Our Values
+ Always Be Curious
“Always be curious” means we approach people, tasks, and challenges with a desire to understand and an excitement to grow.
So we ask questions to learn, we anticipate questions because others want to learn, and we admit when we don't know or when things go wrong. We work to stay curious because we learn best by doing, reflecting, and inviting others into the process.
We know there is so much we don't know—and that's what makes the world full of wonder.
“Everyone in the company (when not in a pandemic!) goes to regular classroom observations. The ride over with teammates, the open discussion about what we might find, the sounds of busy children, the welcoming nature of teachers—all of this helps our understanding of the real-world context in which our products are used. Every time it seems we find deep and subtle nuances to the challenges teachers face and we can build upon the big and small moments of delight we see from the kids.”
—Paul, Senior Director of Product
+ Be Welcoming
“Be welcoming” is an attitude of active empathy. Being welcoming means we put ourselves in the game and we show up for the team.
It means we choose to participate—to speak up, share our ideas, or lend a hand to help make things better. And it also means noticing who hasn’t said anything yet and creating spaces for all voices to be heard.
To be welcoming means we treat our teammates like people because we know strong teams are made up of healthy individuals. We put ourselves in their shoes, care about their unique circumstances, and celebrate their strengths. And it means as individuals, we make decisions that care for the whole team because we know we can only get where we want to go... together.
“Although I work out of my home way out in central Maine, Mystery.org has found creative ways to make me feel truly welcomed. Purple Elephant, for example, is an extremely fun holiday gift exchange where we all come together on a remote video call. Unicorn nite lights, Fisher Space Pens, and drums are shipped from Canada to Texas to Cali and we all wait to steal the best gifts!”
—Leketa, District Partnership Manager
+ Solve the Right Problem, at the Right Time
There are plenty of problems we could solve. So we focus on solving the problems that will have the biggest impact on our goals.
Solving for impact means taking time to understand the root cause of a problem, disentangling multiple problems, and understanding the audience before jumping into solutions. It means not solving every problem—but the right ones.
Solving for impact also means determining the best time to solve a problem. Some problems require an urgent fix, while others require long-term planning. We work to be equally thoughtful about the solution: understanding the tradeoffs, the cost of not solving the problem now, and how each problem we solve contributes to our overall mission.
“I was hired to help bring Mystery Packs to market. At the time, it was an idea unlike any of our past initiatives—and it tackled a key problem: gathering even simple supplies created a blocker to teaching science. We asked ourselves, what if we removed that blocker?! We experimented with a small initial production run of 6,000 packs. Now, three years later, we’re providing 20,000 teachers a year the supplies they need to teach science - all because our team rolled up their sleeves and said yes to making this idea into a reality.”
—Paula, Director of Operations (Mystery Packs)
“Solving hard problems requires time to focus. I love that at Mystery, we ensure that people have time to think! In 2020, during Zoom fatigue and pandemic, we created Wonder Wednesdays—a full day each week without any standing scheduled meeting. I know many of us look forward to that day, because it’s when we can tackle the high-impact work that needs flow. We even sign off on Tuesday meetings with ‘have a good Wonder Wednesday!’”
—Heike, Vice President of Communications
+ Wow More Kids
“Wow more kids” is at the core of our mission to keep kids curious.
Wow-ing kids means creating moments of “aha!” and “whoa!” and “why?” that shape how they understand the world around them. It means creating personal and profound explanations that will nurture their burning curiosity, guide them as they explore their world, and ensure they develop a sense of wonder that stays with them well beyond the classroom.
We strive to reach as many kids as we can. We wow more kids by championing the educators who work with them every day. We take the perspective of teachers and administrators and solve their pain points in meaningful ways.
Ultimately, it’s about ensuring that kids see a world of possibility and endless wonder. Because we all want to live in that world, too.
“To inspire as many kids as possible we need to make it easy for teachers and schools to experience Mystery Science. That’s why we offer long trials for teachers, schools and districts. We know that once teachers try Mystery, they’ll love it—and with high usage, it’s easy for admins to say yes to a membership. Our product does the selling: it’s the wow teachers and kids experience that lead to the word-of-mouth growth we’ve experienced.”
—Eric, Vice President of Customer Success