Whether it be established brands or early-stage startups, we think having founder vision is important to success. Vision means having a strong conviction about where you want to take your company. It answers the questions, Where are we going? What do we want to accomplish? What impact do we want the company to have?
Vision as Motivation
As you're now well aware, building a business is hard. And the external and internal doubts are real. So how do you keep yourself motivated through the rejection - through the inevitable thoughts of: Do I actually have what it takes to do this? Is this even worth it? Why am I even doing this in the first place? In addition to practicing positive self-talk and implementing whatever tricks work for you to get yourself in a better headspace, having a clear vision can provide catalyzing energy. Focusing on these future-looking questions can be incredibly helpful in harnessing the willpower it will take to overcome the day-to-day setbacks, including rejection and exhaustion. Often, it will be what gets you out of bed in the morning.
Vision as Strategic Guardrails
In addition to providing motivation, a clear vision can provide a north star when it comes to strategy. Making decisions through the lens of where you want the company to go can be valuable in answering questions like: Where do we invest the time and money? Which markets do we enter? Which products do we launch? What are our values as a company? Which investors are we aligned with? Returning to vision allows you to pick your head up from the day-to-day and zoom out to consider a longer time horizon in decision making.
Vision as Leadership
Although it may seem cliche, in our culture, having "transformational vision" is often equated with possessing leadership qualities. Of course, to be an effective leader, you must also execute and deliver. But nonetheless, being perceived as a leader will help you attract employees, advisors, and advocates.
Moreover, having apparent passion for your vision is something many investors will look for. If they're going to take the risk of investing in you, they want to know that you are going to knock down walls to achieve your business ambition. The clearer the vision, the more likely you'll be convincing.
It's going to be important to communicate your vision to many stakeholders throughout the lifetime of your company. A founder's vision is typically translated into a communication tool via what's called a "vision statement" and "mission statement."For our purpose, we'll use vision and mission statements synonymously, but it's common to see the two defined separately. We've borrowed the definitions and examples from HBR (link) below.