Goal Setting That Works: Begin Growing Your Practice Today

Let’s dive right into the step by step process:

List all your goals

TIP: If you find it difficult to specifically define all your personal and professional goals try this technique I learned from Jeff Bezos (CEO of Amazon). Jeff says when he decided to leave his cushy job on wall street and pursue this uncertain, high risk online business he was able to do it decisively using what he calls his regret minimization framework. On a blank sheet of paper write down everything you want to accomplish. Example: deep and meaningful relationship with my wife/husband and children, more social interaction with my friends, begin playing tennis as a hobby, inspire my family to be their best through great leadership, triple my income so I can provide for my family and increase my freedom, get in the best shape of my life etc. You can write down as many as you like no matter how big or small. Then ask yourself this question: on a scale of 1-10 (1= no regret and 10=significant regret) how much regret I will feel on my death bed if I do not accomplish X. Now list them in order of highest to lowest score. Your highest scores are the areas you must focus on. These are the goals that will help you achieve happiness, and ultimately live a life with minimal regret. A little secret: those with the highest scores are also your highest values!!! When you understand your highest values you can use them as a compass to help navigate your decisions in life.

Ask yourself why you want to achieve these goals?

You already know that your top goals are the ones associated with the greatest regret in the event you do not attain them. Now ask yourself why that is? Why are these associated with the greatest amount of regret and why are they the most important goals for you to accomplish? This is huge! Your why keeps you going. A profound why helps reset you when things don’t work out as planned. It breeds more self-awareness which results in you making better choices and therefore producing better results. It is also important because if your goals are not authentic your actions will not be consistent with your talk. This lack of authenticity will create great difficulty aligning others with your goals. Granted not all of your goals require others to be in alignment but many of them do. For example: if you would like to double revenue of your office. In this case the alignment of your team becomes ultra important. As Simon Sinek says “they don’t buy what you do they buy why you do it”. Your teams “buy in” to your goals is a result of their alignment with your why.

Goal: I want to triple my income (or triple the growth of my practice)

Why? Provide for my family, ensure our security in old age and not have to depend on anyone, to become the person that is required to produce this income (progress), the more money I make the more impact I can have on my family, church, and community, the money is a tool for me to increase my freedom to do work, be with people and in places that bring me joy, I love what I don’t but I don’t want to HAVE to work.

Its great that we want things. The reality is that most of us will not do what it takes to get them. IMO: Because we do not have a good reason why. So when it gets hard we quit. I don’t believe anyone truly wants to work hard, navigate failures and obstacles, and push on with their future being uncertain. Most people including myself want certainty.

Now its time to list how you will accomplish this goal! :

“How” should be specific not vague. Furthermore, depending on your current areas of competence and expertise you may need mentor (coach, friend, or family member) to help you out with this part. Those who have already accomplished what you are looking to do are a valuable resource. They can help you decide what the best next steps are given where you are and where you want to be. As well they will save you time and money by sharing with you what they did that works and what does not. The right mentor or mastermind mind group is of significant value.

Goal: I want to triple my income (or triple the growth of my practice)

How:

• hire a coach or join a mastermind
• improve my leadership
• create a positive and supportive office culture
• 50 new patients per month
• begin performing: implants, ortho, and cosmetic dentistry in the practice
• Measure my practices performance and profitability metrics (call conversion, treatment conversion, re-appointment rates, attrition, overhead expenses etc.)
• ongoing training for my team: phone skills, customer service, treatment presentation

Now begin implementing in each of these areas today! (Hint: Get a Mentor and Break It Down Into Bite- Sized Pieces)