It's week two of this class and we are working on creating the outline of our professional portfolio, as well as developing a personal-professional vision/mission statement. Sounds simple, right? I wish that were the case!
Part of my problem is that I tend to over think this kind of activity. I have always had trouble truly understanding and owning the idea of vision and mission statements. We have those where I work, along with a set of Guiding Principles that we go through every time we meet as a Leadership Team. I find the principles to be an excellent framework for facilitating a discussion about what's been happening since our last meeting as related to our list. We end up having truly valuable discussions about topics that might not come up if we merely followed an agenda created by one or two people. We don't talk about the vision/mission regularly, and to be honest, it sounds so "pie-in-the-sky" that I have a hard time connecting to it. I hope that by the time I complete this course, I will have a better understanding and appreciation of what these statements mean and can possibly contribute to our company statements when the time comes to revisit/revise.
As far as creating the outline for my portfolio goes, I feel pretty comfortable with using Google Sites and tried to remember that I can always edit what I've started--nothing is written in stone. I think letting go of my inner perfectionist in this instance helped me complete this assignment without too much stress...I look forward to adding content and letting my work tell the story about me as a professional in the business of education.
I think you are in good company when it comes to feeling intimidated when it comes to writing vision/mission statements. Frankly, I used to think they were stupid - partially because most of them are. A mission statement that's just a bunch of flowery language that looks good on a plaque is useless - wouldn't you agree? As I have gained experience in this area, though, I have come to appreciate them more. Like you, I'm hoping that my experience in this class will help me embrace vision and mission statements as useful, even critical tools for self-improvement.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like many of us are all in the same boat. I'm not good with mission and vision statements either, and they tend to generate stress. These are not my strong suit, but just like you I'm working on them. Simple? Not so much. Won't you feel so much better when your mission and vision statement are completed? I like that we are using Google sites to create our portfolios. I had to spend some time remembering how to get started, but then it's like riding a bike. Once you get going, it starts to come back.
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