Mission Statement. Most companies have mission statements. They proudly display them on their websites, engrave them in granite at their headquarters and tout them in their marketing materials. They are a company's heart and soul reduced to a few sentences, sometimes a few words. This mission statement directs the company and helps it stay focused.
You too should have your own mission statement. Take some time with a pad and a pen and brainstorm what your mission statement should be. What are your goals? What are your values? Who are you and what do you want to become? Think through your personal mission for your life and reduce it to writing. It shouldn't be more than a sentence or two, maybe a couple of phrases, possibly even just a few words. Keep it brief and keep it handy. Tape it to your monitor or stick it on your refrigerator door. Your mission statement will help you keep your actions and thoughts directed toward achieving what is most important to you and what is most aligned with your true self.
Tagline. After you have crafted your mission statement, start thinking about your tagline. What are the words that you want to define you? How about "Just Do It" like Nike? Or "Do More" by American Express? Or "The Power to Be Your Best," by Apple? Our firm's tagline is "A Firm of Leaders." As you did with the mission statement, sit down and figure out what your personal tag line is. Maybe it's a permutation of "Live Richly" by Citi or a take on "Play. Laugh. Grow." by Fischer-Price. Research taglines online. See what companies and law firms have used as tag lines. Write down your favorite. Why do you like them? Why do they speak to you? Do they reflect your mission statement? Your personal philosophy? Drafting your mission statement made you focus on what you wanted out of life, who you are and what you wanted to be. The tagline makes you focus even more.
Strategic Plan. Now you have a mission statement and tagline. Now you need to develop a long-term plan for you, for your family, for your career, and for everything else going on in your life. Companies pour over their strategic plans. They evaluate, they brainstorm, they analyze and they develop a long-term plan for the growth and success of the company. The plan lists all of the company's goals and a plan on how to accomplish them. Companies do this because they want to ensure that everything they do is directed to accomplishing one or more of these goals. Otherwise, success becomes nothing more than a coincidence.
Concrete Tasks. Once you are done with a strategic plan, concrete goals and a course of action on how to accomplish them, sit down and write out the specific tasks you need to perform next year, next month and next week. You want to craft a list of specific tasks that will help you implement the strategic plan.
Benchmarks. Plans are great, but how do you know if you are getting any closer to achieving them? You need to set out a series benchmarks against which you can measure your progress. Are you moving forward? If so, how much? If part of your plan is to lead a voluntary bar association, what have you done to advance that goal? What committee have you joined? What responsibilities have you undertaken? Keep a notebook handy, with a calendar, noting on a weekly basis your progress.
Accountability. If you worked at a corporation, you would have a supervisor you would have to report to. At your firm, you have a partner or partners to report to. When it comes to your own personal plan, have someone to hold you accountable, whether a spouse, family member or friend. They will keep you honest and on track.
Rewards. And as you draw nearer to accomplishing your goals, and as you reach one benchmark and the next, reward yourself for your accomplishments. Treat yourself to a short vacation, or a good book or a nice meal, whatever you consider an appropriate reward. Celebrate your latest accomplishment and work toward your next one.
Read more on Frank Ramos' blog, Tips for Young Lawyers. Francisco "Frank" Ramos, Jr. is the administrative partner at Clarke Silverglate in Miami, Florida, where he practices in the areas of products liability, employment, commercial litigation, medical malpractice, class actions and general liability.
For more information about LexisNexis products and solutions connect with us through our corporate site.