Creating a Vision That Achieves Results

How important is a vision statement to your company or division? Well, have you ever thought about embarking on a journey without knowing where you are going? The same can be said about running a company, without a vision statement you are going places but who knows if it is in the right direction or even if you want to go there.

A vision statement should paint a picture of what you want your business or division to look like in the future. A vision statement should be specific to a company, team or division and therefore there could be numerous vision statements in one company. It should tell you what you are trying to build. It should be expansive, full of passion and allow you to dream of possibilities. This is not something that you are necessarily going to share with your customers this is about what you want for your future.

Your vision statement should excite you and help you dream. If your vision statement doesn't excite you how can you expect to be successful, how can go to work each day and be motivated?

To create your vision statement you need to think outside the box, think of wild possibilities. This is not the time to be limited by practicalities and what you believe be to truths. Aim for the stars. When writing your vision statement keep the ideas flowing. Use adjectives that excite and motivate you. Don't let anything stand in your way.

Once you have the first draft down live with it for a couple of days, ask others for their input. Remember nothing is set in stone. The vision statement you create today may work for the next 6 months or 3 years but ultimately the environment changes or you begin to see new possibilities and then your vision statement needs to change as well.

Below are 3 examples of vision statements that work. Many have numbers and dates in them but this is not a requirement. The numbers do, however, focus your ideas and clarify what you want to achieve. They also are measurable and you will be able to see when you achieve that vision.

Industrial Company: Within the next five years build ZXM into the premier west coast industrial process automation company specializing in integration solutions. ZXM revenues will grow to $20 million by 2009 by expanding its role from a manufacturing rep. company to a complete engineering, field service and process solutions company.

Management Team: Evolve the existing management team into a vital growing force that:

  • Fuels the growth of the company by seeing and being a part of the larger vision.
  • Builds on its own energy and successes; learns from its failures/shortfalls.
  • Expands its capacity to contribute to the overall management of the company.
  • Develops an espirit de corps that is supportive of the individual, the team, and the company.
  • Designs a work style/culture that is adaptable and flexible to move quickly and profitably to meet the needs of the customer.

    • Marketing Plan: Within the next year, build a highly efficient marketing program to catapult our web graphics seminar business to $500,000 annual revenues.

    Create your own vision statement To create a vision statement it could help to fill in the blanks of the sentence below:

    Within the next ___ years grow ______________________ (company/department name) into a ______________________ (type of company) providing ______________________ (description of products/services) to ______________________ (description of target customer/clients) with annual sales of $ ________.

    A vision statement is the first step towards achieving the results you truly desire.

    GRAEME NICHOL, President, Arcturus Advisors.

    http://www.arcturusadvisors.com/

    Graeme Nichol has worked on 4 continents and in 117 unique businesses gaining experience in manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, communications, banking, direct marketing, consumer goods and retail amongst others. He has significant management experience and consulting experience, including Business strategy, project management, change management, big six consulting, team productivity, business productivity and quality improvement, ERP implementations.

    Arcturus Advisors works with businesses and teams that are struggling to formulate a strategic plan that delivers bottom line results. Using tried and tested planning systems that have achieved results internationally for 20 years we ensure that you transform your business through focus, alignment and accountability.

    In The News:

    pen paper and inkwell


    cat break through


    Elite Positioning Brings Higher Profits

    Imagine spending the same amount of money on marketing and... Read More

    City of Cortez and South Western Colorado Market Survey

    We have been spending many hours surveying the market for... Read More

    How Copying the HBO Schedule Can Boost Your Business

    I'm not talking about posting the HBO schedule on your... Read More

    2 Simple Steps Before Starting Your Business

    There is so much small business information available today that... Read More

    Succession Planning: Problems Getting Started

    A survey released by the American Institute of Certified Public... Read More

    Water Conservation and Water Issues for Mobile Car Washers and Auto Detailers

    Obviously, there will never be an actual water shortage since... Read More

    Benefiting from Strategic Thinking

    I recently took an organizational behavior class where my professor... Read More

    Top 10 Tips to Create A Business Plan! (For People Who Hate Business Plans)

    One of the key challenges for any business is to... Read More

    How to Develop a Successful Board of Advisors (...and Why You Should!)

    In today's rapidly changing and highly competitive markets, many privately... Read More

    Break-Even Analysis

    A significant advantage of some business ideas is that the... Read More

    Online Promotion: 10 Ways To Use Focus Groups To Ignite Your Profits

    A focus group is a group of employees or current... Read More

    For Business Owners Only - You Can?t Be Fired But Neither Can You Quit

    The decision to sell, or not to sell your business... Read More

    Business Plan Long Term Goals

    Writing a business plan is not an easy endeavor, nor... Read More

    Writing a Business Plan for Success in Business and for Funding

    Writing a business plan to help you direct and manage... Read More

    5 Strategies That Will Boost Your Business Productivity Today! - Part 2

    Growing your own small business can be one of the... Read More

    Making a Decision to Outsource: Strategic Constraints

    Many companies are reluctant to dive into outsourcing ocean because... Read More

    Becoming Wise - Wild & Free - Writing A Successful Business Plan - Part 2 - Do It In Steps

    So you've decided to write your own business plan because... Read More

    The Top 10 Priorities That Guard Your Five-Star Reputation

    Making money doesn't make your reputation... your reputation makes you... Read More

    Dotcom Business Plans Archive Project

    One of the most important initiatives in the domain of... Read More

    Bounced Checks in Your Business Location Outlets

    The new check cashing instant clearing will take some time... Read More

    Shortening Product Life Cycle!

    The current state of the available technology at the disposal... Read More

    Questions to Ask Yourself When Starting a New Home Business

    I love the excitement of starting up a new home... Read More

    Building a Better Brick-and-Mortar with the Billion-Dollar Web

    More than $117 billion passed hands from Internet shoppers to... Read More

    The 7 Critical Steps to Formulating Your Annual Strategic Business Plan

    Businesses tend to avoid doing their annual business plan thinking... Read More

    Executive Summary for Business Plans of Franchisees

    Writing a business plan for a franchised outlet of a... Read More

    Why Create an Annual Plan?

    Can you imagine going on a road trip without knowing... Read More

    What is Your MSP?

    For many consumers and producers, MSP is an acronym for... Read More

    Family and Friends Referrals Make the Best Franchisees

    As a franchisor it is imperative that you seek, find... Read More

    Action Planning

    ACTION PLANNING: Action Planning is a process to develop strategies... Read More

    Business Planning and the ?Bozo? Factor

    "Bozo" ? A clown with a forlorn look, always finding... Read More

    Three Easy Ways To Know Thy Competitor

    "Did you hear what your competitor is doing?" This question... Read More

    Alice In Wonderland - A Parable for A Business Plan

    Remember reading "Alice in Wonderland?"She asks the Cheshire Cat, "which... Read More

    Six Key Areas For Evaluating A Strategic Alliance

    Strategic alliances are increasing at a rapid rate. It is... Read More