Mission-Driven Startups

Recently I was meeting with an entrepreneur and he started talking about their mission. After five minutes on the mission it was clear he was serious and dedicated to building a mission-driven business. First, what’s a mission?

From How to Write a Perfect Mission Statement, here are a few examples:

• Ben & Jerry’s: Making the best possible ice cream, in the nicest possible way.
• Disney: To make people happy.
• Instagram: Capture and Share the World’s Moments.
• Amazon: To be the world’s most customer-centric company.

A mission is the core aspiration of the business. The best mission statements are short, inspiring, and memorable.

Here are a few ways to know if it’s a mission-driven startup:

• Employees talk about “we” and not “I”
• Everyone in the company can recite the mission
• The entrepreneur is constantly connecting the actions with the mission
• There’s a sense of focus and drive in the team members where it’s clear that it’s more than “just a job”

Look for the rare mission-driven startup. Mission-driven startups grow faster, achieve more, and make a bigger impact.

What else? What are some more thoughts on mission-driven startups?