DEBRA MILLER
DIRECTOR OF COACHING
Uncertainty is the opposite of predictability, and endodontists are generally inclined toward the latter. Clinically, doctors strive for predictable outcomes. When it comes to the team and practice operations, predictability is also favored. For example, the schedule should be appointed consistently, and teams should follow standardized procedures that adhere to the doctor’s expectations.
When uncertainty comes in play, the perception is often that there is some level of risk involved. Risk perception can invoke wildly different responses. In urgent situations where you feel compelled to act and the stakes are high, you can experience an adrenaline response tied to the “flight or fight” impulse. It’s a survival instinct where you must either get through it or get away from it.
However, in less urgent situations, the response to risk and uncertainty is often avoidance and delay. A good example is when the doctor is feeling stressed and not enjoying the practice. Obviously, something needs to change because when it is your practice and your profession, spending the rest of your career in a state of stress is a recipe for exhaustion and burnout. But doctors often procrastinate taking action because they can’t pinpoint the exact cause of the stress, or an easy-to-implement solution. It’s usually a mixture of factors. As a result, faced with uncertainty like this, many doctors delay taking action and allow the problem to persist far longer than it should.
Management vs. leadership
As a practice owner, you are both the manager and leader of the practice. These are different skills that are often at odds with each other because they have different objectives.
The objective of the manager is to systematize daily operations and create predictable results at all levels. The objective of the leader is to make the business more successful, which requires innovation and growth. So, the manager aims to stamp out uncertainty while the leader aims to make changes that, by definition, cause some uncertainty in order to initiate growth to new levels.
Doctors are often much more comfortable in the manager role than the leader role … because questions that surround making changes in the practice lead to the perception of risk, which leads to delay or avoidance in taking definitive steps to move forward. Even when you know it is the right thing to do, uncertainty often makes you less inclined to invest in things that make progress toward your goals.
From comfort zone to growth zone
When I speak with doctors about practice coaching, some of them ask questions that tell me their inner manager is calling the shots. The manager mindset wants all the unknowns removed before making a commitment. Remember the manager’s goal is to perpetuate predictability. If things are good now, why risk it? As the well-known business book made clear, good is the enemy of great when “good” blocks innovation that will lead to “great”.
The consequence of an overruling manager mindset is that the practice settles around comfort zone, the team becomes entrenched at a certain level of performance, and resistance to change (and the perception of risk around change) increases. A manager can always find a reason to delay: “I’m too busy”, “My team isn’t ready”, “What if it doesn’t work?”, etc.
By comparison, a leader-driven practice focused on growth is always striving for improvement. It is open to positive changes and investing in the team and practice strategies that result in growth.
Great practice leaders understand that growth and innovation require taking on challenges that will naturally introduce some uncertainty. However, leaders are also confident in their practice foundation and their own history of overcoming past challenges effectively. That confidence is even more empowered when supported by an experienced practice coach.
So, who is dominating your inner dialogue about your practice? Is it the manager who wants to lock things down or the leader who wants to open things up to more opportunities and possibilities?