Imagine with me for a moment: 

It’s Monday morning at 10:00am and your first patient just walked in. 

You get into your adjusting flow and everything is right in the world. 

Patient number two comes in and gets on the table. You move seamlessly from the first adjustment to the second adjustment without a hitch. 

As you begin to transition into your third adjustment, all of a sudden________!!!

Your attention is interrupted. You lose focus. You’re suddenly taken out of that clear and intentional healing mindset that your patient needs.

Here’s the question … what would fill in that blank for you and your office? What is it specifically that stole your focus and how do you get it back? Or better yet, how do you prevent yourself from having to course correct in the first place? Well, having the awareness of what took your attention in the first place is step number one, right?

Here are the top five things that I believe could be stealing your focus: 

 

#1: Office Drama 

Okay, it pretty much goes without saying that office drama can be toxic for your office. Not just for your staff and your office culture, but for the experience your patients have when they walk in your door. But did you realize that it’s also taking your focus away from your patients every time you have to listen to the banter or the gossip or take a minute to address the issue rather than having your team carry your culture with pride and a sense of responsibility throughout the day? 

Tip: Talk to your team. If you’re experiencing drama in your office, take action today. Create a no gossip policy. Address the issue head on and put an end to it. This might be in the form of a staff meeting, written policy, verbal agreement, or whatever else suits the culture of your office. 

 

 

#2: No-shows 

Nothing slams on the breaks of your morning like a no-show. And you might be thinking to yourself, “well, how much control do I really have over someone not showing up”? My answer: A lot more than you think. 

This is my personal theory. I just shared this with my team the other day on Slack. I have seen this to be true with countless offices over the years: 

Show up rates are always a value problem. If people aren’t showing up to an office, they value something else more than making their visit. This is an office education and system problem.

Tip: Long story short: Take a good, hard look at your office education and office systems. Where could you communicate the importance of chiropractic better to your patients? How could you remove more obstacles to them coming into your office? Pick one area to work on and start today. 

 

 

#3: “Shiny Objects” 

As a DC and business owner, I’m guessing you also have the heart of an entrepreneur. I love that! Though one of the downsides of an entrepreneurial mindset is that you’re constantly bringing new ideas to the table; sometimes in a way that begins to create inefficiencies on your team or even in how you’re spending your own time. 

Tip: You don’t want to stop this flow of ideas, but you might just need to redirect them. What I have found works best for me is to carve our time for brainstorming and new ideas. Maybe it’s every morning from 7-7:30am or maybe once a week on Fridays from 10-11am. Whenever and whatever you want this time to look like, create space for it so you can implement boundaries with your time. 

 

 

#4: Business Operations 

Bookkeeping, marketing, HR, operations… and the list goes on. The truth is, you might love some aspects of the operational side of running your business, but regardless, every time you take a moment to think or act on something in your business, you need to ask yourself these questions: 

  • Could someone on my team do this at least 80% as well as I can? If so, delegate it.
  • Could my time be spent better elsewhere to add value to the office? If so, delegate it. 
  • Does this task drain me more than it fills me? If so, delegate it. 

You might be thinking to yourself, “Great, but who am I delegating these things to”? This might then beg the question: Is it time for you to hire a new team member? Or possibly outsource some of your business processes? Or maybe you need an assistant. Whatever you need and whoever you need, make it happen.

 

 

#5: Patient Logistics 

Last, but not least: Patient logistics. There’s nothing like having to stop in the middle of an adjustment to talk to your CA about moving an afternoon appointment or scheduling a patient for an x-ray. 

Tip: Document your process. It’s certainly not rocket science, but create a protocol for your staff to use. Things you might want to include in this protocol: 

  • What times of day you want to see certain appointment types
  • Answers to commonly asked questions from patients
  • What you want your ideal day to look like so your staff can work in appointments around those parameters
  • Exceptions to the ideal day and when it’s okay for your staff to schedule emergency appointments 

These are just a few ideas, but as you’re implementing this new protocol, I recommend having your staff keep a pen and paper handy to take notes on additional questions they have for you as they come up so you can add them to the document.

 

Why is trying to avoid these common distractions so crucial? Because when you’re able to remain in your flow, your patients are able to receive the best possible care. And when your patients receive the best possible care, that’s one extra step toward creating an exceptional patient experience that will help drive your business forward.

Oh, and since I know that even on the best days distractions are still unavoidable, here are a few tips on how to course-correct after you lose focus: 

 

Tips For Course-correcting After You Lose Focus:

  1. Engage With Your Patients: Strike up a conversation. Ask them how they’re doing and how their healing process is going. Focus on being as present as possible during your conversation. 
  2. 30-Second Meditation: You might not actually have 30 seconds to step away, but this is more about getting back to a mindset versus sitting in silence. Maybe you have a mantra that you say to yourself or a prayer to center yourself. Implement that here. 
  3. Visualization: Visualization is an incredibly powerful asset in our chiropractic tool belt. While you’re adjusting, take time to visualize your patient’s healing journey. What will their life look like when they are completely healed? Visualize segments moving into place. Our mindset is an incredibly powerful thing. 

 

As a doc and business owner, I wanted to share one last personal tip. 

One thing I’ve invested in that has allowed me to maintain focus in my office is automating our front desk process. This has freed up my staff to be able to focus on engaging with our patients so I can have the peace of mind that my practice members are receiving the very best care. 

If you think you might be ready to learn about how scheduling and automation software could help you maintain focus in your office, schedule a free demo with my team today. 

 

Until Next Time, 

Dr. Erik