Where are you going?

When I first meet a new client here at MaRS my first question after hearing the overview of their business idea is often “What does success look like to you?”  I’ve been surprised by how often I get a blank stare or a cliche in response.

At the risk of being cliche myself: If you don’t have at least a general vision of where you want to go how can you make smart decisions on how to get there?

There are lots of factors that make entrepreneurship appealing: the autonomy, the creativity, the excitement and energy, the joy of working with smart people you respect, the reward of building something great from nothing and the possibility of creating wealth.   Understanding the relative weight of these is important both at the start and as you share your vision with others.

It’s particularly important that co-founders, early employees and investors all agree on the destination.  And that you revisit the topic and confirm that alignment regularly as your business evolves.