The Path: Creating Your Mission Statement for Work and for Life [Paperback]

Laurie Beth Jones (Author)

Book Description

Release date: August 12, 1998

The author of Jesus, CEO combines powerful spiritual insight and inspirational, practical advice on how to achieve one's highest goals and potential in business and in life, discussing the three key elements of a successful mission statement and explaining how to fulfill a mission.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Laurie Beth Jones is President and founder of The Jones Group, an advertising, marketing, and business development firm whose mission is "to recognize, promote, and inspire divine excellence." With her partner, Mary Ellen Dempsey, and a team of highly energized experts, they specialize in health care marketing. Listed in the International Who's Who, Laurie is a former president of the El Paso chapter of American Women in Radio and Television, was among the first Most Notable Women of Texas, was named an Outstanding West Texas Scholar, and is an alumna of Leadership El Paso and Lead San Diego. She has won numerous awards in design, copywriting, poetry, speech, and racquetball. She lives in California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (August 12, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786882417
• ISBN-13: 978-0786882410
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.6 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #152,400 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Path: A great journey in defining self-purpose August 15, 2000

By Jena Kennedy

Format:Paperback

Henry Kissinger once said, "If you don't know where you are going, every road will get you nowhere." In this book, author Laurie Beth Jones takes that theme and runs with it, explaining both the importance and the process of defining and fulfilling one's own mission statement. She weaves a spiritual perspective throughout the book. In the first half, she describes how to find--and more importantly--how to fulfill, a personal mission statement. In the second half of the book, she provides case studies that focus on Biblical characters and their personal missions. Each chapter ends with a series of questions or exercises that stimulate further thought and help the reader work through the concepts and ideas presented.

Much of what Jones wrote appealed to the self-help junkie in me, and I found myself reaching for my highlighter so I could mark quotes and thoughts to remember and reread. "If your mission holds no personal passion, it is not your path." I kept underlining things and having a strong impulse to write "wow" in the margin next to these thought-provoking concepts. "Every word we speak, every action we take, has an effect on the totality of humanity. No one can escape that privilege--or that responsibility," she wrote. "One of the most important things we can do for others--and for ourselves--is to create and maintain an atmosphere charged with positive prophecies." That one got posted on my office wall.

But the book offers much more than just a thought-provoking collection of inspirational quotes. Jones defines the elements of a good mission statement, dispels eleven false assumptions about missions, explains how to form a sense of mission, explores how personality affects personal mission, and explains how to craft a personal vision statement. The book is a fantastic resource and a valuable experience in self awareness and defining self-purpose.

The Path was an easy read with fairly short chapters that could easily be digested in between daily tasks, while waiting at your child's baseball practice, or taking a short break at work. I'd highly recommend reading it, if for no other reason than the value you'll get from examining your own life's purpose and priorities.

40 of 42 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Your Mission Is Mission Critical April 23, 2001

By Jennifer E. Sertl

Format:Paperback

Go into any Fortune 500 company headquarters and not far from the door you will probably find a plaque with a mission statement and a vision statement. Since the early 1990's companies have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars creating mission and vision statements that serve as a anchor for all employee goals and objectives. Laurie Beth Jones reminds us why this is a critical investment for companies and urges individuals to invest the time, energy and discipline necessary to articulate their own mission and vision statements. She claims this is essential in order for one to gain a higher level of clarity for how daily activities align to fulfill an individual's goals and purpose. In addition, Jones asserts, "What we think about ourselves is clearly and unequivocally reflected in everything we say or do-in our work, our surroundings, our service to others. Therefore it is important to take the time to get a more clear picture of who we really think we are."

This book is a "must read" for independent consultants, managers, and people in job transition. For the independent consultant the book offers exercises designed to help identify niche and ways to articulate value. With so many independent consultants-even within our Rochester community, the better the consultant has done the work of creating a mission it will help him/her determine the clients and companies that most align with the value they have to offer. For the manager, the book is full of ideas that may be useful in team building and in capturing the most for employees. As a manager, one gets rewarded for achieving results through other people. By taking the time with employee and teams and working through some of the exercises that allow individuals to determine the values that are important to them and the actions that are most rewarding they will be able to align projects with people in a way that enhances productivity. And for the individual in job transition the book offers key questions to help a person envision the type of work that best allows for the individual to live his/her mission in a work setting. To find a motivational and value based fit, the person seeking employment will have greater articulation of "bottom line" essentials that are fulfilling and motivating. Jones shares that "passion is power" and the more clearly defined and articulated that passion is-the more power that can be released.

So what is the difference between a mission and vision statement? A mission statement is a sentence that articulates key actions, an audience, and a purpose. A mission statement must be broad enough to encompass many activities with a final outcome. Here are Jones ingredients to an effective mission statement: · A mission statement should be no more that one single sentence long. · It should be easily understood by a twelve year old. · It should be able to be recited by memory at gun-point.

A vision statement is less of a strategy than an exercise in visualization. A vision statement requires an individual or a company to write down exactly what the "picture" will look like once the mission has been carried out. A vision statement requires imagination and what Jones calls positive "prophecy." Jones encourages that ,"One of the most important things we can do for others-and for ourselves -is to create and maintain an atmosphere charged with positive prophecies." That is what vision statements do-they project into the future and create a more desirable picture that is motivating, inspiring, and desired. For companies that are going through major changes and struggling with bringing the workforce along with the necessary changes, I recommend this book as a strategy to help leaders and managers to support staff in creating scenarios to create vision as leverage for change.

A recommendation for leading you or your organization with the use of mission and vision statements is to keep both the mission and vision present together. With the latest technology, you can now watch two football games simultaneously. A television channel can be superimposed on another so you can follow two games at the same time, a "picture within a picture". That is exactly what is required to make the most use of mission and vision statements. They must be present while you are in the midst of your work and daily activities. The two pictures or channels Jones encourages you to watch are channel WCI (What Currently Is) and channel WCB (What Could Be). Keeping these two channels or pictures present allows for you, your team, and your company to make decision in alignment with the articulated mission and vision.

I firmly believe that whether we are individual contributors or part of a corporate entity, we can offer the most value by being clear in our skills, gifts and purpose. This book will help you gain and articulate some of that clarity. In addition to this book, I strongly recommend Soloing-Realizing Your Life's Ambition by Harriet Rubin.

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It May Change Your Life! February 15, 2000

By Michael Merlino

Format:Hardcover

If you are struggling with balance in your life and wondering who you are and where you are going than this is the book for you. Jones forces you to carefully analyze yourself and figure out what makes you tick and helps you realize your purpose on this planet along the way. Her theory is simple: come up with an all encompassing mission statement that represents everything about you (career,fun, etc.) and live by it. If what you are doing in your life doesn't fit the mission then modify your mission or change how you are living. A powerful read! Don't be surprised if this book changes your life or at least your perspective of it. It changed mine and gave me the courage and guts to bail out of corporate America and do what I am truly passionate about.