When it comes to the care of your patients, it’s always better to ask questions on their thoughts about a procedure, rather than to assume that you can just blindly suggest a direction to go in.
Professional speaker, author, and pastor, John C. Maxwell once wrote about the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889; a day in which congress had granted settlers the opportunity to lay claim on up to 160 acres of land, in exchange for cultivating said plot of land for 5 years. One of the only rules of the Oklahoma Land Run was that no one was permitted to stake out any land prior to the official start date.
However, there were many people, such as railroad employees, land surveyors, and deputy marshals, that were able to use their positions to their advantage by being able to see, and learn, the land before anyone else had. In his blog, Dr. Maxwell said:
“It’s often not the fastest person that wins the race,
but the person who started first.”
Referring to this specific example, just because a settler got to the specific plot of land the fastest, doesn’t necessarily mean they got a better plot than someone else. Furthermore, Dr. Maxwell is talking about taking initiative, and having a vision for the future, which are both key components towards success in your leadership!
When you have a vision for your practice and future, you aren’t “seeing” what your team and patients see and making assumptions about their experience; you are envisioning a dream, and taking action towards achieving that dream for both your patients and your team! As legendary sculptor Michelangelo once said about his works:
“I saw the Angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”
He had already envisioned his dream before he started working, and used that dream to create a masterpiece.
Everyone has an off day now and then, but how you handle those off days will determine your success in your leadership! Are you assuming this is a loss, and giving up completely? Or are you accepting it as a learning experience and an opportunity for growth? If you are making assumptions and excuses about an outcome, then you can’t be taking initiative actions to prevent it from happening again!
Going forward in your leadership, focus on the actions you can take towards your success, not the excuses you might make when things don’t go as planned. Learn and grow with your team, and build your vision around your team, because every great leader knows that a great team is necessary to achieve success.
On behalf of everyone here at Pinecrest Practice Growth, we sincerely hope you have a wonderful year in your practice, as well as continuing to take initiative in your vision, and achieve success in your leadership!