One of my weekly chores was to mow my family’s lawn. Our neighbor saw me mowing one day and asked if I could mow their lawn as well. I figured this would be a great opportunity for the future because one of my goals after high school is to own my own business. I started small, mowing only a few lawns my first year. When my agricultural education instructor saw my progress, she suggested I take the next step and move my Ownership SAE to an Entrepreneurship SAE. I created a Business Plan to mar-ket my services, add employees and equipment and track my return on investments. Before the next summer ended, I had 15 new customers and expanded the services I offered.

The best part about my SAE is the opportunity to create relationships and network with my customers. Many of the customers I work for each week have busy lives. I provide them a valuable service–more time with their family and loved ones. After mowing their lawns for a while, my customers began to ask me questions about their yards and landscaping. I found myself using information I learned from my horticulture and landscape design classes to help my customers in new ways. I love helping them enhance the aesthetic value of their property!

After receiving positive customer feedback about my landscaping advice, I decided to expand my Business Plan. In addition to mowing, I now offer my customers landscape design, plant selection and regular maintenance services. My most active seasons are spring, summer and part of fall. During the winter months, I spend time drawing landscape de-signs and carefully selecting the best plants for my customers’ yards. I also spend a lot of time documenting my expenses and income to keep track of my growth. To market my business, I hand out brochures explaining what services I offer and reviews from previous customers.

I never thought mowing my lawn as a weekly chore would turn into a growing business I enjoy. Landscape design and maintenance has become not only an SAE and business, but a hobby of mine! I think landscaping and lawn maintenance is something I want to pursue as a full-time career. After high school, I plan to expand my Business Plan and attend college part-time to study landscape architecture.