"I just don't understand it. I hire these associate doctors, expecting them to take charge. All I get is excuses why things don't get done----why their practices aren't growing."
Doctor, if you've ever said this to yourself, you could be rewarding associates for avoiding risk taking. Your associates are more comfortable being safe and sure. So, they do only that which is expected. They avoid the new and untried.
Healthy, growing practices encourage their associate doctors to take smart risks. They give them the leeway to be wrong. Progressive senior doctors recognize the importance of intelligent risk taking. They realize that resourceful mistakes are a part of the price paid for personal and professional growth.
Personality tests given to low, average, and top-performing doctors reveal that top performers show the greatest willingness to take risks. Low-level performers are comfortable with security. They try to appear important without taking risks. Average performers are less security conscience. Like low performers, average performers are preoccupied with looking effective rather than being effective.
Peak performers receive enjoyment from work itself. Their strongest drives are for achievement. They focus on being the best they can be. They are risk takers -- the doctors that are responsible for the growth of any chiropractic practice. In the majority of chiropractic practices, peak performers are individually responsible for the success of "their" practice. The low and average performers ride along on the coattails of the peak-performing risk takers. Every growing and profitable chiropractic practice must establish a comfortable risk taking level. In addition, the associate doctors who work in the practice must be encouraged to take intelligent risks.
You can convert your risk avoiders into risk takers. Create a climate that promotes, rewards, and supports risk taking. If you don't reward risk taking, most people will avoid it. Give your associate doctors a positive environment in which they can learn from their mistakes without fearing punishment.
Strategy: Instill in your associate doctors that intelligent errors are part of the cost of progress. Whenever your doctors try to take an unexpected leap forward, encourage this progress.
Strategy: Be an example of a risk taker. Don't try to hide your mistakes from your associate doctors. You don't need to be right all the time.
If you aren't making some mistakes, chances are you're not taking enough risks. Talk openly and honestly about the mistakes you make and what you learn from them. Share your concerns about the risk you were afraid to take but decide to go ahead and try. Reaffirm the benefits that resulted from the apprehensive risks.
Strategy: Celebrate both success and setbacks. Accolades and other rewards traditionally are given to associate doctors who achieve great things. Few doctors celebrate mistakes. Don't ignore the doctors who take chances, give it their all and fall flat out on their faces. They won't take another risk unless you give them appropriate support and encouragement for trying. When an associate doctor says to himself or some other person, "I tried, but no one around here really cares," he develops a negative attitude about future risks.
Strategy: Encourage intelligent risks. Isolating a few successful ideas requires starting out with many ideas. Create a comfortable and positive environment in which your associate doctors can explore new ideas. Then give them a way to evaluate the risk they are considering taking. Smart risks require several key ingredients:
Readers are invited to write to me:
Brian Porteous, D.C.
2042 Business Center Drive
Irvine, California 92715
Please include your self-addressed, stamped envelope. Thank you.
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
