Dental Practice Time Management and Institutional Mindsets of Dentists

Are you effective in your dental practice time management and put time aside for Sales and Marketing ?

Step inside any profession or industry and almost everyone inside of it thinks and acts alike. Why? Because everyone comes through similar paths to get there be it via some sort of formal or informal training. There are some nuances in between countries but once you’re inside a given country you can count on most thinking, acting, and doing in the same manner.

This often leads to getting stuck in ways of operating or beliefs that aren’t effective simply because that’s how everyone else is doing it. It’s a bit like childlike peer pressure except no one involved is a child!

One of the biggest issues in dentistry right now is most dentists claiming they don’t have time for things like formal staff meetings, sales huddles, administering clinical and non-clinical systems by check-lists, etc., all so important in dental practice time management and your bottom line.

It’s not about “having enough” time since everybody gets the same amount of it but in how you view financial value for the services performed during any given week. When value gets skewed too low, the solution (actually a trap) is then trying to squeeze more hours in which ultimately squeezes out all of the important non-patient items getting pushed into the “if I only had time for that” category.

Most dentists are caught in this trap and now strive to cram every possible patient in during a given week and by the end of it are too exhausted to think much less work on the practice. This value issue when handled correctly buys adequate time to do all the things needed in a modern practice.

This cramming habit is also a terrible way to build a life. Happiness and peace of mind get put on hold. To be in a service profession for the long haul there has to be a real balance to work flow and the management of time in the dental practice.

Fundamentally, at the root of the time issue is not selling at appropriate fee’s on an hourly basis and that comes back to positioning, promotion and selling.

One of the best ways to break this cycle with baby steps is to work 3 1/2 days in a row. Staff plays catch-up for a few hours at the end of the 1/2 day. Doctor and team then come back refreshed for a half day on day 5 to work ON THE PRACTICE AS BUSINESS.

If you really want to break out of the time deficit cycle, instituting rules for selling and a check-list is the first step. Check out my book on Amazon which will help you get started or go to my website if you really  are serious about taking the reins of your dental practice time management.