04/14/01: California Dreamin', My Missions Statement

Josh,

Happy Easter! I spent this past week more or less at home, packing and
going through all of my stuff. You may know that I'm a huge pack rat. I
tend to keep everything, since I always think that I'll have use for it in
the future. For example, I had about three years worth of many magazines,
such as Red Herring, The Industry Standard, Business 2.0, Business Week,
etc. This week, I finally started to throw out many of these magazines and
other pieces of paper that I've accumulated. I was still reluctant to
throw out certain items, but I started to ask myself the questions, "Do I
really need this item?", "Is it available in an electronic format?", "Will
I ever look at it again?"

There won't be a puzzle or thought provoking question this week. Also,
next weekend I'll be flying in Southeast Asia, so I probably won't be able
to send out this weekly newsletter.

Eddie Liu forwarded the humor piece (it's really funny, but also sad). I
decided to share my personal mission statement with all of you. I hope it
encourages you to write one of your own.

Enjoy!

-Josh.
______________________________________________

California Dreamin'

Letters to Mom

January 2000
Moved to Silicon Valley for a job.
My salary is 30% higher!
I have stock options!
The temperature outside is 65F in winter!
California is the best place on earth!!!

February
Still looking for an apartment.
Freeways everywhere to take you places.
Still love California!

March
Found a 1 bedroom apartment for $1900/mo.
California is more expensive than I thought.

April
Gas hit $2.29/gal.
Somebody stole the gas from my car.
This sucks....

May
A small earthquake!
And this is what my mother was so worried about?
Almost didn't feel it.

June
A forest fire and a mud slide near LA.
Who cares, that is far away from me!

July
A big earthquake... Spent 4 hours in my bathtub.
Boy, that was scary.
We had no stinking earthquakes where I came from.

August
Drought! They turn on the water once a day.
This sucks big time!
Somebody stole the water from my car's radiator.
Why did I come to California?

September
Decided to buy a house. Found a 2-bedroom fixer-upper for $800K.
Borrowed against my stock options for down payment.
Freeway traffic is worse. Today it took nearly two hours. One way.

October
My startup fired 90% of the work force, including me.
The stock lost 98% of its value.
My options are underwater.

November
Had to sell my house. Couldn't make the payments.
Found a studio apartment for $2300/mo.
Traffic unbearable

December
Problems with electricity.
They turn the electricity off several times a day.
It's called " rolling blackouts."
Who stole my car battery, and what do I do now?

January 2001
I'm typing this, stuck in an elevator, in complete darkness.
The battery of my laptop is dying.
Silicon Valley is no more.
Angry hordes of former dot-commers are looting in the dark.
It was fun while it lasted.
I'm coming back home.
_________________________________

Writing a Personal Mission Statement

In 1997, I took a seminar called, "First Things First" at Andersen
Consulting. It is based on Stephen Covey's book with the same title. As
part of the seminar, we learned about the importance of writing a personal
mission statement. The seminar provided many different exercises to help
us craft one. As a result of that process, I reflected on my values and
priorities and wrote the statement that I'm sharing with you below. I look
at it occasionally and it would help me think about whether my activities
and goals are aligned with my values.

During my years at the Anderson School, I was in an entrepreneurial support
group called TEC. Our mentor, Bruce Rognlien, also asked everyone in the
group to write a personal mission statement. I dusted mine off, and
revised it slightly. It was good to hear what my friends wrote for their
statements and to share my statement with them.

Recently, I asked my APEX mentee, Joseph Hsieh to write a personal mission
statement. I look forward to meeting with him when I get back from
Singapore and hearing it. In meantime, I thought that I would take this
opportunity to encourage all of you to write your own personal mission
statement. It should capture your values and priorities in life, motivate
and inspire you, and help you think about you life with a long-term
perspective.

As I read over my statement, I realize that it is definitely something that
I strive for, but have not attained. I think it will always be a process
of living your life according to your statement more and more. I also want
you to keep me accountable to what I write. So, if you ever see me act or
say something that conflicts with my own mission statement, I hope that you
will provide me with some gentle constructive feedback. At times in my
life, I can be too wrapped up in something that I forget about my mission
statement.

If you ever write a person mission statement in the future, and are
comfortable sharing it with others, I would love to see what you have wrote
for yourself.
______________________________________

Josh Li's Personal Mission Statement

My life mission is to worship God through thought, words, and action in all
areas of my life, including family life, professional life, social life,
and personal life.

In my family life, I want to spend quality time with my family members, to
love and care for them, and to receive their love and care.

In my professional life, I want to add value to society. I want to be a
strong business leader, train and mentor others and be a good role model.

In my social life, I want to be a good friend and a strong Christian
brother. I want to be loyal, honest, caring, willing to spend time with
friends, willing to share the Gospel with them.

In my personal life, I want to exhibit strong character and leadership. I
want to exhibit self-esteem without being egotistical. I want to spend
quality time with myself in meditation, thought, examination, evaluation,
and self-improvement. I want to be always learning and striving to do
better.