In order to believe in the purpose of your business, employees need to understand it. So you have to constantly repeat your stated purpose as if it were a mantra. It doesn’t have to be earth shattering in its creativity or uniqueness; it just has to be yours.

How many times have you heard someone in your organization say, “We need a better understanding of where we are headed”? Too many managers are thrown off balance by that question. They can’t understand why employees have a hard time understanding which direction the business is heading.

People need to know where they are going. They want to know that what they do every day contributes to the vision. To help them, many companies develop mission statements or vision statements. But a mission statement is only as good as the number of people who can live it everyday. You need to put meaning behind the words of your mission statement.

To do this, identify the key words of your mission statement and then tell stories about people living those words. For example, if your mission statement says employees are going to be customer-focused, share company folklore that illustrates employees focusing on the customer. If your mission statement says employees are going to be a team, give examples of how teamwork helped win a new customer. Storytelling brings the words of your mission statement to life. Tell them to customers, partners, and employees. Tell them to people you are trying to hire. Tell them to anyone who will listen.