After I bought my practice and inherited a team, it didn’t take me long (just a few years) to realize that my team wasn’t me - not even close - so expecting them to think and act like I did was never going to happen. I wanted everyone to be high performing, driven, above and beyond people that were 100% committed to the job, like I was.

Does this sound familiar? Your head tech is brilliant but really unmotivated. Your new receptionist is eager but keeps making scheduling mistakes. And your new VA started off strong, but is lacking many skills and is defensive when you try to correct him.

Does getting your team to change feel like nailing gelatin to a tree? Getting buy-in, commitment and follow-through can be a very slippery challenge, and one that can become frustrating, painful, and inefficient for all if you’re not fully prepared.

We've all been there: You return from a fantastic veterinary conference, your head buzzing with exciting new ideas. You're eager to revolutionize your practice, but then... reality hits. The daily grind threatens to swallow your enthusiasm whole. Before you know it, those brilliant concepts are gathering dust in the back of your mind.

Back to the clipper situation (refer to the last blog), which had been ongoing for weeks until the infamous spay incident forced me to take action. Instead of staying in a victim mindset, I followed the Pathway to Accountability.

Last week, it took 20 minutes to shave a cat for surgery, not because of the procedure itself but due to the ten minutes spent searching for a sharp working set of clippers. This issue highlights a broader problem: a lack of accountability.

Embarking on a goal-setting journey involves using a vision-based approach to map out one's aspirations from the distant future back to the present. This method categorizes objectives into "far," "near," and "now" goals, providing a structured timeline that spans from immediate actions to long-term visions, such as career peaks or retirement plans.

Setting SMART goals is a crucial step that turns your vision into reality.

By crafting goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound, you create a clear roadmap towards your desired vision.

Imagine having a clear roadmap to guide you towards your ideal future. That’s the power of a well-crafted vision statement. Are you ready to define your vision? Before sitting down to write a vision statement, it's important to do some preparation to ensure the statement is well-thought-out and aligned with your goals.

Crafting a vision statement is akin to sketching the blueprint of your desired future, an act of deliberate imagination shaping the trajectory of your life's journey. With a clear vision in place, you anchor yourself to a defined purpose, empowering you to navigate challenges with resilience and determination, and ultimately manifesting the life you aspire to lead.

You’ve decided you could be a practice owner. That’s amazing news. Now it’s time to decide what path you want to take – build or buy? Let’s look at whether purchasing an existing clinic or starting your own is best the way to go by comparing the pros and cons.

Ownership is such a rewarding and lucrative journey compared to the risks and challenges, I encourage you to take the plunge, or at least the next step forward to learn what you must do to get started.

Everyone will be in a slightly different place when they want to start the process of practice ownership, so I’m sharing my initial steps to coach clients regardless of where they are.

Practice ownership is wonderful in many ways. You get to have something that is all yours and reflects your values. You are the decider, choosing the business model, what the practice looks like, who works for you, and what type of clients you see.

You’ve decided to invest in development by hiring a professional coach. Congratulations! This shows your commitment to growth and recognition that you can't do this alone. This is one step towards building up your "board of advisors" - the network of support that will increase your success and personal satisfaction in your career.

I heard about life coaches, thinking the idea seemed a little out there because why would someone need a coach to do life? Honestly, I didn't think about coaches much at all. I didn't realize the purpose and value of a coach until my early forties, when, in my new corporate job.

In this article, I share my evolution from a lonely, overwhelmed owner to one grounded in community support. I realized the key to avoiding burnout and propelling my clinic forward was embracing vulnerability. By building connections with mentors, coaches, and peers, I unlocked exponential growth - both personally and professionally.

Taking the time to acknowledge and show respect to the support team you work with makes for a more cohesive and empowered team that clients trust so that you won’t have a group of nameless faces but respected professionals.

What is empowerment? It’s hard to say because it’s a term that’s so overused and so broad that it either means everything or nothing. Webster defines it in just ten words as “the authority or power given to someone to do something.” That seems simple, doesn’t it? Just do that. Hand over the power and let someone do something.

Do you know if you’re acting like a boss or a leader? It’s easy and natural to tell people what to do, but the impact that choice has is not the one you want. Involving your team in decision making is the path to empowerment, where everyone is committed to solving problems and achieving success.