In Mission Driven, former Navy SEAL commander, White House Fellow, and nonprofit and business leader Mike Hayes offers an inspiring playbook for understanding and achieving your most rewarding and purposeful life.

Mission Driven offers a practical guide for transition points: young people, recent graduates, professionals shifting to new roles, or people shifting to find new balance in their lives. 

Whether someone is at the beginning of their journey or, at any stage, looking for more, Mission Driven is a roadmap for discovering what drives you and a playbook for translating those drives into opportunities. It is a book to help us satisfy our ambitions and our souls, filled with smart, empathetic guidance.

Mike Hayes recently took some time to answer seven questions from Porchlight about the book, what led him to write it, and what he hoped people get from it.

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Porchlight Book Company: Writing a book is no small undertaking. What compelled you to write this one?

Mike Hayes: My grandparents and parents modeled the saying, “To those whom much has been given, much is expected.” I’ve lived a lifetime of countless “once-in-a-lifetime” experiences—both good and bad, from helping amputate a teammate's leg in Afghanistan to running hundreds of meetings in the White House Situation Room and helping countless high achievers find roles that provided them with purpose and mission. I’m compelled to share, and to build on the lessons in my first book, Never Enough. My goal isn’t just to inspire, help, and entertain; I donate all my profits to “The 1162 Foundation," a 501c3 I founded that pays off mortgages for Gold Star families. I, like every SEAL of my era, have buried about 75 teammates, so the opportunity to help families that pay that ultimate sacrifice every single day is indescribably meaningful. I wrote Mission Driven to help readers—and in helping them, I'm also helping these families.

PBC: Writing (and reading) always prompts as many new questions as it offers answers to the ones you came to it with. What is one unanswered question you encountered as you wrote the book that you are most interested in answering now?

MH: That’s a great question, but I experience writing differently. I never aspired to be an author. I write because I've had lots of people ask me for insights, inspiration, stories, and advice—and I can't help them all one-on-one. I feel compelled to write (and record) so I can help at a greater scale. I let the questions I receive drive my writing, and, candidly, I’ve felt a huge relief finishing both of my books because in doing so I’ve answered the current set of outstanding questions. Right now I feel great because I’ve put everything I have out there—there’s no pile of outstanding questions. But I also know in the coming months things will come up that make me realize more needs to be written… and the next book will begin.

PBC: If there is only one thing a reader takes away from reading this book, what would you hope it to be?

MH: Mission Driven is about finding and achieving your own mission. As a 20-year Navy SEAL, I’m often very kindly thanked for my service. I really appreciate that, but it also makes me cringe a little because we all serve, and my service isn’t more (or less) important than anyone else’s. You don’t have to wear a military uniform to contribute. We all use our own gifts, abilities, interests, and passions to serve in the ways that make best sense for us. In fact, the whole reason the military takes on risk is so everyone who is not in the military can live a life that contributes to making this great nation greater every single day in all the different ways a nation needs. My one wish would be for readers to find the ways they can joyously take ownership and accountability for helping us all serve each other.

PBC: One of the great things about books is that they tend to lead readers to other books. What book[s] related to this topic would you recommend people read after (or perhaps even before) reading your book?

MH: I heard there’s a book called Never Enough by the same author as Mission Driven and it's worth a read too! 

PBC: What is your personal favorite book?

MH: Man’s Search for Meaning; Viktor Frankl

PBC: What are you reading now?

MH: I’m always reading a few things at once. First, I’m close friends with Dan Hurley, the coach of the UConn men's basketball team. He blurbed the back of Mission Driven and his book, Never Stop, is phenomenal.  Next, I’m reading Relentless by Julian Edelman, which was also published by Grand Central/Hachette. I’m a huge Boston sports fan and am forever indebted to Julian for many years of incredible athleticism, but for “The Catch.” (If you know, you know.) Lastly, I’m reading Dead Men Flying by Medal of Honor recipient General Pat Brady. I know Pat well and learning more about people you know through reading their books is always very special.

PBC: Do you have any future projects in the works that we can look forward to? 

MH: Yes. I’m the founding board member of the Medal of Honor Museum. In 2017, I had a vision for a museum. I was the first board member and built a team that raised $300 million, opened our doors in Arlington, Texas in March, 2025, and we’re “On a Mission to Inspire America.” The museum is amazing, and I will be starting a Medal of Honor Museum podcast next year to help bring some incredible stories and inspiration to the world.

Ready to get started right away? We recently posted the Author's Note from the beginning of the book.

About the Author

MIKE HAYES is the former commanding officer of SEAL Team Two, leading a two-thousand-person Special Operations task force in southeastern Afghanistan. In addition to a twenty-year career as a SEAL, Mike was a White House fellow, served two years as director of defense policy and strategy at the National Security Council, and has worked directly with both Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Beyond his military and government service, Mike is the founding board member of the National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington, Texas, and his own 501(c)(3), the 1162 Foundation, which has paid off twelve Gold Star widow mortgages to date. In the private sector, Mike has served in several C-level roles and is currently managing director at Insight Partners, a software investment firm with $90 billion of assets under management and 600+ portfolio companies. He lives in Sunapee, New Hampshire, and Westport, Connecticut, with his wife and daughter.