As we approach the end of each year, it is important to take time to reflect on the past year, review annual goals, and reset goals for the upcoming year.
The majority of the population drifts through life aimlessly taking whatever life hands them. They spend more time planning their family vacation than they do their life and business. How much time do you spend visualizing your ideal practice, career, and life? Now, how much time do you spend setting goals and creating a plan to bring your visions into reality? It is very difficult to hit a target that doesn’t exist!
Reflect
Take time to think about all you have accomplished in your practice and your personal life over the past year. Express gratitude for all the wonderful people and things you have in your life. Be thankful for your life of abundance.
Overall, how do you feel about what you have achieved this year, both professionally and personally? Were you intentional about achieving your goals? Or did the year quickly pass by in a whirlwind, and you feel you are in the same place you were a year ago?
During your reflection, do not dwell on things that did not go as well as you had hoped. Take the lessons you learned and release the rest. You cannot change the past so don’t waste time living there. Instead, focus on the things that did work well and determine if these are actions that you want to repeat.
Review
Review the goals you have set and written down for the year. If you didn’t set goals, it is never too late to start!
5 Components to Living Your Ideal Life
- Health
- Relationships
- Impact
- Lifestyle
- Finances
For purposes of this article, let’s see how your practice/career is affecting each area.
Health
- Physical (Body): How is your regular work schedule affecting your nutrition, fitness, and sleep? Are you happy with your appearance? Most importantly, how do you feel each day?
- Mental (Mind): How is your self-confidence and self-esteem? How effective are you? What goals, values, and habits are you intentional about? How often do you feel mentally exhausted?
- Emotional (Heart): How much love, passion, and happiness does your work bring you?
- Spiritual (Soul): Do you feel a sense of purpose? How often do you allocate time to meditate or simply sit in silence in gratitude?
Relationships
- Self: Do you love who you are as a person? How do you talk to and about yourself? How often do you prioritize time to work on yourself?
- Home: How does your work affect your relationships with your spouse/significant other and your children? How present are you with them? How much energy do you have to give to them?
- Work: Do you have great relationships with your co-workers? Do they inspire you or drain your energy?
Impact
- Purpose: Do you know why you are present on this earth? Is your career aligned with this purpose? Are you clear on what your expert abilities are? Are you spending most of your work time using these expert abilities?
- Passions: Are you passionate about your work? Does it fill your heart and soul with joy and happiness? Are you spending time on other passions outside of work?
- Philanthropy: Are you being fulfilled by giving back to others? Are you active in contributing to your community?
Lifestyle
- Experiences: Does your work allow you to create memorable experiences in your life, both professionally and personally?
- Material Possessions: Does your work provide for all the material possessions you want in your life? What drives you to want those things?
- Time: Do you have ample time to create memorable experiences and enjoy the material possessions you desire?
Finances
- Annual Income: Is your position and/or your practice providing the annual income you desire? If not, how can you become more valuable in order to increase your income?
- Net Worth: What net worth goal did you have for this year? Did you meet it? What is your net worth goal for the upcoming year?
- Practice Value: What is the value of your practice? Is it growing? Is it on track to meet your retirement goals?
Reset
The most successful people in business and in life, have written goals. It is extremely important to set goals for the upcoming year, write them down, and create a blueprint on how you are going to achieve them. The “how” is not as important as writing the goals. The “how” can, and likely will, change throughout the year as you learn new things and opportunities present themselves.
Determine the purpose of your practice. Why does it exist? If you need a little help and inspiration, check out Simon Sinek’s TED talk, “How great leaders inspire action.” The short 18-minute video is packed with gold nuggets to include, “people do not buy what you do they buy why you do it.”
In what ways do you want to advance your practice in the upcoming year?
Build Your Team
Are you looking to grow your team? How? Simply in numbers by hiring more people? How about growing the team you currently have? What training is available for your team members that would create new or better services for your clients?
Leverage Technology
What equipment and/or technology do you want to invest in? What is your intention with this purchase? Will it make the team more efficient? Will it generate additional revenue/profit? With the difficulty in hiring doctors and staff, technology is the logical choice on how to produce more with less manhours. What processes in your practice can you replace human hours with technology?
Flourish Financially
Look at your current year gross revenue and set a revenue goal for the upcoming year. More importantly, review your current year profit and set next year’s profit goal. Why do you want to generate this profit? Do you have practice debt? What is your plan for paying it off?
Surprisingly, the revenues and profits are not the tell-tale sign of the overall financial performance of your practice. What is? It is the value of your practice. Do you know the value of your practice? Do you know how to improve the value? What are your financial goals in relation to your exit strategy? Are you on track to meet these goals? Do you know if you are on track financially?
While our services include practice valuations for ownership transitions, business valuations have many other important uses.
8 Ways Valuations Help You Reach Your Target
1. Understanding True Value
A business valuation acts as a financial health check for veterinary hospitals. It incorporates an in-depth assessment that evaluates the practice’s assets, liabilities, cash flow, and overall economic standing. This knowledge empowers veterinary hospital owners with a realistic understanding of their business’ worth, enabling informed decision-making and strategic planning. Understanding the true value of the hospital is foundational to any future financial steps.
2. Aiding in Sales or Acquisition
The process of selling or acquiring a veterinary practice demands a fair and transparent assessment of its worth. A comprehensive valuation provides an objective starting point for negotiations. For sellers, it helps justify the asking price, while for buyers or potential partners, it offers clarity on the value they are considering to invest in or acquire.
For partnerships or mergers, a valuation is indispensable. It assists in structuring agreements and forming a basis for ownership stakes and financial responsibilities, ensuring a smooth and transparent transaction.
3. Facilitating Growth and Expansion
For a veterinary hospital looking to expand its services, invest in new equipment, hire additional staff, or even open new branches, understanding its financial standing is crucial. A valuation provides a clear fiscal snapshot, essential for securing necessary financing. Lenders often require a valuation to assess the creditworthiness of the business, making it an instrumental tool for obtaining loans or investments for expansion.
4. Succession Planning
Owners of veterinary hospitals often face the challenge of planning for their eventual exit from the business, whether due to retirement or other reasons. A business valuation is crucial for succession planning because it offers a realistic assessment of the practice’s worth. It assists in estate planning, ensuring a fair distribution of assets, or transferring ownership to family members or other professionals.
5. Legal and Financial Compliance
Valuations play a vital role in various legal contexts. They are essential for tax assessments, litigation support, shareholder disputes, divorce proceedings, and other legal matters. Having a recent and comprehensive valuation can safeguard the hospital’s interests, ensuring compliance with financial and legal regulations.
6. Improving Operational Efficiency
A valuation isn’t just about assessing worth; it’s about understanding the dynamics of the business. Analyzing the financial health of the veterinary hospital sheds light on its strengths and weaknesses. This insight helps in making informed decisions for optimizing operations, managing costs, and identifying areas that require improvement. It serves as a roadmap for enhancing the hospital’s operational efficiency.
7. Attracting Investors or Loans
When seeking investment or loans for growth or improvement, a business valuation adds credibility. Potential investors or lenders are more likely to support the hospital’s endeavors when they have a clear understanding of its financial situation. A valuation bolsters confidence in the business’s potential and future success, making it an attractive investment opportunity.
8. Benchmarking and Setting Goals
A business valuation serves as a benchmark, enabling owners to set realistic financial goals for the practice’s growth and development. It provides a reference point to track progress over time, aiding in monitoring financial performance, and making necessary adjustments to meet the objectives.
Achieve Your Veterinary Practice Goals for 2024
Set aside time to reflect on this past year, review your goals, and reset goals for the upcoming year. If selling or buying a hospital is on your goal list, Simmons is the trusted leader in veterinary hospital ownership transitions. When you are setting your financial goals, be sure to include learning the value of your hospital. It is likely one of the largest assets, if not the largest, in your portfolio. For the eight reasons stated above, it is important for you to know your practice value. Not only will we determine the value of your practice—we will also coach you on ways to improve it!
