A business needs strong foundations. Long-term business success depends on it and is the result of effort, planning and strategy. But you cannot create an effective strategy or plan, if you don’t know why you’re in business, what you’re hoping to achieve or how you want to behave whilst you’re working. That’s where your mission, vision and values come in.
What’s your business mission?
Your business mission is a statement that shares your company goals. It also gives your customers a reason to believe in you and your business. Your mission showcases who you are and why you exist, and what you’re going to do to grow the business. It steers your business forward and gives you and your team direction. Your business mission statement also tells everyone what you’re doing today to achieve your vision.
Your business vision
Just as important as your mission, is your business vision. You need to know what you’re aiming for – because you can’t create a plan of action if you don’t know where you’re going. Your vision is the future of your business. It dictates what you want to become, the impact you want to have and what you’re aiming for. It challenges and inspires you and your team. Your vision helps share where you will think your business will be in the next 1, 3 or 5 years. If you achieve everything you want, what will your business look like?
Know your values
Your values set the boundaries to want to follow in business. They help reflect who you are and are often interlinked with your personal ones too. They help you to stay true to your beliefs at this moment now and the whole time you’re on your journey towards your business vision. Your values help clarify what you believe in and how you want to behave. They’re the moral compass for your business; the essence of your business.
Everything you do needs to align with your mission, vision and values
When planning a strategy plan for your business, your mission, vision and values will help identify the steps you need to take. They help you clarify if the steps you’re taking are in line with what you believe.
Combined, they help make decisions easier for you, as you have a clear idea of where you’re going and how that will look for you – everything needs to be aligned to this. You can then hire people that fit in with those values and are willing to follow the business mission.
You can also measure your progress and course-correct if needed, based on your mission, vision and values. They help with product development and course creation, as they identify the standards you want to adhere to and the umbrella solution you’re looking to solve for your ideal customers.
But ultimately, your vision, mission and values are the perfect foundation for your business, as they all help to set you apart from your competitors. They help you build relationships with your customers, as they have something to connect with and believe in and, they enable you to grow in an authentic and aligned way.
Coming up with your mission, vision and values isn’t always easy, but once you have them, breaking the big ideas and goals down into manageable actions isn’t something everyone can do either. That’s where I can help. Book in a Strategic Planning Session and together, we can create a Strategic Map for your business. As a Certified Director of Operations, I use the Strategic Mapping Module Framework™ to identify the projects, milestones, tasks and actions you need to take to make your vision a reality. So if you’re looking for a solid plan to follow, and want to get organised, focused and productive, this is for you!
