Chapter 3
The Mission Statement
Before Mission Impossible was a series of movies starring Tom Cruise, it was a television show. The program started with a tape recording that detailed a mission for Mr. Phelps, played by actor Peter Graves. The distinctive recorded voice would say “Your mission, should you decide to accept it . . .” with a brief explanation of the goal of the mission. The final words would warn “this tape will self-destruct in five seconds,” at which time the tape recorder would smoke and the tape was destroyed.
Mr. Phelps was always focused on the mission. He knew what he had to do. However, to do it, he needed to develop a game plan. Of course, by the end of the program (consistent with the Hollywood tradition) he was able to perform the impossible by following the game plan.
In life we all have missions that seem impossible, but we are somehow able to solve a lot of them. Many of you may be parents. I know when I think back to the day my first son was born, my wife and I had no clue what to do or how to do it. We felt anxiety not just for the near term, but the long term as well. We were only 25 years old, and it just seemed like a lot for a young couple. It was a mission impossible for us.
Apart from the little hurdles like changing diapers, feeding, getting by on little sleep (now it seems I get even less sleep), my wife Debbie and I knew that our mission as parents was to mold Matt into a responsible adult.
Our game plan was to protect him and keep him safe ...
