Over the last 6 weeks, I have endeavored to lay out a diagnostic plan that a sixth grader could follow. Basically, a fill in the blank, check the box, color by numbers approach to diagnosing why your office struggles. I have gotten dozens of emails from those that read the articles, followed the advice and are already seeing changes in their practice. It is the silent majority that I address today.
Most doctors tend to begin their reflection on their situation by saying, “yeah but, ___________”. You fill in the blank. This comes down to accountability. If it is happening, you caused it. By not doing something, or doing something wrong, what is happening right now is the result of your actions or inactions.
If you have not acted on the last 6 weeks posts and failed to even measure your performance, you fall into one of these categories.
1. Everything in your practice is doing great: Overhead is 55%, 20% growth per year, no staff turnover, hundreds of 5-star reviews, and an unlimited number of new patients increasing every month because you so inspired them. Congratulations! You are in the top one half of one percent of all dental practices. Please stop reading. This is not addressed to you. See you next week.
2. You didn’t even bother to open the last 6 emails titled Diagnose Yourself. I am probably not directing this to you, because you will never read it.
3. You read the articles but failed to do anything about them. You decided that they made sense but you would do it when ______________. Again, you fill in the blank. NOTE: Deadlines are the best inventions when it comes to making progress in life and business.
4. You read the articles and started to measure your performance and life happened. Your practice isn’t a priority in your balance of life. I understand this, but again, you are responsible for your results regardless of the circumstances or noise surrounding you each day. Please finish the articles and discover where you are falling short and what to do once you discover it.
5. You read them, did nothing, did not see the value, continued to complain and rationalized your results as the result of other people, the economy, or terrible patients.
Each and every one of these is rational and they are each correct. I find that you get what you deserve, not what you want. I find that anything worthwhile requires effort and commitment. Your reality is defined by your thoughts and actions. So much so, that you live by the motto of “I will believe it when I see it”. The successful people in life and in business see this a bit differently. They live by the motto of “I will see it when I believe it”. Your brain literally cannot differentiate between a live event and an imagined event. I got off the phone a few minutes ago with a doctor that that felt like staff cannot be trusted, they always leave after a short time, you can’t trust employee doctors to do the right thing and work hard with integrity, etc. You get the idea. Definitely a doctor that sees the cup half empty instead of half full. His reality and the results he currently achieves, and will continue to get, are a self-fulfilling prophecy of self-sabotage and reality fulfilling his highly negative perspective.
So here is the question: What is it going to take for you to get up and own your results? Decide today that you are sick and tired of settling for average results. It’s like the story of the guy who hears a knock at the door of his home and an officer tells him he has to evacuate his home immediately because the dam has broken and a flood is coming. He responds to the news with: “God will save me”. In a short time, the floodwaters have reached two feet in his home when he hears two fire rescue team members yelling to come out and get in their boat so they can take him to safety. He once again answers: “God will save me”. So, the rescuers move down to the next house. 5 hours go by and the water has enveloped his entire house and he is perched on the roof when an Army Reserve helicopter flies up, hovers, an announces over the loud speaker to climb into the rescue basket so they can take him to safety. Once again, he answers: “God will save me.” He dies and goes to heaven where the first thing he does is confront God. “I asked you to save me and you didn’t do it”. God’s response: “I sent a cop, two firemen in a boat, and 4 soldiers in a helicopter. What else did you want me to do?”
I write these articles every week so that you can have the practice you always wanted to have. My biggest disappointment is that over the years I run into or hear from a longtime subscriber only to find he or she never acted on the sound, practical, tested information that would have made a huge difference in their practice and life. So, here’s my question for you: “What do you want me to do?” I want you to have the practice you always thought you would have. There is no learning without application. Call me (972.523.4660) or call Summit (800.252.0955) or call someone else and get the help you know you need. I have no problem in suggesting to others to invest their money in advice and actions that can produce a 200% to 500% return on your investment. This is how you Summit.
Michael Abernathy, DDS Summit Practice Solutions
972.523.4660 cell 800.252.0955 office
[email protected] www.summitpracticesolutions.com
PS. You would be doing me a huge favor to text, call, or email me with ideas and suggestions for articles as well as any area of practice you are currently challenged with and/or stressed by.