Dentists get into comfort zones for a number of reasons. Sometimes it's because they have had several long hard years building the practice and now that it's producing they want to just enjoy the ride for a while.Maybe the business has developed to the point where the systems and infrastructure are so ingrained that any significant change in the practice would mean reassessing everything, so they end up changing nothing. Then there's the simple fact that routine in itself is a powerful sedative.
If you do the same thing long enough the habits take over, and you stop seeing the problems—and opportunities—around you. The fish is the last one to notice the water.
For many people doing good is good enough. But if you want more out of your work and your life and to explore the possibilities in your practice you have to start by recognizing, "good is the enemy of great," as Jim Collins wrote in my favorite book, "Good to Great." Most of us have much greater capabilities than we give ourselves credit for; however, to discover what those are, you have to venture out of that limiting comfort zone.
That means looking at your life and your practice through the eyes of an outsider whose senses haven't been dulled by familiarity. It means devoting yourself fully to every hour—whether it's working in the practice, or on the practice, spending time with your family, or even doing nothing. It's about never taking anything for granted and never settling for "good enough."
This is the way you grow—by resisting the urge to do what is easy and routine. If you are going to get used to a feeling, get used to the idea of always feeling challenged. Absorb and integrate new knowledge and using it as a stepping-stone to the next level. A soon as you start actively applying knowledge, you start seeing new possibilities. The more you learn, the more you realize how much more you don't know.
Is the comfort zone really all that comfortable when you're continually finding yourself learning painful lessons and then regretting the lack of clarity that led to them? How comfortable is it really to feel stagnant and unfulfilled?
When you have a clear vision of your future, a progressive plan for getting there, a sense of purpose and focus, you'll find you actually have a lot less stress and more real comfort. It's the comfort that comes from having the peace of mind of knowing that you are always performing at your highest level—and this is the only kind of comfort zone you want to be in.