Pet Sitter Confessional

Are you actually functioning as the owner of your business, or have you simply created a job for yourself? In this episode, we break down five distinct roles we can occupy as pet care business owners, from owner technician to enterprise owner. We explore how our responsibilities, mindset, and definition of productive work must change as the business grows and other people begin taking responsibility. We al...

What happens when you build a pet care business around the animals, clients, and work you genuinely love? Sarita Eckhoff shares how she transformed an idea into Exclusively Cats In-Home Cat Sitting while initially maintaining a full-time office job. She explains why professional presentation, continuing education, veter...

What does peace of mind actually look like when employees call out, clients cancel, cars break down, and plans change without warning? In this episode, we explore why peace of mind does not come from eliminating problems, but from building a business capable of absorbing them without every disruption becoming our personal emergency. We break that work into three major areas: hiring dependable people, creating systems d...

What happens when one unexpected moment changes your business—and your life—overnight? Cathy Duvall returns to Pet Sitter Confessional to share her deeply personal journey after a sudden accident led to years of surgeries, chronic infection, and a complete rethinking of how she operates her solo pet sitting business. Together, we explore the emotional challenge of adapting to physical limitations, learning to say no, an...

What happens when a leader stays incredibly busy but keeps avoiding the work that only they can do? In this episode, we unpack what "lazy leadership" actually looks like and why it has far less to do with how hard we work than with which responsibilities we choose to avoid. We discuss the difference between delegation, rest, hustle, and avoidance, along with the consequences our teams and future selves inherit when dif...

What would happen to your pet care business if you needed (or wanted) to step away? Collin speaks with Kaz Kelly, founder of Founder to Future Consulting, about preparing a business for sale long before an exit becomes urgent. Kaz explains why annual exit-readiness audits, documented systems, independent teams, and clear financial boundaries make a business more attractive to potential buyers. They also explore the emotional realit...

What do we do when working harder stops producing better results in our business? We explore how to recognize when we've genuinely hit a limit rather than simply experiencing a temporary slow season. We talk about separating what we can control from what we can't, managing the frustration that comes with feeling stuck, and treating a plateau as useful information...

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What would happen to your pet care business if you suddenly could not run it? Attorney and business owner Sativa Boatman joins Collin to explain why wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and succession planning matter long before retirement. They discuss the risks of allowing a business to pass through probate and the operational gap that can leave employees, clients, and family members without anyone authorized to act. Sa...

What if some of the decisions that feel most responsible today are quietly creating bigger problems for your business tomorrow? We explore how avoiding immediate discomfort can show up in our pricing, hiring, marketing, client policies, documentation, and willingness to delegate. We discuss why doing everything ourselves, tolerating mediocre performance, underpricing services...

What does it take to rebuild a pet care business without losing sight of why it matters? Collin talks with Dave Peterson of Bethesda Dog Walkers about buying into a family business, rebranding, changing operations, and learning to lead through uncomfortable seasons of growth. Dave shares how marketing, client trust, reviews, onboarding, and consistency all work together to create a premium client experience. They also discuss why d...

What if the biggest reason clients and employees stay has nothing to do with pricing, pay, or perks? In this episode, we explore how understanding why each visit matters transforms ordinary pet care into meaningful service. We discuss the difference between simply completing tasks and delivering genuine care, and how giving your team client context changes the wa...

What happens when your business changes faster than your brand does? Collin talks with Rebecca Thompson of Skyline Dog Walkers about rebranding, shifting toward dog walking, and learning how to communicate what makes a business different. Rebecca shares how she moved from teaching into pet care, built a team-based service model, and began using data alongside instinct to make stronger decisions. They also discuss visibility, social...

What if the biggest influence on your business isn't your marketing, your policies, or even your employees, but you? In this episode, we explore how every business gradually becomes a reflection of its owner's values, standards, and daily actions. We discuss why professionalism, integrity, education, and accountability must be modeled before they can be expected from a team. We also examine how culture is created throu...

What if better communication was less about winning arguments and more about building stronger relationships? Whitney Guison, President/CEO of the Nixa Area Chamber of Commerce, talks about hard conversations, community involvement, and why business owners need shared language with their teams. Whitney explains how clear expectations, defined policies, and immediate feedback ...

What easy button are we hoping will finally solve everything in our business? We examine why more clients, another employee, new software, AI, additional services, or a manager may create new challenges instead of eliminating our existing ones. We discuss how instant gratification and shiny object syndrome can distract us from the consistent, sometimes boring work that builds a dependable pet care company. We also expl...

What happens to a family's pets when cancer treatments consume their time, energy, and finances? Janelle Vargas joins Collin to share how losing her mother, Wilma, inspired her to create Wilma's Wags, a nonprofit providing pet food and pet-care assistance to families affected by cancer. She explains how the organization supports patients and caregivers, develops ...

Have you ever wondered whether a marketing expense is actually worth the money? In this episode, we explore three financial metrics every pet care business owner should understand before making decisions: client lifetime value, profit margin, and cost per visit. We discuss how these numbers remove guesswork from marketing, pricing, hiring, and growth decisions. We also explai...

What happens when an unexpected opportunity takes you across the world—and then brings you back again? Meagan Cervini shares her journey from managing dog daycares in Canada to helping launch a facility in Dubai, and ultimately building her own business back home. She reflects on the lessons learned from different work environments and how they shaped her approach to cl...

What kind of leader does your business need from you right now? In this episode, we build on episode 710 and talk about why self-awareness is only the starting line. We explore how each leadership style has strengths, stress responses, and blind spots that can either help or hurt our teams. We also discuss why great leaders learn to borrow from other styles without abandoning who they are. Ultimately, we remind pet sit...