Dedicated to helping doctors and their team have an office that is not only highly productive and fun but one that allows them to consistently exceed patient expectations.
Whether you’re looking for a book(s) to improve your leadership skills, provide your dental patients with the very best experiences, or wanting to boost team morale, check out the following book recommendations.
Leadership, Management, Marketing, and Team Building BookSuggestions:
If you have some favorites that you think I should add to my list, feel free to shoot me a message at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com – Thank you.
Consider purchasing team building/self-improvement books for your team. During a team meeting, discuss portions of the book. Or purchase electronic devices such as a Kindle Fire for each employee and download books that can be discussed during a “book club team meeting”.
Find Additional Team Building Activities, Ideas, and Incentives Here
Did you enjoy these tips and ideas? I would love and truly appreciate for you to please leave a review/recommendation for me on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK – Thank you!!!
Have you signed up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas that are sent right to your email inbox each month? If not, take a second and sign up. Or send me your email address and I will send you an invite to follow. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!
“There is no way that the quality of patient care and experiences will exceed the quality of the people who provide it.”
It’s true if you want your patients to consistently have great experiences, accept your treatment recommendations, and refer their friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers to you – it takes a quality, happy, and productive team. Of course, though, it starts with you!
Set the Example – Treat your employees how you would like them to treat your best patient!
If you want to see a positive change in your practice, you must consistently lead by example… be the change. It starts at the top. You set the tone for the day, make certain that it’s a happy & productive one. This includes any employee in a management position – if you have employees complaining about your office manager, take it seriously. A toxic office manager will destroy your practice over time, at the very least, cause a staff turnover nightmare. In fact, any employee that is toxic to your vision, to your team, and/or your patients…needs to go. It’s not easy to make the decision to terminate someone’s employment, yet absolutely necessary if you want to improve your practice. It’s been said that “what you allow you encourage.” Once you make the decision to no longer tolerate or allow the poor behavior and attitudes in your practice, you’ll breathe a huge sigh of relief.
Doctors, if you would like to grow and improve your dental practice and have wondered what it might be like to work with me and what coaching is all about… please feel free to reach out to me to schedule a complimentary, no-obligation coaching call at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com.
Communication – “The art of communication is the language of leadership.”
Job Expectations & Job Responsibilities – What are the performance expectations for your team? Does each employee clearly understand their role in the practice?
Hello, Good Morning! – Make it a point to greet your fellow team members every morning. Let people know that you see them and acknowledge them with a hello.
Thank you – Express your appreciation. Saying thank you improves your office, your health, and the patient’s experience.
Commendation – Commend your employees when you catch them doing something “right”. Commendation boosts morale. Applaud & reward the behavior and actions that you want to see more of. Simply thanking your team at the end of the day goes a long way in making them feel appreciated.
Creativity – Host “Brainstorm Sessions” with prizes for creative marketing ideas, solutions to improve office efficiency, welcome more new patients, patient retention, and how to have more fun as a team.
Accountability – “Great teammates hold each other accountable to the high standards and excellence their culture expects and demands.” – Jon Gordon
Work Space / Office Appearance – “Clutter in your physical surroundings will clutter your mind and spirit.”
Clutter represents indecision. Decide to get rid of the office clutter!
Staff Lounge / Lunchroom – What does your breakroom/lounge look like? Is it a space that you can relax in and enjoy? Consider cleaning it up, organizing, re-decorating, and stocking with healthy snacks and beverages for the team.
Work Hard, Have Fun, Create Beautiful Smiles.
Have FUN! – You spend far too much time together at work to not have some fun too! Create a fun and stress-free environment with Team Building Activities and Events!
Here are some ideas to get you started…
In Office Fun: Potluck lunch, Send an Ice Cream or Coffee Truck to the office, Carry out lunch (team choice), Crafts, Games, & Puzzles. Turn the music up and dance. Make little appreciation gifts that you can give out to your patients at their appointments.
Healthier Teams – How about team exercise/yoga classes? Or Monday morning breakfast smoothies? Or walks outside during breaks.
Fun with Social Media – Utilize your social media pages and your Google My Business page to show your patients and potential patients what a fun office you have.
Videos – post fun team videos on your office social media pages.
Employee Work Anniversaries – Celebrate employee work anniversaries and post pictures to your social media pages.
Pictures – take fun/silly pictures with the team and your patients to share on social media, your website, and in newsletters.
Fun Dress Up/Theme Days –
What: Decorate the office, team dresses up, small prize giveaways and snacks.
Book Club – Purchase team building/self-improvement books for your team. During your monthly team meetings or at your daily huddle discuss portions of the book. Consider purchasing electronic devices such as a Kindle Fire for each employee and download books that can be discussed during a “book club team meeting”.
Check out Dental Office Leadership, Management, Marketing, and Team Building Book Recommendations here from Betty’s Bookshelf
If you have some favorites that you think I should add to my list, feel free to shoot me a message at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com – Thank you.
Incentives/Rewards – Sometimes unexpected rewards work better than expected monthly bonuses for reaching goals. Every office is different, so if you have something that is working well for you and your team continue doing it. However, if you would like some reward/incentive ideas for reaching daily/weekly/monthly production, collection, new patient, service/product, social media, and other goals but want to keep the rewards unexpected or more spontaneous, here you go…
In addition to simple, yet appreciated, thank you cards; Spa Gift Card, Good Ol’ Cash, Lunch/Breakfast, Purse/Tote bag, Gift Baskets, Plants/Flowers, Jewelry, Movie/Theater Gift Cards, Tickets to Sporting Event/Concert, Amusement Park tickets, Restaurant gift card, Gas cards and Car Wash Gift Cards.
Outside the office Fun: (depending on your location and current pandemic restrictions/cautions)Bowling, Painting Party, Shopping, Dinner, Cooking Class, Wally Ball, Sporting Event, Spa, Escape Room, Field Day (Team up with other offices), Concert, Skating, Batting Cages, Mini Golf, Pottery Class, Theater, Pool party, Skiing, Nature hike/walk, Etc.
Continuing Education – Continuing education, not just for the providers but for the entire team is a wonderful way to ensure practice growth. Not to mention, it’s a great team-building experience, one that will give you a happier and motivated team. You can do this with in-office training, webinars, lunch and learns, and seminars/classes outside of the office.
Consider incorporating a dental continuing education class with a fun event, for example, CPR Course and Pool Party.
Regular Team Training – Don’t hold back in this area! Investin your team. Thoroughly train any new employees on your practice goals, systems, software, telephone skills, dental procedures, protocols, etc. However, training isn’t just for your new employees, everyone in the office needs regular training.
Is there a chance you might have some new dental equipment or training manuals just sitting on the shelf, collecting dust? It’s most likely because your team didn’t understand or appreciate the why and the how. Knowing why and how this new idea, technique, equipment, or procedure works, benefits the patient, the team, and the office is critical to enthused implementation.
Community Involvement – Visit the local farmers market, art/street fairs, Races/Run/Walk for-a-cause, Fundraisers, Parades, Etc. Be active in your community. Pass out freebies imprinted with your office information to the people attending these community events. Be sure to take pictures of you and your team out and about in the community and share to your social media pages and website.
“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.” ~ Dale Carnegie
It is my wish that these ideas and tips will help you and your team experience greater happiness at work. If you have any other ideas or things that have worked well in your office, I would love to hear about them. If you have any questions or concerns about what you’ve read today, please contact me at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com.
Did you enjoy these tips and ideas? I would love and truly appreciate for you to please leave a review/recommendation for me on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK – Thank you!!!
Have you signed up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas that are sent right to your email inbox each month? If not, take a second and sign up. Or send me your email address and I will send you an invite to follow. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!
The month of April is Workplace Conflict Awareness Month –
This is a topic that should be discussed at a team meeting. Why? Conflict Happens! Make a plan and an agreement as to how all office conflict will be addressed and resolved.
Steps to deal with office conflict:
Calm down and talk with the other person. (Don’t go to anyone else to discuss the conflict.)
Attack the problem, not the person. Focus on behaviors and events.
Listen carefully – listen to understand and not to be understood.
Brainstorm solutions with a focus on the future, what it will take to move forward.
To manage conflict, Excellent Communication is Essential.
Communication –
Job descriptions and expectations must be clearly defined. This is a great time to ask every team member to write a list of their job description and responsibilities. Have them indicate next to each task how often it is done (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, varies, etc.). This will help you determine if and when and by whom these tasks are being accomplished. You might find some important tasks are not being done at all or not often enough and so on.
Team Meetings/Morning Huddles are essential for a happy and smooth work day. Visit HERE for some tips on how you can have a successful morning huddle.
Address quickly any needed discipline or correction, don’t wait for a staff meeting to address these problems. Instead, meet one on one with the offender.
Avoid office negativity, it’s toxic and will infect your team – Rather, focus on and share positive experiences.
Your team must know the why, what, and how. They may know the what and the how but not the why, often times, this is why employees are there just to collect a paycheck. Talk about what you believe and attract those who believe what you believe. People buy the why not the what.
Positive Gossip Only! Entire team agrees to stop gossip. Refuse to listen to it. Rather, encourage the person to go directly to the other person they have an issue or complaint about. Unless of course, they can let it go and move on.
In addition to communication, Proper Training is Imperative– Don’t hold back in this area! Investin your team. Thoroughly train any new employees on your practice goals, systems, software, telephone skills, dental procedures, protocols, etc. However, training isn’t just for your new employees, everyone in the office needs regular training. This leads me to the next point…
Continuing Education– Continuing education, not just for the providers but for the entire team is a wonderful way to ensure practice growth. Not to mention, it’s a great team-building experience, one that will give you a happier and motivated team. Think about this, your administrative team is the first and last impression made on each and every one of your patients. This includes potential patients that call your office. Certainly, you want to have the very best training and education for not only your clinical team but your administrative team too. You can do this with in-office training, webinars, lunch and learns, and seminars/classes outside of the office.
For example, have you heard about The Best Seminar Ever? Better known as TBSE? For real, I attended TBSE last year and it absolutely was the best seminar I have ever been to. If you’re ready to boost your team and take your practice to the next level, please check it out here: TBSE -The Best Seminar Ever
It is my wish that these ideas and tips will help you and your team experience greater happiness at work without unnecessary negative conflict. If you have any questions or concerns about what you’ve read today or would like to set up a complimentary telephone consultation to learn how I can help your office grow and succeed, please contact me at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com.
If you enjoy the complimentary ideas that I share each month, I would love and truly appreciate for you to please leave a review on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK
Have you signed up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas that are sent right to your email inbox each month? If not, take a second and sign up. Or send me your email address and I will send you an invite to follow. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!
The key to successfully improving your dental practice, reaching your goals and having loyal and happy patients is to have a loyal and happy team. For some, this can be quite challenging.
I want to help. I’m going to share with you tips on how to have a Happy Team and in turn, Improve Your Office.
Before I get started, did you catch Tips to Improve your Dental Office Parts 1, 2 and 3? If not, here they are; First Impressions, Make a Change and The Little Things. (BTW: Sign up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas and tips each month right to your email inbox…this way, you won’t miss a single FREE idea!)
When people feel valued, appreciated, heard, supported, acknowledged and included, they are motivated to bring their best selves forward. ~ Betsy Myers
Isn’t that the truth? I know it’s that way for me. I’m sure your team would respond the same way. Give it a try with these tips and ideas…
Commendation– This one is easy. Commend your employees when you catch them doing something “right”. Commendation boosts morale. Commend & reward the behavior and actions that you want to see more of. Simply thanking your team at the end of the day goes a long way in making them feel appreciated. Thank them for going the extra mile to help a patient out, or for the day running smoothly, or for always getting to work on time.
Communication– Job descriptions and expectations must be clearly defined. Team Meetings/Morning Huddles are essential for a happy and smooth work day. Visit here for some tips on how you can have a successful morning huddle. Address quickly any needed discipline or correction, don’t wait for a staff meeting to address these problems. Instead, meet one on one with the offender.
Avoid office negativity, it’s toxic and will infect your team – Rather, focus on and share positive experiences.
Your team must know the why, what and how. They may know the what and the how but not the why, often times, this is why employees are there just to collect a paycheck. Talk about what you believe and attract those who believe what you believe. People buy the why not the what.
Training– Don’t hold back in this area! Invest in your team. Thoroughly train any new employees on your practice goals, systems, software, telephone skills, dental procedures, protocols, etc. Follow through on goals and changes. Training isn’t just for your new employees, everyone in the office needs regular training. Which leads me to the next point…
Continuing Education – Continuing education, not just for the doctor or hygienist but the entire team is a wonderful way to ensure practice growth. Not to mention, it’s a great team-building experience, one that will give you a happier and motivated team. Think about this, your administrative team is the first and last impression made on each and every one of your patients. This includes potential patients that call your office. Certainly, you want to have the very best training and education for not only your clinical team but your administrative team too. You can do this with in-office training, webinars, lunch and learn, and seminars/classes outside the office.( For example, Ever hear of TBSE? Check this seminar out if you really want to boost your team: TBSE -The Best Seminar Ever.)
If you’re still unsure about the true value of continuing education for your entire team, consider the following scenario… You the doctor, come back from a dental seminar all fired up to implement some new ideas, protocol or the use of a new/improved dental procedure or cool piece of dental equipment. Only to find that your team is less than enthused, maybe a little angry that they cannot possibly add one more thing to their already too busy day. Besides, the way they do things is how they always have and it’s working out just fine… Sound familiar? Is there a chance you might have some new dental equipment or training manuals just sitting on the shelf, begging to be used? I hope not. However, if this or something similar has happened to you, it’s because your team didn’t understand the why and the how. Knowing why and how this new idea, technique, equipment or procedure works, benefits the patient and the office as a whole. Critical to its success and yours.
Example – Lead by example. Treat your employees how you would like them to treat your best patient! If you want to see positive change in your practice, you must consistently lead by example. It starts at the top.
Have Fun! – Have more fun in your office with Team Building Activities and Events
Outside the office Fun:Bowling, Paint a Canvas, Shopping, Dinner, Cooking Class, Wally Ball, Baseball Game, Spa, Escape Room, Field Day (Team up with other offices), Concert, Skating, Batting Cages, Mini Golf, Pottery Class, Theater, Community Events, Volunteering at a local charity, Nature hike/walk, Etc.
Tips to get you started:
Positive Gossip Only! Entire team agrees to stop gossip. Refuse to listen. Rather, encourage the person to go directly to the other person they have an issue or complaint about. Unless of course, they can let it go and move on.
Why are you here? What are you doing? Do you know? What about your team? Knowing why you show up every morning will help to create a culture of happiness and excellence.
Book Club – Start a book club with your team. Purchase a great team building book and share paragraphs or chapters at your team meetings. There are so many wonderful team building books out there. Below you will find a list of some of the ones that I have read. (Also, short team building video clips might be helpful to share at a morning huddle or team meeting. One of my absolute favorites is the FISH! Philosophy)
Little Surprises – Write a thank you or I appreciate you note and stick it on an employee’s computer screen. In the morning, bring in donuts and coffee. In the afternoon when everyone is feeling sluggish, bring in a refreshing drink or treat. If possible, have everyone step outside for a few minutes of fresh air.
It is my wish that these ideas and tips will help you and your team experience greater happiness at work. If you have any other team building ideas or things that have worked well in your office, I would love to hear about them. If you have any questions or concerns about the things you’ve read today, please ask me at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com.
Have you signed up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas that are sent right to your email inbox each month? If not, take a second and sign up. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!
P.P.S. Team Building Book Suggestions: Move Your Bus; Fun Is Good; The Energy Bus (ALL books by Jon Gordon); Our Iceberg is Melting; Who Moved my Cheese?; FISH!; Full Steam Ahead; Million Dollar Dentistry; Be Our Guest; …more added soon.
