The Web-based Dentist

Linda Drevenstedt

Be Honest. 

Say what is true, honorable and courteous to all team members.  If you don't agree, say what you believe to be true in the situation with courtesy and compassion.

 

Communicate directly to the one who can do something.  

Do not communicate behind backs.  When you take issue with another person's behavior, dress, way they raise their kids, etc.,  behind their back with another team member, you create a devious triangle of gossip that cuts your ability to be a full team member with that person and you negatively influence the person you share the comments with.  Communicate to the person you have an issue with or keep it under your hat.

 

Listen with an open mind and heart.  

Having a point of view is important.  But, when your point of view is the ONLY one you can tolerate or support, then teamwork has left the practice.  People feel valued when you can listen without interruption, judgment or "attitude."

 

Be there for others.  

Keep your head up and look around the whole practice, not just your area, to see if someone needs help.  Everyone has a better day when there is an overall sense of cooperation and helpfulness.

 

Learn to handle conflict.  

Recently I heard on a business CD that "conflict" is two people each trying to occupy the VICTIM position.  Take a deep breath and think of a way to approach the one with whom you have a conflict and offer a solution that can move you both forward in a positive step.  Burying your head in the sand is not a help either.  Expressing your views or feelings is important when done with respect for another's feelings and views.  Avoiding communication to avoid conflict buries feelings that can grow and can erupt at an inappropriate time or place later.

 

Create written agreements among team members and use them to keep the team "ON POINT."  

Here are some samples: I agree to show up on time and ready to work each day. I agree to be prepared, attend on time, and listen to others at our Morning Huddle.

Help others look GOOD.  Praise and appreciation are the vitamins that grow teamwork.  Look for something to appreciate or praise each day with each person and you will be surprised at the energy lift everyone will feel.

 

Admit your mistakes. 

Humans are NOT PERFECT! In dentistry, there seems to be a belief that we all should be.  Learn to own up to and admit your mistakes, and then LEARN the lesson and don't repeat the mistake.  Excellent teams learn from mistakes and solve their problems.

 

Avoid the blame game.

Blaming or insisting that a problem was someone else's fault, quickly pointing a finger or making excuses takes away your own power to be a problem solver.  Taking responsibility for your contribution in the situation gets the problem solving process started.  Try starting the conversation with, "I wanted to blame you for this, but I see I have a part in it also.  Let's see if we can solve this together."

 

Let others get competent.

In dentistry we have a lot of people who OVER-take responsibility for their area, tasks, jobs.  If you are doing someone else's job because you think you can do it better, faster, you have no time to train them or other reasons - STOP IT now.  Create a plan to help the other person become competent.  If they cannot, then it is time to determine the division of labor for that area and move the person out of the practice or redesign the job duties.

 

Ask for help.

I often have team members tell me that no one ever helps them.  They will play "Poor pitiful me, no one helps." Yet, when asked if they need help, they say "No."  Asking for help does not mean you can't do your job.  Schedule changes, things that don't go the way you expect, patients that are late, etc., create team stress.  Learn to ask for help when you need it.

 

Be open to feedback.

Being defensive when someone gives you feedback only keeps you from getting vital information for your personal and professional growth.   Consider feedback "The Breakfast of Champions."  All great pros have coaches who give them feedback.  No one on the team should be immune to others.

 

Develop these twelve Power Boosters that foster and support more productive behavior and higher levels of team work.  You will increase trust and enable each person to grow their ability to be a TEAMWORK Booster.

More About Drevenstedt Consulting

Just the other day I heard the very sad story of Dr. Suzanne who practices in sunny Southern California. A year ago she was looking for new dental software to manage her practice. Of course, she listened to what he "trusted" dealer sales representative had to say:

"Dr. Suzanne," he said, "If you buy your hardware from our trusted company I'm able to get you our awesome practice management software for free!"

Dr. Suzanne was thrilled. She had to buy new hardware anyway, and now she was going to get her software at no charge. She trusted this salesperson who represented one of the largest dealers in the country. So she signed on the bottom line for the tune of $30,000.

After the dust settled and Dr. Suzanne was using her free software and hardware she had a conversation with her brother, who happens to be an IT guy for another business. As she talked about her recent purchase, he became curious and asked that she send him a copy of the invoice. When he reviewed the material she had purchased he was shocked. She had been sold older model hardware.

His thoughts to her was: You paid for outdated hardware and you paid for old fashioned software. You should have moved your practice to the cloud and you would have saved tens of thousands on the hardware and eliminated upgrade hassles, backup worries, and server maintenance calls.

So here we are a year later and Dr. Suzanne is taking the advice of her brother. She's looking at cloud-based dental software, like Curve Dental, to replace the very pricey free software she got.

Look, my friends: If you buy a car and the dealer says they'll throw in the stereo at no additional cost, you know that stereo is going to suck. So, if your dealer rep says "Buy your supplies from me and I'll throw in the dental software for free" what does that tell you about the software? Either the supplies you're going to buy have been marked up to pay for the software or the software sucks to begin with.

 

Classic Dental Jokes

A woman phoned her doctor when she received her statement. "I'm shocked," she said. "This is three times what you normally charge."

"Yes, I know," replied the doctor. "But you yelled so loud you scared away two other patients."

Fun Dental Facts

 

STAY CONNECTED