Today’s guest is the global high priest of veterinary business John Sheridan. John, one of the profession's true trail blazers and his journey stretches back to a wartime education during The Blitz and early clinical experience in the Herriot Era of practice. He stood at ground zero for veterinary corporatisation in the UK when he set up Veterinary Practice Initiatives back in 1998. And he reaches into the future and remains on the cutting edge of thought leadership and content production publishing weekly on his blog and also the vet business video show - currently approaching episode 200. Now did I mention that in addition to his veterinary degree from the RVC, John was president of both the British Small Animal Veterinary Association and the Veterinary Practice Management Association? Plus he holds a diploma in practice management, the CVPM and just because he’s showing off, the CVPA. He jointly authored the 'Business of Veterinary Practice' Book and recently received a Pioneer Professional Member Award from Vet Partners, the only non-US recipient of this award to date. If you are starting to feel like a sad underachiever then you are not the only one in the room! I almost daren't go onto his roll call for speaking credits which is insanely long and would take an episode to list itself. Suffice to say, John knows his stuff and people over the past four decades have listened intently. I certainly did and still do, John is one of my Veterinary Heroes having a massive influence on my career. So it was a pleasure to have him as a guest on Blunt Dissection - hopefully I’m not too much of a fanboy! In this episode, he gives a master class (in his charming way) on how to take risk, network like a pro, push through fear, learn from other people, how to start up a vet hospital and why no-one, but no-one wants to be the average client. Plus he practically gives away a blue print for what veterinary practice will look like five year from now. If that’s not a valuable way to spend an hour of your time I don’t know what is. So sit back and enjoy John Sheridan’s interview on episode six of Blunt Dissection. Also covered in this episode: * How the RCVS came to allow non-vet ownership and the rise of corporate medicine. * His fund raising journey and why no-one should start up a business without 1 a plan, and 2 having enough money (hint more than you think) to get going. * How he would set up a veterinary practice if he were starting from scratch in today’s veterinary environment. * Johns opinion on why nurses are leaving the profession in droves. * Why he is bullish in the future of the profession but is concerned that we are in danger of missing out on the technological and information revolution in healthcare for the independent sector.