My Mission Statement & Goal Plan Essay Example for Free

My Mission Statement Goal Plan Essay I may not convince the world that I can be the next Nobel Peace Prize winner. I may not persuade people to make me the next Time Magazine’s Person of the Year. Nor do I have any illusions of garnering millions of votes to become the next president of this country. But if I am to be given an opportunity to describe myself, all that I can honestly say is that, I am who I am. Thus, in an attempt to try and take a glimpse in defining the person I always see in front of the mirror, I have come to a resolution that the best thing to do is to find and understand my purpose in life. By doing so, I ponder to ask the question, why do I exist? In other words, my mission in life is quite an irony or for some, it may seem stupid or foolish. Simply put it, my mission in life is to find my mission life. Although many people may think that this statement is hilarious, I will respectfully beg to differ. There are millions of people living aimlessly spending every second of their time in confusion and uncertainty. And for me, this is a frightening reality and to a certain extent, it is a sad one as well. And I admit that I am afraid to be one of them. It is the fear of not knowing where I am, where am I going and what I want to do which has led me to set my life in constantly pursuing the truth behind my existence or purpose in this world. I believe that by doing so, can help me see even just an inch of the incomprehensible reality each person carries with him or her. In light of this, I have aimed to unravel my mission in life through a process of first understanding my short-term goals of knowing who I am and where I stand through the institution that I want to affect and influence my life. Then, I plan to venture into my long-term goals that reflect my dreams and ambitions not just a professional and a son but more importantly, as a person. Thus, in order to know and find one’s purpose in life, a person must first know and find who he is, where he is and where he wants to be. It has been said by Benjamin E. Mays that the tragedy of life does not lie in not reaching a person’s goal, the tragedy lies in having no goals to reach. To me, he makes perfect sense. Somehow, a person who has no goals, dreams or ambitions has nothing to hope for or to look forward to. I thus find it highly imperative to transfer to the University of Southern California as my primary short-goal. I know firsthand that life in this world is often measured by the amount of success, wealth and fame a person possesses. I am familiar with the University of Southern California. I believe that if I am to be given the opportunity to study in such a distinguished institution, such an achievement tells me that I will never find myself wanting to be more successful, wealthier and famous than I already am. Transferring to the University of Southern California reflects a bigger picture of my goal of constant growth and development. In this moment in my life, I know that the best thing to do is to further my knowledge and skills. Entering this institution is the wisest way of preparing myself for what the world will be showing and throwing at me. And I have to confess that I am afraid to take this step. Amidst all that have been happening in my life, I sometimes think that I have made a shadowy acquaintance, and its name is fear. But I have learned not to stand down anymore in the face of adversity. There is always the fear of not being good enough or failing. But I believe that my greatest fear is merely fear itself. And for me to overcome this, I have to keep walking and moving despite being afraid. People will constantly judge and criticize me. I know this and I have learned to live with it. I honestly get affected because I am a sincere person. I dedicate and commit myself to something I really believe in wholeheartedly. My friends and family will attest to this fact. I can guarantee that I am a person of principle with an unwavering confidence and an incomparable determination. I am absolutely confident that I can bring the person that I am to the University of Southern California. By transferring to this university, I have realized that I also have to achieve the goal of convincing other people that I want it and that I deserve it. If this is a business proposal then let me assure everyone that I am good investment. I believe in who I am and what I can do. All that I am asking for is for you to believe in me. In essence, my short-term goals are all about realigning my path not just on a good one, but more importantly, on the right one. My short-term goals can briefly show who I am based on what I have already been through. My short-term goals are the remaining few years before I venture into the real world. Furthermore, my short-term goals portray my desire to take a step and revolutionize who I am right now in becoming someone I hope to be. During the vast reign of the Roman Empire, a great man by the name of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus once said, â€Å"A man’s worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions. † I somehow feel that ambitions can thoroughly define a person but at the same time, it can also break the person. Somewhere in life’s journey, a person will have to face the â€Å"non-negotiable† realities in their lives. These are the things that tend to be so difficult and even impossible to change. I have thus made my long-term goals into something practical and achievable for me. I have envisioned myself in about less than ten years as someone who runs his own business while also helping my father run his. I find my long-term goals to be realistic and honest. I do not have grand dreams of eradicating poverty or creating some out-of-this-world idea that will save us from global warming. I want to keep my feet firmly on the ground. But this does not mean that my long-term goals are plain, simple and self-serving. As matter of fact, I expect them to be challenging, tricky and risky. Running and having my own business is no walk in the park. In this modern age, the competition is so tight and the stakes are roughly high that being good falls short by a mile. This does not even include the fact that I will also be greatly involved in my father’s business. But I want to take this risk. How can people discover new lands if they cannot lose sight of the shore? If I am to venture into this, I need to be cutting-edge and have an innovative mind. This is why the link between my short-term goals and my long-term goals is very significant. I want to take it step by step without any shortcuts. Each stage in my life is a learning process where I grow and develop myself for my future. Most people describe who they are but what they have. Still, others know who they are by how they are described by other people. I for one believe that what I have and how others perceive me are just parts of who I am as a whole. I believe that the person who best knows who I am is myself. People may see me in terms of things I have or from their own point-of-views. But I can never be half the person that they say I am if I do not know and accept what I think and see that I am. This is why my short-term and long-term goals are all starting points to initiate my true purpose in life. Through these goals, I may somehow find a semblance or clue of what I truly want out of my life. Through these goals, I can find who I am. As Lao Tzu has said, â€Å"Knowing others is wisdom, knowing the self is enlightenment. † Simply put it, through acting upon my goals, I intend to find something that will grab my attention and interest that will make me dedicate my life to it. Some will spend their entire lives looking and searching, while others may spend their lives staring at a distance unable to move and make a difference. In the greater scheme of things, I like to believe that it is not about reaching or achieving that which I have set for myself but rather, it is all about how I get there that really counts. How wonderful it is if I can do the things people say I cannot. This is largely founded on the inescapable reality that obstacles will appear every now and then. As for me, the greatest obstacle and weakness I will ever face are being idealistic and fear, respectively. As mentioned earlier, there is always the constant fear of not being good enough or failing. In addition, although being idealistic is not really a bad thing, it also comes with a heavy baggage. By being idealistic, I tend to ignore the reality presented. There is a fine line separating what is in theory and what is in practice. Somehow and some time, this reality will slap me in the face. There is the need to be practical which I fall short of a lot of times. I do believe that there are three types of people in this world: those who ask what happened, those who watch things happen and those who make things happen. I have stopped asking what happened being blind and deaf to the realities of life. I have stopped watching things happen from the sidelines being apathetic to the things happening right before my very eyes. I have thus decided to change and to make things happen. I try to stop making excuses. I do not need an excuse to live but rather, I need a reason to live. And dedicating my life in search for my purpose is something I believe is worthwhile. It is about time to go beyond myself and offer who I am not what I have. If there is one thing I have learned and will never forget from this class is that achieving my goals or aspirations in life is neither an overnight phenomenon nor a magical trick that can easily be pulled instantly out of the hat. Dedicating myself to something I hold dear is always a process. It is an on-going process of continuous learning, understanding and growth as a student, as a son and as a person. These goals may not happen today, tomorrow, next week or next year. The important thing is that it does not start next year, next month, next week or tomorrow but rather, it starts today.