Playing the game to win

Playing the game requires a win/lose mentality. Think about sports, someone wins and the other team loses. Most events in life you may approach in this manner. However, is it always beneficial to think in these terms? If you think a win/lose you may find that solutions that offer a win/win solution do not present themself to you because all you see is one side loosing.

Flip the switch. Next, time you are approaching a situation with a patient. Think win-win. Spend the time to ask yourself what would it look like if both sides were to win? What would you have to do? What would you have to give or what would the patient have to give in order for you to be able to win and for them to win?

In order to create an opportunity that wasn't there before you not only have to ask the right questions but you also have to be willing to do what it takes for everyone to walk away feeling like they received something.

For example, a patient comes in and isn't able to pay for services. A win/lose situation is that you complete the procedure but the patient doesn't pay that day and no payment plan is set up. A lose/lose situation would be if you don't complete the procedure at all for the patient.  You don't help the patient and the patient doesn't receive the procedure.

What would be a win/win? It may depend and it may be different in every scenario. However, by simply asking yourself what would have to change right now for both parties to walk away better off then they are right now, you have to not only take the time to ask questions, you have to be willing to not shut down the patient with a no before you even get started. For example, this may mean the patient puts down 5% for the procedure before you get started.

No matter what problem you are faced with you can take the time to look at it from all angles in order to help move your practice forward at every opportunity. I'm not suggesting that every time you will walk away further than you were today, however, you may find the more you walk away with a negotiation the better off you are in the long run.


Great teams take effort. Take time to work on your practice regularly to build quality communication and strengthen your results. For more information and to read other articles, please visit us at www.saltdpm.com.

The leaders before you-Maintaining order

Dentist offices are only as strong as the procedures they have in place. In order for your office to thrive in today's society it is important for you and your team to have procedures in place that help your office run more efficiently. 

It isn't necessary to create procedures from scratch on how the front office handles a new patient phone call or how your assistant sets up for a root canal. These are procedures that have been done for years that either you already have a great way that works or you can complete a little research to find out a new way if your way is not working.



However, no matter where you are at in the process it is important to make sure that there are procedures that help keep your office organized and moving forward. For example, if your front office does not run efficient this will impact your schedule, insurance, patient interactions. If your back office does not have effective procedures then your patients will wait longer, or items could be lost.

In order to begin working on this analyze each procedure you have in place from the front all the way to the back. Find out where procedures are breaking down or where they are not working well. Ask staff what they want to improve on and start there.

Which ever route you go, make sure that there are strong procedures in place that help make your office run efficiently.  

Great teams take effort. Take time to work on your practice regularly to build quality communication and strengthen your results. For more information and to read other articles, please visit us at www.saltdpm.com.