On Mission Statements – A Review

How does the saying go?

If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything?

It’s a funny statement really. And I don’t know how much I agree with it. I think some people flash open-mindedness like a neon vacancy sign, but others tout it as a defense for critical thinking.

I believe I sit more on the latter side of the fence, but I imagine most people assume that of themselves too.

That being said, I think everyone really should stand for something. I think most people do too. They just tend to stand for the extremely general and the hyper specific. What do I mean by that? I’m glad you asked.

From my experience, I think most people consider themselves paragons of virtues like “freedom,” “happiness,” and “honor,” just the same as they consider themselves zealots for the Chicago Bears, whether toilet paper comes over the top or underneath the roll, or if a hotdog counts as a sandwich.*

Standing for these things is, to many, tied to internal identity. “I fight for freedom,” “I preach positivity,” and “I am a Bears fan.” And that’s fine, until it isn’t.

I’ve talked about this before, how people conflate identity with opinion. How, as a society, we form tribes around the concept of pizza toppings, favorite bands, and political parties; just the same as we band together in the name of liberty, justice, and equality.

Sometimes, this dogmatic approach to concepts is important. It leads to people becoming stubbornly connected to making a positive difference, to doing something bigger than themselves.

Other times, our tendency to tie identity to opinion becomes toxic, and volatile. It causes us to take matters personally. Matters that sometimes have nothing to do with us. Matters that sometimes go way beyond the insular details of your life.

We do this, because we have put competition where there should never be any and because we want to win.

I don’t think I need to tell you this, but just to set the record straight: there is much more to life than winning, especially when what you’re “winning” is simply a made-up game designed to separate the formerly huddled masses.

But, for many, losing this, even if it’s pointless, is losing all they really have. Because at the end of the day, they’ve gotten their personal self so tied to opinion, that, well, opinion is all they have.

The scary thing is, this could happen to anyone. Many of my friends who, like me, consider themselves critical thinkers, who consider themselves introspective, who consider themselves paragons of justice, have absolutely lost their minds to opinion.

They have become the dogmatic thing they accuse anyone who “stands against them” of being. And I’m not pointing fingers right now, because these people exist everywhere. The loud ones just all seem to have crowded one side of the Petri dish.

And, in an effort to never lose sight of that. I think it’s important to remember what it is you really stand for.

Maybe its because of all the job applications I’ve been sending out, or maybe it’s because of all the vitriol I see on TV, but I’ve been thinking about “mission statements” a lot lately. Especially my own.

I think, of all the virtues and small details and opinions, what I want most is equal access. I want people across the board to have the same tools, the same shot. I also know that’s impossible, but it’s not inapproachable.

I think everyone deserves education, respect, and a chance. And that no one should be able to get in the way of that. The way you get there is different for everyone, but I think across the board it starts with transparency.

This isn’t new. It’s just a declaration I suppose. It’s also ammunition. A tool for you to use against me, if you’re so inclined.

And in other ways, I suppose it’s an invitation to declare your own mission statement. So, that leads me to ask, what hill are you going to die on?

Thanks for reading, and best of luck in the coming months where this “competition” is going to really come to a head. Hopefully, we can break that streak soon.

Have a great week.

*= I am not a Bears fan. I prefer toilet paper to go over the top, but understand the argument of the other side. A hotdog shares more DNA with a steamed bun or a taco than it does a sandwich, but I do consider it one, only because it’s a fun opinion to have.

Props to my Mom for helping me come up with things people are oddly passionate about.