OUR MISSION STATEMENT

This is the time of year that I dive into the administration of my small business. I have already talked about the planning, plotting, and ordering supplies for the upcoming year but there is more boring work that needs to be done too. I am revamping a lot this year as far as financial structures, estate planning, and establishing more values and standards for Shari Ann Farms. I wasn't going to turn this into a blog post, but I do think its important to share what foundation I stand on, and what you can count on as you encounter my voice, my business, and my products.

I am working through various education courses during this season too, and I have really enjoyed several books, and courses in particular. I look forward to sharing more about the books specifically in my next blog (its impacted me that much)

For now, I am working through a course on core values and mission statements and I thought it would help another reader out there who might use the same structure to find theirs. I remember briefly covering this in business courses in college, but let's face it we never stop learning because we are always forgetting. ; )

The first thing I did was run through a list of core value keywords and picked the ones that resonated with me the most. Chat gpt helped list those, for me to choose from. From there, I explained “why” they were each my pick. After many drafts I came up with these five:

Core Values of Shari Ann Farms

Faith
We steward this land, this work, and this calling for God’s glory. Every seed sown, lesson taught, and life touched is rooted in trust, obedience, and reverence for Him.

Growth
We believe growth begins with learning and ripples outward—strengthening individuals, families, and communities. We are committed to continual education, curiosity, and expansion in both soil and soul.

Meaningful Work
Our work is more than production; it is transformation. Through gardening, our flowers, our farm products and teaching, we seek to nurture spiritual, emotional, and physical restoration in the lives of others.

Perseverance
We remain steadfast through changing climates, seasons, and circumstances. We model resilience and teach others how to rise again after mistakes, trauma, setbacks, and uncertainty.

Knowledge
We pursue excellence and expertise with humility. We strive to leave every person more confident, informed, and empowered than when they arrived.

With these core values in mind, I moved on to my mission statement. This was easier for me than the core values assignment because I love to write. 

Some prompts to answer first before starting are:

1. Who do we serve? Who do we help? Who are our target customers?
2. What does this business do? What are our key priorities? How do we achieve these outcomes through our actions?
3. Why do we do what we do?

I then just spoke from the heart, when answering these prompts, and also through several drafts of this mission statement. In transparency, chat GPT helped with the grammatical edits, and flow. 

Mission Statement of Shari Ann Farms

Shari Ann Farms serves women who are seeking beauty, restoration, and purpose by teaching faith-centered gardening and farming practices that nurture both the soil and the soul. Through education, handcrafted farm goods, and community, we equip women to steward the land, encounter God through His creation, and carry healing, creativity, and perseverance into their families and the wider world and become a movement that impacts women we may never meet.

Here is another way to break this down, to really tie in our core values and mission statement.
Again, with some help from chat GPT to help me better comprehend the takeaways of this assignment.

Purpose

(Why we exist)

To cultivate healing, purpose, and perseverance in women through faith-centered gardening, education, and meaningful work rooted in God’s creation.

Vision

(What we are building toward)

To grow a movement of women who steward the land, encounter God through His creation, and carry restoration into their families, communities, and the lives of women we may never meet.

We Do This With These Values in Mind

(How we show up in the work)

Faith
We honor God in all we do, stewarding the land and this calling with humility, obedience, and reverence for His glory.

Growth
We pursue continual learning and expansion, believing that growth in knowledge and skill creates lasting impact in homes and communities.

Meaningful Work
We create and teach with intention, seeking transformation that touches the spiritual, emotional, and physical lives of women.

Perseverance
We remain faithful through changing seasons, modeling resilience and equipping others to rise from setbacks, trauma, and uncertainty.

Knowledge
We strive for excellence and expertise, leaving every woman more confident, capable, and empowered than when she arrived.

Apparently, it’s more common and formal to say “we” in the verbiage of these texts, but I’ll be honest with you. It’s just me. Of course I have an amazing family, a wonderful little girl assistant and handsome husband contractor; but in the end Shari Ann Farms is my baby. It is my passion project and has given me so much more purpose than I’ve ever expected. I was going to dive deeper into each of these core values in this blog post, even give more explanation to my mission statement. However, I realize that these statements are supposed to speak for themselves. Furthermore, my actions will speak louder than my words as I continue perusing this passion throughout my community. I hope to see you out there.

Either way, if you're like me and getting your ducks in row during the offseason, I strongly encourage those education courses you’ve been putting off. I also want to motivate you to tighten that administrative ship that is sailing your business toward another growing season.

Best of luck
&
Grow and Garden Friends,

Jessica
w/ Shari’s!