Becoming a Professional Dog Trainer - 5 - Asses Your Finances
If you have a double-income household or are retired (or independently wealthy!), you may have more flexibility about the amount of money you must bring in.
Regardless, how much money you need to bring in is an important consideration.
The answer to this question may decide how your business will look - especially in the beginning.
Most people don't have the financing to start out with a facility; it's something they must work up to.
Additionally, it is very helpful to have a client base and a referral base before opening a facility.
When running a small business it is recommended that you spend 60% of your time making money and 40% working on your business.
By "working on your business" I mean marketing, and administrative chores.
If you use the figures in the above paragraph, that will help you have specific goals to work toward.
If you work a 40 hour week, 60% of that is 24 hours.
If you know how much money you need to stay above water, you can figure how much you need to make in an average week.
So let's look at a possible scenario.
You must make $3,000 per month to pay your bills and feed your dog.
You would like to take a 2-week vacation and go to one major seminar each year (all numbers will be rounded up).
3,000 x 12 = $36,000 per year 36,000 ÷ 49 (number of working weeks per year) = $735 per week 735 ÷ 24 (number of working hours per week) = $31 per hour So, according to this, the least you must make is $31.
00 per hour for your time.
There are ways to make more than your hourly rate, and that is through group classes.
However, be sure to figure in all expenses and the time you are preparing for the class.
For instance if you do 2 classes per night, you'll probably have 15-30 minutes between classes - that time must be figured in.
Travel time must also be figured in.
If you go to a private consultation, spend an hour, and then go to another consultation 15 minutes away, that's 15 minutes that needs to be figured in and paid for in your hourly rate.
Many trainers have a part-time job when they first start out.
This gives them some cushion while they are building a practice.
Regardless, how much money you need to bring in is an important consideration.
The answer to this question may decide how your business will look - especially in the beginning.
Most people don't have the financing to start out with a facility; it's something they must work up to.
Additionally, it is very helpful to have a client base and a referral base before opening a facility.
When running a small business it is recommended that you spend 60% of your time making money and 40% working on your business.
By "working on your business" I mean marketing, and administrative chores.
If you use the figures in the above paragraph, that will help you have specific goals to work toward.
If you work a 40 hour week, 60% of that is 24 hours.
If you know how much money you need to stay above water, you can figure how much you need to make in an average week.
So let's look at a possible scenario.
You must make $3,000 per month to pay your bills and feed your dog.
You would like to take a 2-week vacation and go to one major seminar each year (all numbers will be rounded up).
3,000 x 12 = $36,000 per year 36,000 ÷ 49 (number of working weeks per year) = $735 per week 735 ÷ 24 (number of working hours per week) = $31 per hour So, according to this, the least you must make is $31.
00 per hour for your time.
There are ways to make more than your hourly rate, and that is through group classes.
However, be sure to figure in all expenses and the time you are preparing for the class.
For instance if you do 2 classes per night, you'll probably have 15-30 minutes between classes - that time must be figured in.
Travel time must also be figured in.
If you go to a private consultation, spend an hour, and then go to another consultation 15 minutes away, that's 15 minutes that needs to be figured in and paid for in your hourly rate.
Many trainers have a part-time job when they first start out.
This gives them some cushion while they are building a practice.
Source...