Updated: Nov 11, 2022
If you are a small business startup, I’m sure at one point or another you have typed that question into a google search bar and received endless pages of advice, ideas, and opinions on what the “perfect” mission statement looks like. How do I know this? Because I, too, recently typed in that Google search and, as I was typing the question, it quickly populated as a top search before I could even finish the word “mission”.
At the beginning of June, my daughter was scheduled to undergo what should have been a “routine” surgery. Long story short, during her pre-op blood work, we discovered that she had a very rare bleeding disorder. Her surgery was postponed; it caused our summer to quickly become filled with testing, research, doctors appointments and the discovery of a lifelong, genetic diagnosis for not just one of our children, but for both. Her surgery was moved to a pediatric specialist and rescheduled for the end of
August.
As I wrapped up my current work projects and prepared to be fully present and available with my daughter for the 2 week medical leave her surgery required, God called me to pick up a book that has been sitting on my bookshelf since 2017 waiting for me to “have time” to read it. I decided that I was going to spend my time by my daughter’s bedside reading this book instead of mindlessly scrolling through social media, watching funny videos of puppies on TikTok, or endlessly checking my work email on my phone and attempting to work from my daughter's bedside.
This book blessed my life in more ways than I feel I can articulate in words. It gave me a constant source of inspiration in a time that I felt completely out of balance. It gave me a way to feel grounded in the fact that I was continuing to work “on” my business in a time that I wasn’t able to work “in” my business. It allowed me to be completely at peace and calm during a time that I so desperately prayed for peace and calmness in my soul.
Here is what I didn’t anticipate while reading this book: the time and space to regroup, and to praise God for his provisions. Like many small business owners, we are so busy working “in” our business that we forget to work “on” our business.
For us, Jacque and I started MJ Squad in the height of the pandemic. We started this company simply to assist small business owners who needed to get up online and adjust quickly to the changes small businesses needed to make to survive the pandemic. We didn’t build a full business plan, map out a 5 year growth plan, research a long term profit and loss pricing structure, or complete any major pre-planning at all. Why would we just “jump right in”? Our PASSION was to use our talents and abilities to assist other businesses immediately; they needed our help now, not in six months. This was our calling, and I think we fulfilled that calling to the fullest, and we wouldn’t do it any differently if you asked us today.
Fast forward to August 2022. In just two short years, we had grown to a team of 13 and we were supporting small businesses from Pennsylvania to Alaska! We grew from two clients who needed our help, to supporting over 400 small businesses through our wide range of services. As I was reading “Business Boutique” by Christy Wright, one area that I felt led to create was our mission statement!
I wanted it to encompass our team approach that allows us each to work in our strengths (We are HUGE supporters of CliftonStrengths)! I wanted it to express our passion for producing high quality products and services. I wanted it to tell our future clients that we have a deep desire to help them grow their businesses. On top of all that, I needed it to clearly highlight our team's desire to do all of the above, and more, while upholding our value of being family oriented mothers, wives, and actively involved members of our community. This mission statement was going to help our company maintain the values we desired for it. It was going to share the passion we have to support our clients. It was going to allow us to know what new opportunities to say yes to, and which to say no to. It was going to describe the heartbeat of MJ Squad….
As you can probably tell already, I love talking! Even while writing this, I keep thinking how can I say all this in fewer words. Listen TikTok, 3 second, fast moving world: let's not lose the value of reading and storytelling!
So without further adieu, here is our mission statement. Each word was carefully selected, revised, and refined from my “many many words” into one concise statement that I feel truly represents the heartbeat of MJ Squad!
Our Mission:
Providing top notch services for small businesses through digital marketing, design, support and branding. We believe in working in our unique strengths and cultivating an environment that values balance between work and home for our Squad and our clients.
I hope this empowers you to take a look at your current mission statement. Is it still inline with the company you are today? Was it quickly created to get a marketing piece out, or was it thoughtfully planned out?
If you don’t have a mission statement yet, add that to the items you want to accomplish. You’ll be so glad you did!
Need help creating a mission statement? We can help! Just ask!
Thanks for reading, share your feedback below! I would love to hear from you and build our community of small business leaders! Have a powerful and productive day!
-Megan Kalbach, the “M” in MJ Squad
