(This article is part of a series on giving staying power to your dental practice plans for 2016. Click the links for first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth articles in this series.)
Some people think I’m kidding when I say this, but I promise it is true. Every morning I start my day by looking in the mirror and saying enthusiastically, “It’s great to be Imtiaz!” I have found it be a perfect way to ensure that I start my day in the right headspace, and I recommend you try it, too (inserting your own name, of course).
It’s not just an affirmation routine, it’s a necessary technique for priming yourself for the day ahead, the way a performer might do vocal exercises backstage before the curtain rises. It’s about starting every morning with a determination to win the day. I don’t mean “win” in the sense that someone else has to lose; I mean “win” as in, you end the day feeling complete, knowing that you did your best and made the most of your opportunities. This is important because, as we get deeper into our principles for creating profound success in the new year, we know we are going to reach a point where it is easy to fall back into old habits.
Principle 5: Keeping the Energy Alive
How often have you looked at your daysheet in the morning and given out a heavy sigh? Maybe it’s because, for you, an ideal day is seven or eight patients, with a good mix of substantial, interesting cases, and this day has a line-up of 20 patients, all with routine care needs.
All right, so it’s not the schedule you would choose, but what do you have to lose by approaching it with a positive mindset? Say to yourself, “More patients means more opportunities to help people today. Let’s see how many of them I can reach and move up the scale of value toward a higher standard of care.”
Of course, it’s not just about a positive outlook; it’s also about adopting the right strategies. For example, if that wasn’t the kind of schedule you would like to see, why did you see it? Remember, you scheduled it. What went wrong? What would you have to do to change it? The same goes for when you have a great day. What made it great, and how can you go about replicating that for future days? Your schedule of cases on any given day should never come as a surprise. Every day is programmed in advance, so you should really figure out how to program them in a way that suits you best.
I have always believed that it’s the context in which you choose to look at things that drives your success. Your passion, which drives your daily energy, should be able to take problems and turn them into possibilities, and take possibilities and turn them into a great new reality. That’s how you win the day, every day, and that’s how you win at life.
(Click this link for more articles by Imtiaz Manji.)