We all make mistakes in life, despite our best efforts. It’s frustrating, disappointing, but also a goldmine for lessons.
But what if you could skip straight to the lessons without making mistakes? That would be a dream, right?
It’s simple – learn from the mistakes of others.
And in business, there are plenty of mistakes to go around…
To help you, I’ve put together a list of 7 big mistakes business owners make. Take a look at what to avoid so you can shortcut your success today.
1. Working IN the business, not ON the business
This is a such a common one we see many dental practice owners fall into. You’re so busy with patients that you prioritise clinical work and end up with no time left for strategy or big-picture planning.
Or alternatively, you try work IN the business by day and ON the business by night – but wind up exhausted, burnt out, and ineffective.
Learn from this mistake by setting aside dedicated time each week to work on your business. Yes, it’s time that could be spent generating income, but people who do this reap big rewards.
2. Underestimating Communication
Effective communication serves us well in all aspects of life. It’s especially important in a dental practice where your ability to communicate to your team, patients, and prospects directly effects your success.
Communication is vital for case acceptance, marketing, nurturing a relationship with your patients, setting standards with your team, recruitment and onboarding, training, planning, conflict resolution – the list goes on.
Don’t underestimate the ability of effective communication to empower you, or ineffective communication to sabotage you.
3. Tolerating Poor Performance
It’s often tempting to tolerate poor performance and mediocrity because we don’t want to bite the bullet and address the issue. But it’s important that you face it head on.
The best thing you can do is to have an honest, respectful conversation where you lay out your concerns and set your expectations.
Try to get to the bottom of the problem. Maybe the person isn’t clear on what’s expected of them, don’t understand their duties, or know their metrics for success.
Fostering an authentic, trusting relationship take work but it’s worth the effort. It’s the foundation of a high-performing team.
4. Underestimating the Value of Customer Complaints
Customer complaints are a valuable opportunity for you to learn what might need improving in your business.
Don’t make the mistake of ignoring them and believing they’re the voice of the disgruntled few. All too often the people who complain are voicing a concern that many patients experience.
Every time a customer complains you have a golden opportunity to improve your business. You also have the chance to turn a complaining customer into a devoted follower.
5. Failing to Implement Systems
Part of running a successful practice means that you’re able to take a well-earned break without things falling apart without you. If your practice is dependant on you, you’ll struggle to take time off without being glued to the phone and constantly putting out fires from afar…
You can avoid this by implementing clear systems throughout your practice that enable things to get done with or without you there. That way you’re not reliant on the person, you’re relying on a tried-and-true system that has been mapped, stress-tested, and implemented.
6. Marketing Without a Strategy
If you don’t have a clear marketing strategy, then you’re more or less stabbing in the dark and hoping it hits the right people. Marketing is a crucial aspect of running a successful practice – without it you don’t have patients to see!
A great marketing plan starts with clarifying your Ideal Patient Avatar, where you identify the kind of patients you want to attract and work with. From there, you can develop clear messaging, understand the best places to reach them, and develop a solid plan.
7. Not Knowing your Numbers
One of the most important lessons any business owner can learn, is around being financially literate and making smart money decisions.
This doesn’t mean you need a degree in accounting or become a financial advisor. It just means you need to know what to measure, how to measure it, and monitor it throughout the year.
You need to be proactive in your approach so that you’re not reacting to situations or left without a contingency plan. Have a process for gathering data, know what numbers you’re aiming for, and always have a buffer that can cushion you from tough times.
You need to set plans in place to improve your performance for the following year, and your financial data is key to this improvement.
It’s okay to make mistakes because they help us learn, but if you want a shortcut to success, learn from the mistakes that other people make. By implementing these lessons, you can save yourself a whole lot of frustration!
P.S Want to scale your dental practice and take your profits to 7 figure success?
Me and my team can work with you directly to get you there! Simply book in your FREE 1:1
strategy session, and we can get started on a game plan for you and your practice.
