How to Kick Off 2015 with the Right Momentum with Your Patients

There is a very simple but remarkably effective technique I have often talked about for getting patients to really "buy in" to the commitment they make when they agree to go ahead with a complex treatment plan, and that is to get started as soon as they say yes.

What you do exactly to get started—some preliminary record-taking, "before" photos, or impressions—is not as important as the fact that you do something right away, even if it means giving up a bit of your lunch hour or staying a little longer at the end of the day. What you want is to implant in the patient's mind the notion that "it has begun." Momentum is a powerful motivating psychological force, and in order to take advantage of it, you simply get started.

Motivating Your Patients

It works for self-motivation, too. In the last few articles I posted here before the new year, I talked about the right mindset principles to adopt as you plan and prepare for the months ahead. Well, 2015 is here now, and it's time to get started.

If you haven't already done so, make a commitment to a course of action today and get the ball rolling. Is this the year you upgrade the facility or integrate new technology? Make that call to your technology or supply rep now and get an appointment in the books for a consultation. Ready to take your team to the next level? There are still a few spots left in our new hands-on team workshop. Want to embrace the flexibility and convenience of digital learning? You're only a click away from your first video lesson.

Whether you do it with Spear or not, whether it is a practice commitment or a personal commitment, my point is that you do something now, as soon as you finish reading this. Don't let your best intentions slip away and dissolve into regrets. Make a decision now and act on it. Take that first step and feel the exhilarating thrill of momentum that propels you forward into exciting new territory. Big or small, do something that makes you say to yourself, "It has begun."


If you find topics like this helpful, check out Imtiaz Manji's practice management courses available to you through our Course Library. Not yet a member of Digital Suite? Click here to learn more.