Читать книгу Nonprofit Kit For Dummies - Stan Hutton, Beverly A. Browning - Страница 82

The mission statement is an organization’s heartbeat (see Figure 4-1). In anatomy, your heart is the engine that fuels your entire body. For your nonprofit, the mission conveys the passion in your existence. Your mission statement impacts every stakeholder and is the reason your staff shows up at work. It’s the reason your board members work hard to support the nonprofit’s work in the community. The mission statement is the driving mantra for your volunteers who show up day after day to roll up their sleeves and carry out their job descriptions. Finally, your mission statement is the living, breathing, actionable reason that other organizations in the community want to be partners and step up, when needed, to fill gaps in services. Most importantly, a succinct and compassion-filled mission statement speaks to the hearts (and wallets) of potential donors.

FIGURE 4-1: A strong mission statement is an organization’s heartbeat.

A mission statement should state what the organization’s reason for existence is, how the mission will be achieved, and who will benefit from the organization’s activities. The mission should be

 Memorable: You want to carry the statement around in your mind — at all times. Stakeholders should be able to remember it with ease and help your organization live it in their daily contributions.

 Focused: You want the statement to be narrow enough to focus on the reason our organization exists but broad enough to support organizational growth and expansion.

 Compelling: You want to communicate the need your organization addresses and the importance of doing something about it. (Bonus points if it also attracts potential board members to want to join your board and be a part of ongoing inspiration and change.)

 Easy to read: Your statement should be written in plain language so that folks don’t need a set of footnotes to decipher it. Be sure to limit your use of adjectives, and try to avoid jargon.

After you decide on your organization’s mission statement, you can use it as your go-to reference when making decisions about your nonprofit’s activities. Add your mission statement to your Form 990 tax report to the IRS, in brochures, and in grant proposals. You may even print it on business cards for your board members and staff.