This past year has not been easy for many. We continue to see companies downsize, budgets cut and revenues drop. We've all had to tighten our belts a little or watch our wallets with just a little extra diligence. An unfortunate result has been that many charities have also seen their donations decline – at precisely a time when they're needed most.

Do you feel like writing a mission statement is, well…mission impossible?

Have you endured too many marathon committee meetings? Have you written countless drafts only to find a reason to revise it one more time? Perhaps you've made enemies over the inclusion or exclusion of a single word and still have nothing to show for it. Is it all worth it? In a word, YES!

The mission statement can be a powerful tool to align individuals to a common goal. It has the power to influence every decision an organization makes. Further, it can be the clearest articulation to both your employees and your market about what you do and why it matters.

Long before Nike’s popular tagline became part of the North American lexicon, my mother was the embodiment of those words in action. She is a woman of great integrity. She practices what she preaches. And she is a woman of few words so her preaching is short and to the point. In between preparing meals, knitting socks, washing windows, tending the garden and loads of laundry, my mother doles out bits of wisdom which are as applicable to me today as they were when I was a kid.

One of my strongest memories from childhood is of my mother repeatedly prodding us to “Do something!”

It’s amazing what a little crisis can do for one’s appetite for learning. Faced this past year with rapid changes in our industry, challenges in business and a dismal economy, I responded by burying myself in books, attending conferences and tuning into podcasts and webinars. I even hired a consultant to help guide me to the answers to all my problems. There were times I was tempted to think that I simply needed to find some single elusive secret. You know the one – the secret to success.