I was pleasantly surprised when my Internet service provider responded competently and quickly to a technical crisis. And, we can learn to communicate more effectively by studying its response.

The crisis occurred when hackers attacked its system at same time that company was upgrading its systems to meet increased customer demand. And while customers experienced no dramatic shutdowns, some customers faced delays and difficulty getting online.

In response, company quickly sent out a newsletter containing a single article, an open letter from president.

First, president acknowledged there had been a problem. And, company took responsibility for problem. While it attributed at least some of problems to malicious hackers, it nonetheless took responsibility for system's integrity.

Most of us find it refreshing when a company steps up and does those two things. It communicates self-confidence and it communicates sincere concern for customers. All too often, organizations make poor excuses or point fingers at suppliers and customers; that just makes customers more dissatisfied.

Second, company apologized. In first sentence of article, president said he was sorry for disruptions that subscribers had experienced over preceding two weeks.

Mission and Vision Statements have been crafted by organizations for years. The attention to mission and vision is warranted, as studies indicate that organizations that have Mission and Vision Statements quite simply outperform those that do not.

Here are a few varied snapshots from e-book Mission and Vision Statements: Your Path To A Successful Business Future to show difference these statements can make in your business and life: •A family-owned inn had operated for three generations without turning a profit. The business covered basic expenses, but extra money was always scarce. Within one year of creating a mission and vision statement, inn reaped a profit of more than half a million dollars. •The public works organization for a city benefited from use of mission and vision statements and applying them. “It helped me to get a real team sense and feel for our Department” says a Public Works Director of his mission and vision journey. “I also had more credibility with team. I was able to make it work so that it benefited employees, so they felt good about their position. It helped give me more credibility with people I worked with and more cooperation from them – a great win-win situation.” •A director for a non-profit organization describes how this approach helped him sort out questions to answer. He says “To see within me themes repeating themselves caused me to really focus on what I am about. I found that “catchy” words lost heart of it. Because of process I soon formed language and passion of true meaning of what was deep within me.” As organization continued to align their Mission and Vision Statements with strategic activities and actions, they got results. They increased in size by 50% and many more satellite organizations resulted, all sharing a common mission and continuing to use process to refine and reflect their shared vision for future.

The CEO of a financial services company recently went through e-book exercises to develop their mission and vision statements and he says “our company has benefited greatly since inception of mission statement. Every company, family, couple or individual should have one.

Then why is it that in some organizations these statements do little more than signify a loss commensurate with costs: books purchased, speakers and consultants hired, and seminars held. Well, when expectations are not met, these statements are seen as being a waste of time and money and an organization continues to function as it always has.