To reinvigorate your employees’ passion for your business’s mission, try a few of these tips.
Walk the talk.
Patagonia’s CEO, Yvon Chouinard, decided to make his products out of organic cotton after he saw how industrially grown cotton was hurting the environment. It cost more to do that, but he stuck to Patagonia’s mission of creating environmentally friendly products. If you’re not willing to sacrifice for your mission, then it’s not your mission — and your employees will know it.
Make it clear.
Make sure everyone at your company knows exactly what your mission is. Only when employees have a clear understanding of the goal can they actually work toward it. If your mission statement can be interpreted in multiple ways, clarify it throughout all levels of your business.
Speak passionately about it.
While you want the mission itself to be exciting, even the most intriguing of mission statements will be DOA if your delivery doesn’t convey your excitement. Humans are emotional creatures, so connecting with your employees emotionally in regard to your mission is just as important as the mission itself.
Make it personal.
While you might think tying your personal story to the company’s mission seems narcissistic, the truth is that your team wants to hear your story. People like stories, and if you can convey yours with honesty and humility, no one will think you’re an egoist.
Re-work it.
If your mission doesn’t seem to be inspiring passion in your workforce, then maybe it’s time to tweak it a little bit. Whether you’re just starting in business or have had the same mission statement for 10 years, a new mission lived out, made clear, and made personal by you can spark a newfound appreciation for your business among your employees.
-Randy Sklar
