Is it time to get your dental team in top shape? Can't afford to take time off for CE? The Ultimate Team Mastery CE course is the answer. Your entire team will be trained in just a few online sessions. This includes a special discount offer. Register at UltimateTeamMastery.com.
The majority of dental team members want to do a better job every day, week, month, and year. But like most people, they only enjoy doing tasks they do well. People love to do that in which they excel and they avoid tedious tasks that have little or no recognition. So what is the mystery behind team mastery?
Two things are missing in busy dental practices—training, and time to complete tasks that must be done but can't be done while patients are being treated. How can dentists fix this ongoing problem that is robbing them of more than $15,000 to $20,000 per month (solo practices)? It’s also robbing team members of the self satisfaction of performing all of their duties instead of just keeping patients moving in and out all day, all while hoping they get a lunch break and get off work at a reasonable time.
This mystery of why team members leave one practice for another, or heaven forbid, get out of the dental profession altogether, has most dentists scratching their heads. The answer is: You can tell your team the same thing an outside person will tell them, but they will truly listen if it is a coach versus their boss!
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In our combined 83 years in dentistry, we have solved the mystery! Tanya Brown, DMD, became a very successful dentist, speaker, and consultant in a very few years. I became the founder and CEO of a successful dental management consulting firm and the Speaking Consulting Network.
We can show you Ultimate Team Mastery (UTM) in six, two-hour online sessions with your entire team. Those of you who already have a top team can move things up to the mastery level without any down time to attend meetings. UTM provides an implementation guide after each bimonthly session to assure implementation. This is the key. So many attend meetings, take copious notes, and then go back to the "grind" and forget what they learned or how to implement the ideas.
“Dentistry is such a fabulous profession where we get to work with great team members and help people smile,” said Dr. Brown. “So why do we feel like we’re stuck on a treadmill that’s running out of control? Unfortunately, there are many causes for this feeling, including decreased reimbursements, high turnover, increased regulations, and increased expenses.
“In addition, many of us have received little to no preparation for implementing training for our teams,” Dr. Brown continued. “We fly by the seat of our pants, hoping that if we work hard enough things will work out. The reality is that many dental practices are struggling to be more patient-centered and profitable.”
The good news is you can have a patient-centered practice that is highly profitable and operates as a healthy business. How can your return to the passion that made you choose dentistry in the first place?
Here are seven guidelines for refocusing. This is the tip of the iceberg of what the UTM virtual classroom will offer you and your team.
1. It takes great leaders—Everyone on your team has the potential to be a leader, no matter what his or her position. A healthy practice that is patient-centered means that everyone will willingly do whatever is needed for patients and practice on a daily basis.
2. Refocus on why—Sometimes life just gets in the way. It’s easy to get distracted and give up great for only good. Take a few moments and ask, “Why did I get into dentistry? What aspects of dentistry do I enjoy most and how can I do more of them?”
3. Commit to a positive attitude and team environment—Commit yourself to bringing energy to your patients and team. Positive energy will drive each day to success. No one wants to be around “energy suckers.” Foster positive energy in your team. Start each day on a positive note. This can make a huge difference in your daily stress level and productivity.
4. Set your goals—One of my favorite quotes is, “Aim for nothing, hit nothing.” Everyone on the team must have goals. This gives people a sense of purpose and accomplishment. Where does your team want to be in one year? What do you want to learn in the next six months? Having common goals unites a team.
5. Ask for help from “outside eyes”—There is a season for everything. In your practice’s lifecycle there will be seasons that you will need some outside eyes to help accomplish your goals. Outside eyes are business advisors, CPAs, practice management consultants, and mentors.
6. Know your practice numbers—What are the practice numbers that you need to know? Your practice numbers show you the score of the game. If one area is off track, what strings do you need to pull to make adjustments? This is another area where dentists receive very limited training, and many learn from the “school of hard knocks.”
7. Tap into your team’s full potential—Your biggest resource is your team, and having a high performing team will keep patients coming back to your practice. Investing in your team is one of the best investments you can make.
In closing, you too can solve the Mystery to Team Mastery. Visit UltimateTeamMastery.com to register to start virtual classes with Dr. Brown and me on October 6. We will present every first Thursday of every other month. This will be two hours each class and six sessions over one year.
Registration is $3,500 per practice for the 12 topics (two per session). DentistryIQ readers will receive the special rate of $2,195, a 38% savings! Hurry because the course can only accommodate a limited number of practices. Register at UltimateTeamMastery.com. Enter promo code DENTISTRYIQ to save over $1,300!
Dr. Brown will hold a five-minute kick-off session on September 22 at 1 pm EST. One person is needed from each practice. Questions? Call Linda at (757) 619-1026 or Lee at (757) 418-2677. Hope to "see" you and your entire team beginning October 6.
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Linda Miles, CSP, CMC, is an internationally recognized consultant, speaker, and author on dental practice management and team development. Linda is a successful businesswoman who not only founded LLM&A, a leading INC 500 dental management consulting firm in 1978, but also founded the Speaking Consulting Network in 1997. She sold those businesses in 2007 and 2010 to devote more time to Oral Cancer Cause (OCC), a Florida-based nonprofit that creates awareness of early stage head and neck cancer. In 2016 Linda cofounded Ultimate Team Mastery with Dr. Tanya Brown.
Tanya Brown, DMD, is dentistry’s expert on case acceptance. She understands how each team member is a vital contributor to the success of the practice. For over 25 years she has worked in every area of a dental practice and is today the owner of The Center for Cosmetic & Restorative Dentistry. Dr. Brown is one of a select group of dentists who have completed the core curriculum at the Dawson Academy of Advanced Dentistry. Dr. Brown is an active member in the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, the Academy of General Dentistry, the American Dental Association, the Academy of Professional Speakers, and the Speaking Consulting Network.
