Why should we motivate our employees?
They should be motivated by their paychecks and grateful that they have such a good job; or should they?
Unfortunately, there are many myths in the minds of managers everywhere. It is time that we recognize our staff for what they are; our team. The members of our teams need to be appreciated and motivated.
And a simplified cents, motivation maybe what prompts a person to perform a task. Therefore by motivating staff members we are increasingly productivity and patient care.

I recommend becoming a FAST manager©!

The FAST approach adds a twist to some leadership styles. The method is broken into four fundamental groups: feedback, appreciation, shared goal setting, and team. Further, the word itself, fast, represents a need in modern society for an efficient means of managing personnel.
FAST stands for Feedback, Appreciation, Shared Goal Setting, and Team.
and this video we are going to go through Feedback.

What follows are 23 rules to follow to help you build the DNA of your ideal Practice, part of the Process 23 teaching series that I am excited to share with you!

Feedback

Feeding back success builds positive self images, improves rapport, and more than anything else increases chances of similar positive behaviors occurring in the future. ~BF skinner

Feedback is in essential part of our lives. Fine motor skills are dependent upon feedback. In sports such as Golf, we rely upon instant feedback to determine how we can alter our swing. However, we cannot always see the effects of our behavior. Therefore feedback must be given from another source. Feedback from the dentist helps to preserve the harmony that is rudiment in the sensitive dental setting.
First of all, feedback does not have to have a negative connotation. Use opportunities to give people feedback when they do things well!
As a matter of fact try to balance your positive feedback with your constructive feedback.
*IF POSSIBLE: Set-up the moment preemptively as a teaching opportunity

Here are the 8 Process 23 Rules for Feedback:
Be solution oriented and positive
Don’t be a hater! do not approach the conversation in a mean spirited manner
Put Quality into the conversation: Research conducted by neuroscientists at Columbia University found that people only apply feedback 30% of the time, so take the time to apply feedback with quality.
Look for confirmation and understanding
Be specific – You can’t be ambiguous with people – e.g. you cant say you need to speak-up more often – instead say – Lisa, you are sharp! You have a lot to offer this team, you’ve had a wide range of experiences over 15 years and your opinion is very important to me, so, I am challenging you to contribute at least one thing during our team meetings.
Be FAST – Feedback is best received when it is immediate. The brain is hardwired for immediate feedback. If you wait weeks or months to tell somebody how they are doing, it will be confusing and creates misunderstanding.
BE firm and succinct but not mean.
Begin and end with praise – Try to sprinkle as much positive into the conversation as negative.

Appreciation

The need to belong and to socialize is a powerful motivator ~A.H. Maslow

Do you want a team that is more engaged?
Do you want your team to be more loyal to you and the practice?
Would you like it if your team was just more motivated or more productive?

I am often asked, how can I get my team to do more or to treat this like their practice?

This is the secret sauce and its called: appreciation.

The results are in and the fact is that most important factor related to job satisfaction is appreciation and not money. Research conducted with Harvard Medical School and Wharton School of Business found that people who received a message of gratitude were up to 50% more productive.
A Psychology Today article discusses which areas of the brain are affected by appreciation and gratefulness. The hypothalamus, which controls basic bodily functions such as eating and sleeping, and dopamine, the “reward neurotransmitter” are heavily affected from feelings of gratitude. Alex Korb Ph.D writes,

“Gratitude can have such a powerful impact on your life because it engages your brain in a virtuous cycle.”

Showing gratitude can increase a person’s wellness, increase better sleep habits, increase metabolism and lessen stress. This directly impacts work results and employee interaction. With employee appreciation, you’re not only boosting performance and engagement, but the employee’s well-being and health.
If your team feels genuine appreciation, they will serve the practice and more importantly your patients better.
Appreciation is best received when it is combined with specific feedback. When a person is observed performing a desirable task they should be reinforced.

Here are the 6 Process23 Rules for Appreciation:

Be Authentic
Praise the person
Praise the behavior
Be specific
Give them surprises – Have an extra long lunch for your team and get pedicures, invite a massage therapist to give everyone massages, buy them small gifts of appreciation or simply thank them out of the blue for all they do.
Let the Team reward and praise each other

Shared goal setting

Not failure, but low aim, is crime.

~James Russell Lowell

Do you want a team that has goals to be better, faster, more productive, more caring, more effective and eager to help you build the practice of your dreams?

Goals empower your employees and give them something to work toward. The manager can offer direction and feedback for the goal-setting process, thereby, meeting the needs of the staff member and the manager. The goals are custom.
They are specific to the individual and they are beneficial to the practice.

Employee goals can include earning a promotion, gaining more responsibilities, improving more skills, learning a new procedure, gaining more patients for the practice or earning a practice bonus. When a employee creates goals, YOU can show support by helping her develop an action plan, creating deadlines and celebrating each victory.
It is also ok for you to work on financial goals with your team too. If you let them know that you care about their long-term success and well being and help them formulate a plan, it will go a long way in enrolling them into being more of a team player.

The key of the manager is to think about what the employee really wants to accomplish in the context of work and life. Stewart D. Friedman, Practice Professor at the Wharton School says,

“If I account for the interests of the whole person, not just the work person, I’m going to get more value from them,”

Here are the 9 Process 23 Rules for Shared Goal Setting:

Be specific and realistic
Evaluate previous goals
Help them connect their goals to the goals of the Practice
Set long-term and short-term goals
Set goals into manageable goals and stretch goals
Establish a Strategy for meeting the new goals
Ask them if their behavior matches their goals
Conduct the meeting in a private area without interruptions
Set a specific date for the next meeting

“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.” –Andrew Carnegie

I am a practicing dentist too, so, I understand the rigors of each day and how it can be busy and hectic. I understand what it is like to own your own practice. As a matter fact at one point I owned a practice with a partner that collected over $3M a year and at one point had 25 employees. I have also worked with with a private equity company in helping to establish one of the largest dental groups in world with the chief focus of empowering independent practice dentists. I have also worked with manufacturers and dental suppliers on behalf of other dentists, so I understand the complexities of our profession and the impact that we make.

In my Process 23 teachings I go specifically through 23 ways to build the practice of your dreams. Process 23 is about helping you build the DNA of your business. So, every lesson is concise and to the point, there is very little fluff. The videos are short but power packed so that you can get back to caring for your patients. In addition to the videos, we have included spreadsheets, graphics and interviews with other experts for download.
As I said, my intention is to help dentists understand business better and to build practices that help them thrive.

Now, on to part four of FAST manager©!

Team

To this point workers have been identified as employees or staff. Change seasons!
These people are the integral members of your team. They are the engine in your car, and without them, the car simply doesn’t move.

To build a great team takes leadership. In general, there is a lack of leadership in dentistry. The reality is that it is hard work and often dentists are tapped-out

I recommend reading about leadership and great leaders. People like John Wooden who led the UCLA bruins to 10 NCAA championships in 12 years and created the Pyramid of Success. Or Jack Welch who’s leadership helped GE grow 4,000% during his tenure.

What you will learn is that you must be on the road to becoming a leader in order to build a great team. This starts with a higher level of self-awareness and a sense of truly knowing yourself which is of course, a journey.

Also, to build a team you will also need to get to know your team. The adage that they wont care how much you know until they know how much you care holds true here. – Get to know the members of your team.

Hire talent for each role. The chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Evaluate your team constantly and makes adjustments in roles if necessary. Develop your team and continue to provide Feedback, show Appreciation and engage in shared goal setting. This will help create an environment of mutual respect and comrade.

Having a great team will make or break your practice. But it is up to you to engage and be the leader for what you want to see.

I hope you have obtained value from this post.  If you are ready to transform your practice, sign-up for Process23 today. As I said, I am confident that it will more than pay for itself and it comes with a 7 Day money back guarantee so, theres no reason for you to delay getting started.

at Process 23 we help you build the DNA of your business.
Thanks and make today great!