Do We Need a Mission Statement After 50?

In my work with my community of women who are redefining after 50, I recently put together a mini workshop where we developed our personal mission statements for this stage of our lives.

Interestingly, as I set out to research and get some background for this project, I found tons of information on both corporate mission statements along with personal mission statements for younger people who are setting out on their career path. There was ZERO information on personal mission statements for women in our age range.

What Is a Mission Statement?

A mission statement is a short 3-4 sentence statement that captures your overall identity, values, and priorities. It does not go into detail about your goals. Rather, it describes what is important to you as you move forward. A couple of examples of personal mission statements (one of which is mine) are:

1. “To move through life flipping my hair and do all of the things in spite of my anxiety. To be the woman that my family and community needs me to be and to feel amazing doing it. Caring for myself through healthy eating and exercise because when I’m healthy and I feel good, I’m able to be the woman that my family and community can rely on. To be a woman who keeps her promises and commitments not only to others but also to herself.”
2. “To use my gifts of intelligence for the benefit and improvement of others. To make use of the wisdom, knowledge, and logical thinking capabilities which God has given me. To put these skills into action and find a way to do good in the world. To assist others in overcoming burdens and reaching their true potential.”

There is no wrong way to develop a personal mission statement. However, the language should convey what you plan to do or be rather than what you don’t plan to do or be. For example, instead of saying “I’m going to stop eating junk food,” I stated that I would “care for myself through healthy eating and exercise” so that I could better serve my community and family.

Why a Mission Statement After 50?

Many of the women with whom I work, find themselves redefining in some way after 50. Creating a personal mission statement can be a very helpful part of this process for several reasons:

We’ve Never Sat Down to Think About It!

Although we may have a general idea about what our values and priorities have been throughout our lives, how many of us have actually sat down, organized it, and written it down?

As we move forward in trying to figure out what we want to do for ourselves after 50, taking the time to reflect on what sort of woman we envision ourselves to be can be an important step in the process.

Our Priorities May Have Changed Along the Way

Our values, for the most part, have likely stayed consistent throughout our lives. However, our priorities can change in tune with our life circumstances.

Family has always been a priority for me, and it continues to be. I will drop everything else to be there for my husband, kids, grandchildren, and parents. (Dogs too!). But my family doesn’t need me to be available 24/7 like they did when I was raising my children. So, I find myself with time most days now to be able to prioritize other things (such as content creation and exercising).

I think many of us on this side of 50 are, for the first time, able to make ourselves and our dreams a priority.

It Provides Us with a Framework of What Motivates Us

Again, for many of the women in my community who know they want to redefine after 50, but aren’t quite sure what that looks like exactly, having a mission statement gives them a framework. A reminder of what sort of things motivate them and are important to incorporate into their life moving forward.

If you look at the second mission statement above, for example, you can see that for this person, spirituality is a big part of who they are. In addition, they are looking to move forward and to help people – especially people who might find themselves in difficult situations.

How to Start Formulating Your Own Personal Mission Statement

Allow yourself to reflect, visualize and journal. Close your eyes and think about the type of woman that you want to be after 50. Picture how you move through your day. Who is around you? What do your interactions look like?

Reflect on what you’d like people to say about you at your funeral. How do you want to be remembered? Brainstorm everything that comes into your mind.

This reflection will give you great insight into qualities that should be incorporated into your own personal mission statement.

Once you have your statement, write it down every day when you journal. Say it to yourself at least once daily.

And, if you’re so inclined, feel free to share your mission statement! After all, women over 50 with personal mission statements are pioneers!

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Have you ever developed a personal mission statement at any other time during your life? What values and priorities are important to you as you move forward after 50? Let us know if you intend to create a personal mission statement for yourself!