Daniel Nathanson, Ph.D. from UCLA Anderson Graduate School of Business, focuses on the importance of a vision statement and how it can serve as a motivator for your business and a guideline for your actions.
A good vision statement is a clear picture of where you want to be at a particular point in time. The most famous vision statement (perhaps of all time) was JFK's proclamation that we will have a man on the moon within 10 years. A good vision statement will serve as a galvanizing and motivating force, especially if it is a challenge. It should be possible, but not easily attainable. It should be clear and should be described in enough detail so that people can imagine what it will be like when they get there. It's just like athletes who use visioning to imagine exactly what they are going to do before they do it.
So I suggest that you have a vision for what your company will look like five or ten years down the road. I also suggest that you have a vision or clear milestones that you will reach along your journey. With each milestone, you will reassess your course of action and even your vision since starting and growing a new business is about learning and adapting. Therefore your ultimate vision will help you create a roadmap for your business, and, more importantly, your vision will be an important motivator for you and for your team and will make the journey worthwhile. If you have a clear vision the actions you take to get there, you will have real meaning and will instill a sense of purpose and belongingness that are essential to achieving a goal.