If you have ever had to give a speech or write an article, you know how difficult it is to express yourself or come up with a topic that you hope would help your audience. I face this every week. A blank page, a speaking event, or even writing a book. You open your computer, and face an empty screen, looking like a whiteout blizzard. There is a deadline, and time is short. You search your brain for a topic, look at notes from a call from a frantic dentist, stalk the dental social media posts, or try to conjure a topic to help you start.
Been there done that. In fact, I’m “doing that” right now. Not too long ago, we were honored to help a doctor climb out of a low point in their practice while guiding them for years, creating the practice they always thought they would have. The final page of the story is that we helped them with a transition that netted them millions of dollars. About a month later they were flying through Dallas and asked if I could go out to dinner with them before they flew out to visit their daughter in West Texas. I was delighted to sit down and break bread with them. To my surprise, they presented me with a framed list of what they called “Michaelisms”. Just to be clear, I have never thought of things I say as anything other than a thought put to words, but certainly not worthy of memorializing them in a frame. To be truthful, the words inscribed in that frame were merely things I had said that, I assume, made an impact on the actions they took to create the practice they always wanted to have. While a little embarrassed that anyone would give reverence to anything I said, I was flattered that they found some level of motivation or clarity from each of these of these so called “Michaelisms”.
So, today, as I looked at that same blank page that needs inspiration, perspiration, and content, I started to type what was in that framed gift and added more of the same. The scary part was I went back and looked at communications going back and forth between myself, Max, and our clients. It was a bit surprising and unsettling as I noticed that many times these conversations were the very words that I had used in a lecture, words that they remembered from a conversation, or something I had written. It took a while, but I have listed over seventy statements or short thoughts that kept coming up.
To put this in context, I have written hundreds and hundreds of articles covering almost every aspect of a successful dental practice. Sometimes I was able to capture the strategy, transform it into words, and in some cases, many of you took this idea and put it into play in your own practice. I smile as I remember the times when someone transformed their practice from something we had taught or said. There were also the times when others would argue that these protocols and thoughts were hogwash. Thankfully, there were a lot more winners than losers. All of this to say, that decades of trying to reach out and help you, has been great.
I am going to attempt to take these 70 or so statements and write enough articles every week for the rest of the year. As December 2024 closes, I will be completing my dental writing and speaking outreach to you. I want to say it was such a privilege to listen and in someways help you. Even for those who challenged my ramblings, these too were blessings that helped me grow and see another side of dentistry. I look forward to putting down my thoughts with these final 70 “Michaelsims” for your enjoyment and practice enrichment. My curtailing the writing of an article every week of the year, in no way has anything to do with Summit continuing to be the premier dental consulting group. It will continue with the same players, and I will probably pop in and out with some ideas and strategies. I will just not be making a commitment to write an article every week.
As I list and address each one of these short thoughts, the article itself will be brief. Sometimes, the written word can be so thought provoking and black and white, that it takes little explanation. In its brevity lies a deeper meaning that only by application will reveal the absolute truth in your practice. To those not so timid as to postpone acting on its significance, it could help you rewrite your future as it turns on a light to other possibilities. So, don’t let the shortness in any way belie its significance. With brevity comes the possibility that those of you who tend to procrastinate will find that your “limiting belief” of needing more information in order to make any decision, will hold you back by failing to grasp the success of its application as you ruminate and procrastinate until it is just a distant memory with few recallable details. That would be a shame. A missed shot you never took, and of course you miss every shot you don’t take. For once in your life, take a tiny chance and implement without postponing your decision. Like the old Nike ad proclaimed: Just do it.
For the reader who hears a thought that would be great in their practice or read an article that was something you felt driven to try but never acted on because you felt like there would be time to do it tomorrow, please don’t wait. Put it at the top of your to do list for today but act quickly. If you know that you will lose that momentum or even misplace that article, delegate its application to someone else in the office and follow up on it. The future belongs to those that, without any hesitation, act even if they don’t have every bit of data. For those who have fallen into this myth or habit that has held you back, remember that no one is looking for another “average” dentist or dental office. What you act on today can very well rewrite your financial future. We reap today, because of what we did last week or last month. Put in the time, make the sacrifice, and stop waiting for someone else to “fix you”. Be accountable for your own results, lose your excuses and start finding your results (Michaelism #1).
There is nothing more frustrating as an employee or doctor who always has an excuse for things not turning out well. People who excel at making excuses, rarely are good for anything else (another Michaelism). It’s time to step in front of a mirror and take a hard look at your practice, your homelife, your goals, results, and life/business trajectory. Taking the time to internalize and act on these “Michaelism’s”, is how you Summit.
Michael Abernathy DDS
972.523.4660 cell
[email protected]
PS. Perhaps I shouldn’t have to remind my readers, but I always include my email address and my own cell number. They are there to give you the opportunity to contact me, ask questions, or get clarification on where you are now and how to achieve the practice you always thought you would have.