Philanthropic mission statements are essential for any organization or person who wants to develop a coherent charitable giving plan. These mission statements help clarify their approaches to philanthropy. These are some of the key tips to creating a philanthropic mission statement that enables people to effectively hone their giving strategy.
DEVELOPING A FOCAL POINT
One key tip for creating an effective philanthropic mission statement is to develop a focal point for giving priorities. This involves thinking about personal and organizational interests and finding a charitable theme that coincides with these interests. People can start by thinking about personally salient values. These values connect with charities that have similar goals. For instance, someone who values learning might think about curtailing giving to charities with a focus on improving access to learning technology for kids in underserved areas.
SETTING REALISTIC GOALS
While many charitable goals are worthwhile, the mission statement needs to align with key achievable goals. People can start with their best-case scenario for outcomes due to their giving. Then people can work back and try to determine concrete outcomes that allow someone to make a difference. For example, someone might want to eliminate all forms of poverty. Although it is a noble goal, it is not a goal that is realistic. Instead, setting an ideal goal for alleviating one problem that poverty causes could be more achievable. Realistic goals in the mission statement make it easier to turn the mission statement into a plan.
TARGETING A POPULATION
Effective philanthropic mission statements are narrow enough so that it is easy to determine what charitable causes do and do not align with someone’s mission. Determining a target population helps to narrow the mission statement and giving. Many philanthropic issues are broad, such as education and poverty. Determining the exact type of people someone wants to help instantly narrows the interventions someone can fund. Someone with a target population of children up to age twelve can say no to charitable opportunities that involve adults, even if it focuses on the same charitable issue.
Having a philanthropic mission statement is the first step in effective charitable giving. By concentrating on the values, goals, and populations that hold personal importance, people can give in a way that maximizes their investments in the long run. These are some of the key tips when creating a philanthropic mission statement.