Many organizations publicly define who they are through their vision, mission, and values statements. You can do the same as individuals. This exercise is very similar to organizational vision, mission, and values statement writing; there are slight modifications from the organizational format with respect to length, focus, and purpose. Keep in mind, this exercise is very introspective. It can be very challenging if taken seriously, and it can change your life. You are to write a Personal Philosophy of Leadership through your construction of a personal vision, mission, and values statement. You may wish to review the grading rubric prior to starting. Here are the steps to the process:

1.  Vision Statement—the vision statement is a statement of what is possible; it is a picture of the future. Write a statement on what is possible for you and what the picture of the future is for you. This may be 1 paragraph (5–6 sentences) and up to a page. This is not an organizational vision statement. It is a personal vision statement; there are differences.

2.  Mission Statement—the mission statement answers the vision. If your vision statement is to be or to do XYZ (what is possible), your mission statement is that you accomplish your vision by ABC (your reflections, thoughts, and method). This is a little different than the short corporate mission statements. This mission statement is a philosophy or creed that focuses on your character, your contributions or achievements, and on the values or principles upon which your attitudes are based. You may call it your Personal Constitution. You must answer the following: What is my purpose in life? What really counts? What do I want to accomplish in life? What legacy would you like to leave? You must also weave into this statement what type of leader you want to be, what your purpose is as a leader, and what legacy you would like to leave as a leader. To earn the greatest amount of points, the inclusion of a Christian worldview in this assignment is strongly encouraged; you should be praying and seeking God’s guidance in this exercise. Write a statement that includes all of the above material. This must be well thought out. This is not an “hour before it is due” exercise; that will be obvious. This statement is expected to be a minimum of 3–4 pages in length. This is not an organizational mission statement. It is a personal mission statement; there are differences.

3.  Values Statement—in bullet form, list 5–10 values that are most important to you by which you would want others to define you. This is not an organizational values statement. It is a personal values statement; there are differences.

4.  References—this paper must be at least 5 pages and include a minimum of 5–7 references to ground your thoughts. Use proper, current APA formatting for in-text citations and for the final reference page.