What Running a Pet Care Business Taught Me About People

You know what no one tells you about starting a business?

How much it will humble you.

When I walked away from my tech career to start Betches Walking Betches, I thought my biggest challenge would be managing logistics or building a client base.

I was wrong.

The biggest challenge was learning to truly listen.

In my old corporate world, success meant optimizing processes, hitting KPIs, and moving fast. But in this business, moving fast means missing the details. And the details are everything.

I remember one of my first clients mentioning in passing that her dog got anxious during thunderstorms. I nodded, noted it, and moved on. A few weeks later, a storm rolled through LA while I was walking him. He panicked. I wasn't prepared.

I felt terrible. But that moment taught me something crucial: people tell you what matters to them, often quietly, and it's your job to really hear it.

Now, our team operates differently. We take notes. We ask follow up questions. We create systems to remember that Bella doesn't do well with skateboards, that Cooper needs extra time to sniff on his walks, that Milo's owner prefers updates in the morning.

This shift in how we listen has transformed our relationships with clients. They don't just see us as service providers. They see us as partners who genuinely care about their pet's wellbeing.

And here's the thing I've realized: this applies to everything.

Whether you're running a pet care business or leading a team in tech, the people who succeed are the ones who stop, listen, and make others feel truly heard.

That's the kind of leader I'm trying to be. Feminine, present, and inspiring.