Mr. Collins coached my family through creating a mission statement of our own.

WSJ: Run Your Family Like a Business

In fact, at one point, instead of creating a standard vision statement, she wrote and distributed a fictitious Wall Street journal article, describing the Xerox of the future in glowing and very specific terms.

FORBES: Why Some Companies Break Through and Others Don't - in 6 Words

Here, financial advisors can play an even more valuable role, by acting as a trusted arbiter and creating an investment policy statement that attempts to avoid such mistakes.

FORBES: Investors Need To Make Money, Not Beat Benchmarks