Start Setting Your Business Goals for 2008

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Goal Setting We are nearly at the end of 2007 – less than 3 weeks to go! The end of the year is a great time to reflect on the past years successes and compare our pet business results to what we had planned to achieve. The end of a year is also the best time to start planning for the year to come. Getting your vision and goals for 2008 written down in the next couple of weeks will help you to jump right in to the New Year with enthusiasm and energy.

Last December I wrote an article for submission in a contest at Search Warp(an online article directory) about New Years Resolutions. Many people use these resolutions as their goals, but sadly most people don’t succeed in reaching them. I had been searching for a better way to set personal and business goals and just finished a book by Brian Tracy called Create Your Own Future: How to Master the 12 Critical Factors of Unlimited Success. I used the suggestions from this book and wrote down my own goals and vision for 2007.

Here is my article:

Most people who set New Years Resolutions are looking to improve their life by having more energy, a better figure, a bigger bank balance, more friends, or a new partner. But do we ever sit back and make a plan for achieving these goals by breaking the goal into a manageable series of steps? Do you envision what you life will be like once the goal is reached? Do you write your goals on paper? Are the goals you set in step with your values and overall life plan? Taking these extra steps when planning goals or resolutions makes all the difference in whether we have the perseverance and passion to stick to them when the going gets tough.

Rather than just setting New Years Resolutions this year I decided to set out my goals for 2007 following a rigid set of steps that would help me ensure that these goals would take me to place where I want to be to start 2008. These steps are recommended by all the experts on goal setting including Zig Ziglar and Brian Tracy and I challenge you to use them to help you be more successful in keeping your resolutions for 2007.

1) Create a strong vision or “Why” What would your life look like if you had no limitations on time and money? What would you do? Who would you work and live with? Write a list of the things you would have in your life. Spend some time imagining your perfect day in your new life. Write a letter to someone close to you at a future date in time (recommend 3 to 5 years from now) in the present tense - as if you are living it right now, telling them about your typical day.What you would write in your letter is a vision statement. This type of statement is a fantastic motivational tool for times when you are struggling with your goals and need a lift. Many goal experts recommend that you put this vision into a visual format by creating a dream board using pictures and words cut from magazines or books. In this format you can quickly look at your vision several times a day to keep it firmly implanted in your consciousness.

2) Create a personal mission statement A mission statement looks a little different from you vision. It should be a description of the type of person that you want to become, and how you will affect the lives of others. Think of the way you would like to be remembered once you are gone. Do want to be thought of as courageous, generous, a family man/woman, or supporter of a certain charity or community group? Write this statement down in one paragraph summary.

3) Write down a list of your top 10 goals for 2007 Now we come to thinking about specific goals. With your vision and mission statement in place it should now be easier to write goals that are congruent with who you want to be and where you want to go. Make these goals big enough so that reaching them will be a stretch and a challenge - but ensure you are able to believe that it is possible for you to reach them. To be most effective make goals specific and have a deadline or timeline to complete each goal.

4) Select you Definite Purpose for 2007 Take a look through the list of goals you now have on paper. Think about which one if achieved will make the most difference in your life or bring you closest to your vision and mission. Write this down as your definite purpose for 2007.

5) Write an action plan Take the goal that you just selected and break the task down into a series of small bite sized action steps. Each step should be small enough that it is not intimidating and won’t cause procrastination. Ideally each step will be a simple task that you can do easily in a day or a week. If there are regular actions that you can take daily and weekly, write down a weekly action plan that you can hold yourself accountable to. Put important milestones towards reaching your goals in a yearly planner. Be sure to celebrate as you reach these milestones! I plan to use these 5 steps again this year to design a plan of action for 2008. However, I want to make sure that I also put into practice the lessons I learnt about goal planning this year.

Here are a few steps you should follow to make the most of your plan and keep on track:

Review and update your goals and vision quarterly. Don’t create a great plan at the start of the year and put it aside to collect dust. Regularly look at your plan and update and adjust as your vision or goals change. As I moved through 2007 I found that as the year progressed that the focus of my business changed as I discovered new ideas and opportunities. Unfortunately I did not go back and revise my plan! In 2008 lets all agree that we will look at and revise our plan at least once per quarter.

Keep a success journal. Make sure you recognize yourself for all the success you achieve during 2008 – no matter how small. Focusing on success with attract more success to you and keep you positive and energized. I have just ordered a diary from the makers of The Secret to use next year - The Secret Gratitude Book

Get an accountability partner or business coach. A partner or coach will help you to stay on track with you plan and not allow you to make excuses for yourself for not completing the action items that you committed to in your plan. An accountability partner can be a friend, business partner, or spouse but you should make a schedule to meet once a week or once a month.

In the middle of 2007 I started regular business coaching and have found that having a professional coach to help me work through issues, keep me accountable, and brainstorm ideas has rapidly accelerated my business growth. If you would like to grow your pet business faster and with less stress I am now offering private phone and email coaching for pet professionals – hop on over to take a look a the program at www.thepetcarecoach.com

Please share your plans for 2008 by leaving a comment to this post and as a community at Working with Pets we can help to keep you accountable and help you reach your goals.

Tags :pet business tips

Unusual Pet Career - Making Natural Dog Shampoo and Soap

Filed Under Unusual Pet Careers, Pet Health | 2 Comments

Natural Dog Shampoo Natural pet shampoo and soaps are growing in popularity as pet parents are becoming more aware of the effects of chemicals on the environment and on the health of their pets.

Pet shampoos and soaps can be made in your home and marketed to pet owners as a great home based pet business. This is another example of a pet business that can be launched with very low overhead and start up costs.

You can find many recipes for natural pet shampoos online - here is a simple one that I found at Care2.com:

2 cups water

2 teaspoons liquid castile soap

2 tablespoons aloe vera gel

Up to 1 teaspoon vegetable glycerin or vegetable oil

Combine the ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake to blend. This recipe is especially good for soothing skin irritations.

You can find several recipes for dog soap at About.com - for these you will need to purchase melt and pour soap mixes to be used as a base and molds in which the soap mixture can be poured to set. These can be purchased from “Nature With Love” or other online sites.

The dog shampoo and soaps could be marketed for the holidays as part of a gift basket or as individual jars, bottles or soap bars. During the year another great place to market soaps and shampoos is at your local grooming salon or doggie day care center. You could have a display on the counter where customers check in and out. When you were ready to grow your dog shampoo business you could also market them on Ebay or set up your own website to sell them online and ship to customers.

To find other unique pet business ideas I recommend 101 Best Businesses for Pet Lovers As the title suggests this book has 101 ideas for pet businesses and many of them are out of the box ideas such as careers as a pet food sampler, toy inventor, pet radio host, pet party choreographer or catnip farmer. The details of each career are described with qualifications needed for each, ways to get customers, and other helpful resources. Take a look now at 101 Best Businesses for Pet Lovers

Tags :pet health, Unusual Pet Careers

Nine Tips for Pet Sitting Business Owners from Patti Moran of Pet Sitters International

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This week Pet Sitters International issued a press release with 9 tips for pet sitting business owners from president Patti Moran. Patti started out as a pet sitter and has built the Pet Sitters International organization to 7900 members. I loved her tips and thought that they were worth sharing. If you run any other type of pet business these tips are also very applicable - take a look and see what you can put into action to grow your business in 2008.

Market to your current customers. Keep them informed about what you do for them and the standards to which you conform. Leave checklists and “report cards” after each pet-sitting assignment. Create referral programs to encourage them to pass along your information to other pet owners. Thank your customer with handwritten notes, e-mails and calls. Finally, ask them how you can improve, realign and expand your services to help them even more.

Consider giveaways and free trials. Offer your services to newcomers in the areas you serve. If emergencies arise and pet owners have to be away, offer your services to help them out and to demonstrate the basic reason the pet-sitting industry exists. Moreover, it’s just a nice thing to do.

Form and develop alliances with others who serve the same type of customer. Work with veterinarians, pet store owners, groomers, pet daycare and canine cafe operators to co-promote through advertising and formal programs as well as word-of-mouth referrals. Help them and they will help you.
Let the world know that pet sitting is serious and that you mean business. Talk about your affiliations, commitment to continuing education and the insurance and bonding that you carry. Consider expanding by using independent contractors and growing your business through volume within targeted geographies.
Create a grassroots Internet presence. Develop and promote a Web site that demonstrates your love for the profession and helps the public understand the value of hiring a professional. Participate in blogs and forums to offer your expertise and to promote your own Web site and business. Help educate people on pet-related issues and the rewards will come back to you.
Expand your services and constantly add value. Do your clients need you to take their pets to the veterinarian or groomer while they’re away? Are you offering plant watering, mail and newspaper retrieval, or turning on lights and opening and closing curtains as value-added services? Expanding your business model and service offerings–both for profit and free of charge–can add value to and increase demand for your services.
Become an evangelist. At every opportunity, talk to your local media and to municipal organizations, civic clubs and other groups in your community. This is a great way to promote quality pet care while supporting animal adoptions and local Humane Societies.
Watch the competition and learn from them. The market is expanding, not contracting. There is room for alliances and the sharing of great ideas. Lift up the profession and everyone will benefit.

Remember why you are in the business. Do not lose sight of what attracted you to pet sitting. Do a great job and the fun, fame and fortune will follow.

Tags :Pet Care Business Tips

Learn How to Promote Your Pet Business with A Blog

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Another free resource for you if you are interested in starting a blog to promote your pet business. A blog is one of the easiest websites to set up and is very easy to update (from anywhere you have an internet connection!), and the search engines love blogs too. You can get a blog ranked much more quickly by Yahoo and Google that with a static website as they really like regularly updated websites and there are many ways to get links to your blog.

Blogs are also a great method to stay in touch with your existing customers. You can use a blog to give them useful information, conduct surveys, and get their feedback on your products or services.

If you are considering starting a blog grab a copy of Yaro Starak’s free ebook “The Blog Profits Blueprint“. You can also sample a free lesson from his blog mentoring program where he teaches his students how to set up and write a good blog, attract lots of traffic, and make money. Click here for the sample lesson on creating blog coversations.

I have been a part of the Blog Mastermind mentoring group since it started and feel like I have really been able to improve this blog and attract more traffic because of Yaro’s lessons, and the reviews and networking forums available as part of the training.

If you are unfamiliar with how blogging can help your business here is a quick introductory article by Connie Ragen Green.

“In the world of today you must be able to think creatively in order to promote your business. One way to do this is by starting and maintaining a blog. A blog can increase profits in your product or service business in a relatively short time.

A blog is short for web log. They are web sites that are set up by several different companies so that people can choose a simple template and format to present their information on the internet. Blogs are extremely popular, but their use and popularity has barely scratched the surface of the world wide web. Every two seconds someone starts a new blog. Many of these are simply online journals and are quickly abandoned. But the use of blogs and blogging as a business platform is just in its infancy.

When you decide to use a blog keep these 5 ideas in mind:

Choose a simple design for your blog. Especially in the beginning, an uncomplicated format will be easier to use.
Think about what you are going to write before you post to your blog.
Write about your product or service so that your clients and other readers can learn more about your industry.
Use a conversational manner when you write on your blog. You want people to feel like you are talking directly to them.
Post to your blog at least twice a week. The search engines will spider your blog more frequently if you write more often.

Having a blog will set you apart from others in your industry and help to position you as an expert in your field. Be sure to include a recent photo of yourself and put your contact information. Encourage your readers to leave comments so that you can start a dialogue. Remember that many people still are not familiar with blogs so you will have to educate them. A blog is interactive and that is a new concept for those not used to Web 2.0. Most of all, have fun with your blog. This is a powerful tool for letting others know who you are and what you do in your business”

Connie Ragen Green is a small business marketer. To find out more ways to develop your small business into a profitable money machine visit http://www.SmallBusinessUnMarketing.com

Don’t forget to get a copy of The Blog Profits BluePrint and read Yaro’s free lesson here as he will only have it available for a limited time.

Tags :blog mastermind, blog profits blueprint, business blogging, Pet Care Business Tips, yaro starak

Small Business Networking and Free QuickBooks Software

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QuickBooks I found a great site last week that has lots of advice for small business owners, new business owners, and potential business owners.

Jump Up is a website by Intuit the makers of QuickBooks accounting software that is aimed at providing business planning, accounting, marketing, and tax advice to new business owners. They provide many free templates and programs as part of their toolbox and also a directory of business articles.

Their 6 steps to business start up section gives advice to help you:

1) Market you business online

2) Make a business plan

3) Get expert help and training

4) Create the right business structure

5) Select a business name and create a unique identity

6) Get paid by your customers

If you have recently started a pet business or are still considering a start-up then one of the fantastic resources they offer is a free copy of QuickBooks simple start which tracks sales and expenses and helps you prepare your taxes. At this time of the year I can’t think of a better freebie - I always end up scrambling to get my accounts in order and find all my receipts and deductions at the beginning of each year - but keeping your books up to date on a program like Quickbooks can help you avoid the end of year rush. This sample has no expiration date, you can keep using it until your business needs outgrow it, and then you can upgrade to QuickBooks full version and transfer all your data.

Another great feature of the Jump Up site are the forums and community section. They have a financial forum and a marketing forum where you can discuss small business issues with other small business owners and learn from their experience. On the front page of the site you see a Small Business Spotlight - once you join the forums you can add your own spotlight and then have your business featured on the home page too! Just another way to market and be noticed.

If you know of any other small business resources leave a comment and let us know about them..

Tags :Intuit, Pet Care Business Tips, QuickBooks, small business