If you haven’t figured it by now, Stacy and I share a lot in common both professionally and personally. During a recent business trip, she and I were reflecting about the influence our dads had in our lives.
My dad owned his own business and had a passion for being an entrepreneur. Stacy shared that her dad always worked 2 jobs. To say he was hard working and committed is an understatement. She told me that if he committed to something, he’d do whatever it took to get the job done. So I can clearly see where she gets her strong will and work ethic from (thanks Dad!).
We celebrate the fact that, although both have passed on, their constant encouragement, mentorship, unconditional love, and drive, set us both on a path of being independent, hard working, entrepreneurial women. What an incredible gift a dad can give his little girl, huh?
We’ve both had some very powerful mentors in our lives and we’ll share them with you from time to time. One of those influential mentors is our private business coach, Fabienne Fredrickson. You’ve probably heard me mention Fabienne before here and on Facebook. I feel that if I’m going to encourage YOU to have a coach for your business, I must invest in a coach myself.
One thing Fabienne always says to us is “If you’re interested, you’ll do what’s convenient. If you’re committed, you’ll do whatever it takes.”
It just so happens we were with Fabienne yesterday for our annual planning session for 2012 and she really put our feet to the fire to create some new programs and content to serve you at an even higher level. It’s going to take us really stepping it up and we are committed. So scroll down to read more about doing whatever it takes in the 86 days left before 2012…
Stay Inspired,
Rachel
Setting Goals = Getting Results!
One of the tasks during our annual planning and strategy session is to set goals for next year. But if all you do is set goals, you’ll get part of the way there but if you don’t first know where you’re starting and next, set S.M.A.R.T. goals, you might not get quite as far as you’d like.
Have you and your team made a plan for what you want to achieve in 2012? Are the goals S.M.A.R.T.? Let’s take a look
Specific: A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal.
EXAMPLE: A general goal would be, “Decrease openings in hygiene schedule.” A specific goal would say, “Based on the recent hygiene analysis showing 17% open time in hygiene, we will immediately implement a new confirmation protocol to reduce defects in the schedule to less than 10% by the beginning of next quarter.”
Measurable – Establish measureable criteria for tracking progress toward the attainment of each goal you set.
When you measure your progress, you stay on track. It’s always powerful when we work with a team that starts at 3% perio and watch them track their progression to 10%, 15%, then 20% perio.
Attainable – Attainable goals should be set so that the doctor and the team have to “stretch” a little bit in order to achieve it. “Stretching” doesn’t mean setting unrealistic goals.
EXAMPLE: A goal such as, “Our practice will have no defects in the schedule EVER!” is counterproductive because it sets the team up for failure. Absolute schedule perfection in our industry is nearly impossible. However, based on your recent hygiene analysis, if open time is now at 20%, an attainable goal could be to cut the open time in half in the next 90 days.
Relevant– To be relevant, a goal must represent an objective that the doctor and team are emotionally committed to.
EXAMPLE: If the fact that 75%-80% of Americans have some form of periodontal disease shocks you, you’ll use the fact that your hygiene analysis report showed only 13% of the procures billed out of hygiene are perio-related as your emotionally-relevant motivator. The implications that untreated periodontal disease can have on systemic health make this piece critical in patient care.
Timely -With out a timeline keeping you committed, a goal easily falls off your radar.
EXAMPLE: A goal phrased like this, is not likely to be attained: “Someday I’d like to implement assisted hygiene in my practice.” A timeline specific goal makes all the difference. “By May of next year, I will have a seamless assisted hygiene program implemented in this practice.”
Having a starting point, a place to then measure your growth on, is key to any practice’s success. Our detailed 5 Point Hygiene Analysis Report and Virtual Chart Audit is THE KEY to unlocking areas of opportunity hidden in your hygiene department.
We feel so strongly about the value this analysis brings to our clients, that we’re offering the Hygiene Analysis Report to all new clients through the end of October at a special rate. For one time only in 2011, we’re offering this report at only $997 (Regularly $1,200). If you’re interested in knowing how you stack up compared to other hygiene departments, if you’d like to find the missing link that’s holding your hygiene department back from growing, then call Margo at 877-237-7230 or email her at Margo@InspiredHygiene.com to see if the Hygiene Analysis may be the first step in planning for major growth in your hygiene department in 2012.
