Say goodbye to your lifeless 9–5 job and become your own boss! There’s no better time than now to turn your side-hustle into a fully functioning and successful online business.
You may ask yourself, “How can I leave my old and reliable job behind and take the leap into the unknown?”.
For one thing, you just need to trust your gut. You’re an entrepreneur, after all! There’s no staying within your limits in this game, especially if you want to make money dropshipping.
What you also need is some solid business advice on the mission and vision of entrepreneurship. Not sure how to start working on it? We’ve got you covered in this blog post.
Let’s see how to stay focused on your goals and make bank!
Why you need a vision and mission
It takes more than just a promotional push and financial estimates to fully start and run a successful business. To keep your money in check, you need to have clear values to help you deal with challenging situations.
A vision and mission will keep you on a clear path to success. They will set the general tone and direction of your online business.
But wait, “I am not planning to hire 500 people. Isn’t this stuff meant for big companies?”
You may already have a preconceived notion that vision and mission statements are only useful for large scale companies. However, the truth is that without an overall direction, any small business entrepreneur will become lost and overwhelmed, especially if there are negative folks around.
Vision and mission will help you to bring your A game!
What is the mission and vision in entrepreneurship?
Quite often, people think of mission and vision as interchangeable concepts and use them that way. However, it’s important to separate them so that one could help the other.
The difference between mission and vision
A mission focuses on today and what your company does. It clarifies the what, who, and why of your business.
A vision, on the other hand, focuses on tomorrow and what you want your business to become. Your vision describes how you want to change the world. It talks about where your community could be thanks to your company.
What makes you itch? What do you desire? Think about it and write it down.
What is the mission and vision of Google?
Google is a complex company, and yet, it’s mission and vision are crystal clear.
Mission: Our company mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.
Vision: To provide access to the world’s information in one click.
Got an idea that can make you a million dollars?
Let’s see how you can formulate your powerful mission statement to help you to make money online.
What is a mission statement?
The purpose of a mission statement is to deliver a short and clearly expressed summary of your company’s purpose and focus. It’s action-oriented and explains how your business serves your audience.
You can think of your mission statement as the roadmap for your vision.
The main idea for the mission statement is to be simple enough to attract audiences all by itself.
A business mission statement will support the entrepreneur’s vision while also communicating the company’s purpose.
Above all else, it will give a clear direction to customers, stakeholders, and future employees about how you envision your company and your business’s future as a whole.
Think of it as a concise business plan.
Your mission statement:
- Forms the core objectives of your company and ways to reach them.
- Drives your business.
- Shapes your business’s culture.
How to create a flawless mission statement
To formulate your mission statement, you need to answer the following questions:
- What does my business do?
- Whom do I serve?
- How do I serve them?
Your mission statement can be brief or more intricate, but it should never be longer than one paragraph. Make it clear what goal you want to accomplish as an entrepreneur.
It’s ideal if you can create your mission statement that consists of a single sentence.
Mission statement examples from companies that made it big
Don’t be discouraged if you have a difficult time coming up with a catchy mission statement right away! We have included examples of mission statements from popular and successful companies that might help you truly understand your mission.
Starbucks: To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.
Amazon: We strive to offer our customers the lowest possible prices, the best available selection, and the utmost convenience.
Uber: We ignite opportunity by setting the world in motion.
TED: Spread ideas.
LinkedIn: To connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful.
Samsung: Inspire the world with our innovative technologies, products and design that enrich people’s lives and contribute to social prosperity by creating a new future.
Wikimedia: To empower and engage people around the world to collect and develop educational content under a free license or in the public domain, and to disseminate it effectively and globally.
What is a vision of an entrepreneur?
The purpose of a vision statement is to give your business direction. When you are putting together your company’s vision statement, think of it as though you are taking a glimpse into your business’s future.
While the mission statement describes your business’ focus, and what you provide, your company’s vision statement identifies how your company will grow and what you want it to become.
Though it may sound like no more than big words, think about how your business could change the world.
What difference do you want to make with your products?
A vision statement is all about aspirations. It’s what you want your business to become once you achieve your mission.
Think about it this way: if your business were to have immense success in every commercial goal you had set for it, what would the company look like ten years down the road?
How a great vision statement brings value to everyone
Your vision statement is both internally and externally exceptionally significant. It needs to be motivating and aspiring to not only yourself but also the people who will potentially work for you and purchase your winning products.
For your team as a whole, it will lay out the groundwork and foundation for the future of the business and how they can help achieve this vision.
For your customers, it will offer a futuristic vision of what new and exciting goals your company is working toward achieving while also inviting them to come along on the journey and to participate in helping your business achieve a greater goal.
How to develop a vision statement
If you want to create a vision statement, you need to answer questions like:
- What are your hopes and dreams?
- What problem(s) your products can solve for the greater good?
- What change do you want to see in society?
The vision statement that you come up with will become the main factor and component in deciding your company’s identity in the future. Thus, you must make sure that your vision statement is elusive yet specific enough to operate as an idyllic statement that will motivate and inspire people to do business with you!
Vision statement examples from successful companies
Don’t be hard on yourself if you cannot easily come up with the perfect vision statement! We have included some examples of vision statements from some of the most successful businesses and brands in the world that might help you in formulating a perfect vision statement.
IKEA: To create a better everyday life for the many people.
Amazon: To be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online.
LinkedIn: To create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce.
Wikimedia: Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. That’s our commitment.
ASPCA: The vision of the ASPCA is that the United States is a humane community in which all animals are treated with respect and kindness.
Apple: Man is the creator of change in this world. As such, he should be above systems and structures, and not subordinate to them.
As your business grows, your goals may change. To make decision making easier, you should revise your mission and vision statements to make sure they reflect your business’s new direction.
Think about your core values
Your business’s values are equal to that of the standards, principles, and ethics that are significant to not only your company but to yourself. A company will typically have more than one or even two of these value statements.
Ideally, a value statement explains and highlights both the vision and mission statements of an organization.
Many businesses use acronyms to make their value statements unforgettable and shareable among their customers. For example, Avon Worldwide, a tremendous beauty company known worldwide, has a value statement that fully symbolizes and represents the word BIRTH.
For Avon Worldwide, the word BIRTH stands for Belief, Integrity, Respect, Trust, and Humility. Some businesses will only share their values with their internal team, choosing to keep it an internal company secret.
Let’s take a look at what Google thinks is important.
Google: Ten things we know to be true
- Focus on the user and all else will follow.
- It’s best to do one thing really, really well.
- Fast is better than slow.
- Democracy on the web works.
- You don’t need to be at your desk to need an answer.
- You can make money without doing evil.
- There’s always more information out there.
- The need for information crosses all borders.
- You can be serious without a suit.
- Great just isn’t good enough.
Think about what are your core values and how they can help you build an online empire.
How to keep on hustling while others hit snooze on the clock
Staying motivated and, to be quite frank, sane is pretty tough while starting a new business, especially if you’re new in entrepreneurship. Startup life is not for everyone. Working long hours on your new business plan after your usual 9–5 job can be exhausting. Why not watch Netflix or scroll on Instagram instead?
But if you can find enough strength and motivation to keep on hustling, you’ll eventually become your own boss. Isn’t the life of your dreams worth some effort?
Here are some ways to stay motivated and inspire your customers and employees to believe in both you and the value of the products you are selling!
1. Start for the right reasons
If your motivation to start a business on Shopify is to cash in a big check at the end of the week, then you and your business won’t last very long. Customers will be able to see right through your money-hungry façade, turning towards other, more passionate entrepreneurs.
However, if you are willing to commit to working hard for your business based on the sole fact that you love what you sell and love making customers happy with your product, then get ready for an extremely successful journey ahead of you!
If you are worried about starting a brand-new business amid a global crisis and pandemic, then check out our blog on Covid-19 & E-Commerce: How to Make the Most of Changing Buying Behavior.
2. Find sources of inspiration
Inspiration can be tough to find, especially while trying to start a brand-new e-commerce business during a worldwide pandemic. Do not fret!
Here are some of the best ways in which you can find inspiration during this difficult period:
- Watch motivational speakers on YouTube.
- Take nice long walks with a podcast on entrepreneurship.
- Think back on previous experiences where you overcame a difficult problem and transformed into a better person because of it!
- Read success stories of Shopify dropshippers.
3. Take small opportunities
Many people think that the only way for an opportunity to be great is for it to be huge and life-changing! This is the wrong mindset to have, and the truth is, most opportunities are minor, but they have the potential to become something big that will change the course of your business.
Some examples of taking advantage of minuscule opportunities:
- Read different articles to stay up to date on what is fresh and innovative within the e-commerce world.
- Initiate conversations with other successful e-commerce business owners.
- Take a dropshipping course.
To wrap it up
As an entrepreneur, you need a vision and mission to achieve your business goals and lead the lifestyle of your dreams.
- The mission statement explains what your company does. It clarifies the what, who, and why of your business.
- The vision statement explains what you want your business to become. Your vision describes how your company can change things for the better.
Before you start crafting your mission or vision statement, identify your core values first. They will make your decision-making easier and help you position your products in the best way possible.
Be specific.
These statements will give everyone an idea of what your business is about and help you stay focused on what’s important.
Sure, it may take some time to figure out your mission, vision, and values. But, once you do, your business will be on a clear path to success.
You’re officially an entrepreneur now. Happy selling!
Find out how you can scale your Shopify dropshipping store from $0 to $1k/Day!
