LOVE THE PROCESS OF GROWING YOUR PRACTICE – OCTOBER 2023

Near the end of August, Smile Potential reengaged with a young dental client who had worked with us previously, but who had gone through a near complete turnover of his team. This doctor is very driven to achieve success and he has a clear understanding of the potential for his practice. The nature of our early coaching conversations was to repeatedly assure the doctor that he would be successful, and we frequently addressed his questions of “When will I get there?” and “How will I know when I’ve gotten there?” He seemed focused on a “number”.

As we have seen in coaching over 140 practices during the last 15 years, the best results occur, not when you focus on the dollar outcome, but rather on the details of doing the right things, delivering better care, showing more compassion, executing benefit-oriented dialogue, and adhering to systems that assure success. Around the same time that we resumed coaching this client, Coco Gauff was in the process of achieving a stunning victory in the US Open Tennis Championship. At the young age of 19, Coco had been considered a potential champion and an heir to Serena Williams ever since she turned professional five years prior. This victory was the culmination of her ascension to the pinnacle of her sport.

Immediately after Coco won her final match in impressive fashion, she was seen quietly closing her eyes and kneeling to pray at the bench where she had her equipment and belongings. In the post-match interview, she was asked about her spirituality, and she responded that “I don’t pray for results. I ask for the strength to give it my all and for the safety of me and my opponent. Whatever happens, happens.”

A similar approach should be adopted by our young coaching client. Instead of concerning himself with the outcome, he would be better served by focusing on the steps to achieve that success. The first step in developing success is creating a vision that can serve as the “treatment plan” for the practice. Next, it is surrounding himself with a team that he can inspire to want to help the practice succeed through a culture of appreciation. The foundation for success is doing whatever is necessary to deliver the highest standard of care and doing everything possible to create the best possible patient experience through exceptional customer service. Through coaching, it is learning to adopt verbal skills that are consistently patient-centric, benefit-oriented, and create significantly higher acceptance of more comprehensive care. As the doctor and the team focus on the true benefits of the care to the patients, the patients, in turn, will develop an appreciation of practice’s compassionate care, and their dedication to excellence. This will lead to greater treatment acceptance and increased patient referrals.

For Coco Gauff, it was not thinking about becoming a tennis champion as a young girl that propelled her to victory. It was the thousands of hours hitting balls, constant coaching to improve technique, intensive training to develop stamina and fitness to endure the physical demands of the sport, and work with psychologists to develop the mindset necessary to be a champion.

For our coaching clients, it has never been about us predicting a particular production goal, yet our clients have unanimously increased revenue by a minimum of $250,000 in the first year, and many by much more. Some of our clients are producing $1 million more EACH year since we began coaching them. The return on investment (ROI) of coaching can be phenomenal, as seen in the chart below:

We understand the hesitancy that many doctors may have about coaching. It may seem expensive. It may point out things that can be done better, which is a threat to some egos. It may take a little extra work and attention, in the short run. It requires some change in mindset and approach; and change is difficult. But every   doctor who has gone through the process of coaching with Smile Potential can relate that their practices grew, their patients were more satisfied, the dentistry became more fulfilling, their teams became more empowered and they, consequently, profited greatly.

If you would like to find out more about how

Smile Potential Coaching can help you and your practice

become the champions you have the potential to be,

send us an email at coaching@smilepotential.com

or call us at 516-599-0214.