Most practice owners think they have a vision. A sentence written years ago. A vague idea. A gut feeling. But a real vision, one that energises your team and shapes culture, is something very different.

In this episode, Oliver and I break down the most common mistakes owners make when creating their vision – why many end up with fluffy statements that change nothing, why some practices have no vision at all, and why the work isn’t finished once the document is written and alive.

We explore how to structure a vision that actually works, how purpose, mission, and values fit together, and the simple tests that tell you whether yours is fit for purpose. You’ll learn why authenticity matters more than polish and how a living, breathing vision becomes rocket fuel for recruitment, retention, culture, and long term sustainability.

The medicine gets you started. The vision takes you somewhere worth going. Remarkable practices are built by leaders who choose the path with purpose.

Episode Outline:

[00:00] – Why vision matters

[01:07] – The danger of having no vision

[02:14] – Vision as your X factor

[06:49] – When structure goes wrong

[07:51] – Why “vision, mission, values” fall short

[09:46] – The purpose–mission–values model

[11:54] – Vision is only useful if you use it

[13:19] – The cost of abdication

[15:32] – Why vets avoid vision work

[18:00] – People, culture and sustainability

[20:40] – The goosebumps and butterflies test

[22:23] – Writing the unfiltered truth

[23:52] – Turning vision into leadership fuel

Resources & Links Mentioned

• Need help with your vision? Book a chat with Oliver at the Veterinary Leadership Academy and we’ll help you assess where you are and where you’re going.
• Download the Leadership Actions Study – practical steps to help you lead with clarity today.
• Explore our leadership courses – build the skills to create a culture your team loves being part of.
• Follow Dr Dave Nicol for daily leadership insights and practical tools for running a thriving veterinary practice.

Leave us a review on iTunes and share it with your colleagues in vet med. Great leadership, like great culture, grows when it’s shared.

You care deeply about your practice.

The vision, the medicine, the values, the clients - it all matters to you. Maybe a bit too much sometimes.

But unfortunately, just because you care, it doesn’t mean your team automatically will.

So how do you get them on board? How do you turn that personal passion into something your whole team believes in and wants to be part of?

In this episode, Oliver and I dig into what buy-in really looks like inside a practice - how to move from pushing people to inspiring them, why fear and control never create lasting motivation, and how clarity of purpose, mission, and values can turn a team that’s “just doing the job” into one that’s driving the vision forward.

You’ll learn how to help your people see what you see, how to build belief through consistency and communication, and how to create the kind of culture where everyone cares - not because they have to, but because they want to.

Because when your team believes in the vision, everything else starts to work.

Episode Outline:

[00:00] – What real care looks like

[02:00] – Duty, patients & self care

[04:10] – When care goes missing

[06:50] – Why “care” isn’t enough

[08:20] – The restaurant test

[09:35] – Fear kills culture

[10:00] – Clarity builds buy-in

[11:25] – Purpose, mission, values

[12:45] – Defining care for your team

[14:00] – Create context, not chaos

[14:45] – What truly matters to me

Resources & Links Mentioned:

• Download the Leadership Actions Study – simple, practical steps to lead better today
• Explore our leadership courses – build the skills to lead your team with confidence and clarity
• Follow Dr. Dave Nicol for daily veterinary leadership insights

Enjoyed this episode?

Leave a review on iTunes and share it with your colleagues in vet med. Because great leadership - like great care - grows when it’s shared.

Why do veterinarians keep burning out?

In this episode of the Veterinary Leadership Success Show, I’m unpacking why so many great people in our profession are burning out, and what we can learn from elite athletes about how to fix it.

Because in sport, training hard every day is a fast track to injury. Yet in vet med, we do exactly that - long hours, relentless pressure, and no real recovery. Then we wonder why everyone’s limping.

I’ll walk you through how to think like a coach - setting the right dose of work, building rest into the plan, and checking in before things start to snap. We’ll talk about how to balance intensity with recovery and why emotional fuel is every bit as important as physical energy.

Episode Outline:

00:00 – Performance or wellbeing? (You can have both.)

01:00 – Lessons from the track: what sport can teach vet med

03:00 – Running slow to go fast

06:00 – The four factors of performance: volume, intensity, rest, and fuel

10:00 – When teams “train” too hard and start to break

13:00 – Building resilience, not fatigue

16:00 – Check in before they burn out

18:00 – Fuel, rest, and emotional recovery

20:00 – Your leadership training plan for a healthier team

Want more leadership tools in your corner?

Follow me: @drdavenicol

Check out: Veterinary Leadership Academy

Run your eNPS: drdavenicol.com/get-your-enps

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