When you own a design business, you face a whole new set of challenges including: long-term business planning, design management, attracting and positioning your firm for smart growth. Having a strong vision statement and a mission statement is critical for guiding and growing your design firm. Learn how to develop these tools and get your team on board.

The heart of Design Business is a five-part series that addresses the tensions artists feel when they face the creativity-sapping realities of running a business. Part one dealt with matters of money and finances, part two with measuring time, part three with marketing, part four with managing growth, and in this final installment we’ll get to the heart of hearts—our deepest motives for...