by Rhonda R. Savage, DDS
Dr. Parrish was always very open with his team, but when it came to selling his  dental practice and retiring,
he decided to keep it quiet. After some searching, he found a buyer. The deal was nearly complete
and the staff didn’t have a clue.

As the day approached, the legal documents were unexpectedly delayed for two weeks as the
lawyers haggled. Having planned on the closing, Dr. Parrish forgot to cancel the sign painter that
showed up to repaint the sign on his front door! He fluffed it off, sweating internally, and said it was
for some personal work. The team was still in the dark.

On the day of the sale, he had a team meeting and told them he was selling his practice. Shocked
and stunned, one staff member said: “When?” To which he replied: “Now!” Another staff member
said, “When do we meet the new doctor?” Dr. Parrish looked around the room. Rebecca was crying,
Sarah was glaring and the rest had vacant looks on their faces. He said, “In 10 minutes.”
Seriously, a transition time might not be something you can share with your team. There are
many other times, however, when our staff “hates” the doctor or things the doctor does… things you
might consider handling differently. These common, day-to-day stressors hinder the patient care,
customer service and team development.

If you scan the items of all the things your staff hate you might say, “Well, this is my train set.
Why should I bother changing?” The answer is because creating a stronger “team” environment
improves morale. When morale goes up, production goes up. You’ll also attract more patients
through inexpensive internal marketing if you can change the things you do that drag the practice
down. Life will be better!

The burning question for the doctor: On a scale of 1-10, how willing are you to change? If you
are a 4 and you want more from your practice, then, doctor, that’s not good enough!
Challenge yourself and ask your team to give answers to these prompts:

• “My goal for this upcoming year is to be a better leader. Please list two to three things I can
  change to make our practice a better place to be.”
• “My second goal for this next year is to be a better time manager. Please write down the things I do on a regular basis that waste the time of the team or the time of the patients.” Add a P.S.: “You won’t get fired for being honest. I need your help!”

1. Your staff members hate when you don’t keep them in the loop.
There are many times in your practice that can bring conflict if you fail to keep your staff up to
date. Practice transitions are just one of the times that can be a very sensitive time. Staff hate it when
the doctor doesn’t keep them in the loop. You can understand how they feel, but there are times that
secrecy might be important. Dr. Parrish’s staff felt betrayed and that he didn’t trust them. Share what
you can. Maintain good communication with your staff. Keep them involved.

2. They hate when you come into work grumpy.
Each day depends on your attitude when you walk in the door. Make a mental choice the
moment you wake up in the morning. Your first thought should be, “Today is going to be a great
day.” Only you can make it happen. You know life can be hard, challenging and tiring. But, you
need to fake it and work at changing your thought process.
At the morning huddle, have someone assigned to bring an inspirational thought for the day or
a humorous incident or joke to start the day off on the right foot. Doctor, do not complain about the
schedule. Look at the schedule two days in advance for any complications and resolve them early on.

3. They hate when you micromanage.
Excessive attention to detail can hold back the growth and development of your practice and
your team members. Staff or co-workers who are disempowered feel frustrated, lose confidence,
become timid and are discouraged. Micromanagement creates an atmosphere of distrust. Why
should they bother if it’s going to be “wrong” anyway? Attention to detail is a positive attribute, but
if you’re correcting every little detail or must do it all yourself, you’ll hurt your performance and that
of the team.
As a doctor, you need to delegate, follow up without micromanaging and hold people accountable.
Ask your team to create a Google calendar ready for your eyes at any time.
On the calendar: Have your employee clearly outline their goal, the plan, their accomplishments,
communicate concerns and ask: “What’s missing?” You need to be clear upfront and then set deadlines.
Ask them to give you feedback on a certain date. And doctor, stay away from the front desk.
Constant interruptions hinder their ability to do their job.
Most micromanagers don’t listen well and are sensitive to criticism. Many micromanagers will
affirm that their management style is the right one by tossing the employee to the wolves. They’ll
assign a task and walk away, expecting the person to fail. Knowing this, try to change one thing at a
time – let them know you’re trying and ask for your team’s input. Don’t doom the employee to failure
because you don’t follow up.

4. They hate when you are “hands-off” and don’t hold them accountable.
The opposite of the micromanager – a doctor with unclear goals that divide the team. This type
of doctor wants to please whoever is in front of him at the moment. He does not make the best business
decisions or stick with them. The team has many communication difficulties because of this.
Solutions include:

• Effective, powerful team meetings. Set goals. Ask for volunteers. Have deadlines. Mark them
  in the calendar and follow up. Be firm, fair and consistent.
• Designate duties, as well as “down time duties.”
• Have zero tolerance for wasted time: cell phone use, Internet use, leaving early without supporting
  the entire team. No gossip, no backstabbing, no favoritism.
• Lead by example. Be early to work. Have a smile on your face. Bring them coffee and donuts.
  Say, with huge enthusiasm, “Look at this perfectly engineered schedule! This is going to be a
  great day!”

Good leaders coach and mentor, but don’t micromanage or let things float along. You know the
strengths and weaknesses of your staff. You work to improve and grow your staff. Truly, you need to
temper both the “hands off” and “hands on” styles of management to be successful. Try to read a
book per month on leadership and communication.
The days of dictatorial leadership are gone. Most employees today thrive on independence,
growth and involvement. And yet they also thrive on feedback, accountability and firm, fair leadership.
Finding a balance is crucial for the success of your practice.

5. They hate when you complain about cash flow.
This is a difficult time in the economy. Difficult times occur due to divorce, moving, family
issues… and everyone has them. Your team members care about you, but if you’re burdening them
with your woes, the morale will go down. Don’t share everything. They don’t need to know it all.
Focus on being positive, cheerful and supportive.
Now some might argue: The staff needs to know the facts. Yes, but do not harangue them daily
that their job is in jeopardy. Let them know what the goals are and how important each and every one
of them is to the success of the practice. When you feel a need to cut staff, ask yourself: Are they “digging”
deep? Can you be training and encouraging them to do more and be more? How is your customer
service? Should you be working on your business before you take a drastic measure to cut staff?

6. They hate when you bring your personal problems to work.
How is your customer service? This is your number-one deciding success factor. If you have a
negative tone in your voice, you’re anti-marketing the practice. We all have those days. But regardless
of how you feel… tired, stressed out… realize that the course of the day, particularly how your
office deals with you bringing your personal problems to work, will rise and set with you.
Ignore your other life. Park it at your front door before you leave. Connect with others who are
upbeat and tune out the others. Don’t watch the news or read the newspaper. Laugh! There are a
number of books and audios available. Subscribe to Success magazine and listen to their audios over
and over again. Do this on your way to work and you’ll be amazed at how good you feel.

7. They hate that you won’t deal with the “problematic staff.”
If you don’t deal with problematic staff, one of two things will happen: the others will begin acting
like them or, worse, you’ll lose the respect of the staff.
You cannot ignore a problem. It will build or you’ll have resentment. Deal with issues early on;
“sniff ” out problems by walking around. Ask your team members privately how they’re doing. Talk
to key people and ask if there are any issues you need to help resolve.

8. They hate when you take time off without proper notice.
Sometimes, emergencies come up. But if the practice, whether the hygiene department or the
doctor, is rescheduling patients to fit their schedule, you’ll have more broken appointments and last
minute cancellations. If patients feel you do not respect their schedule, why should they respect yours?
To prevent this, set your schedule at least six months in advance, preferably a year in advance.

9. They hate when they can’t approach you without you getting mad.
You can be a good leader 90 percent of the time, but if you’re losing it 10 percent, that’s what
they’ll remember. Silent treatment or anger… both are bad. You need to work with your team; know
what they know, or your practice might be in danger. Do you ever feel like… “all I want to do is
dentistry and go home?” You’re not alone. There are methods, strategies and systems for success.
They hate when you are unapproachable about staff problems. One touchy subject is when the wife of the
dentist is one of the hygienists. My words of advice: never hire someone you cannot fire. But on
the other hand, many family members are truly advocates and great team players. Remember this
rule: family will always, always have to do more, be more and be even more accountable.
Going back to Dr. Parrish – a beloved doctor, but not without faults. Did they have to rescue
the new doctor? No, he held his own and the new team laid down the law. Your practice is like a
family environment. You all have to work at being better team members. Begin by realizing
the strengths and weaknesses that each of you have. Work to be a better team and better health
care providers for your patients. If you’re all doing your best, success will come! If you’re not,
something’s got to change.

Author’s Bio:
Dr. Rhonda Savage began her career in dentistry as a dental assistant in 1976.
After four years of chairside assisting, she took over front office duties for the
next two years. She loved working with patients and decided to become a dentist.
Savage graduated with a B.S. in biology, cum laude, from Seattle University in 1985;
she then attended the University of Washington School of Dentistry, graduating
in 1989 with multiple honors. Savage went on active duty as a dental officer in the
U.S. Navy during Desert Shield/Desert Storm and was awarded the Navy Achievement
Medal, the National Defense Medal and an Expert Pistol Medal. While in private practice
for 16 years, Savage authored many peer-reviewed articles and lectured internationally.
She is active in organized dentistry and has represented the State of Washington as
President of the Washington State Dental Association. Savage is the CEO for Linda L.
Miles and Associates, known internationally for dental management and consulting services.
She is a noted speaker who lectures on practice management, women’s health issues,
periodontal disease, communication and marketing and zoo dentistry. To speak with
Dr. Savage about your practice concerns or to schedule her to speak at your dental society
or study club, please e-mail rhonda@milesandassociates.net, or call 877-343-0909.