Do's and don'ts for having a low-stress practice

The goal of every dentist is to achieve success without stress. Unfortunately, we are seeing an epidemic of stress in dental practices. So how do you build a low-stress, highly successful practice?

Start with systems.Good systems eliminate stress. I can't emphasize enough the importance of implementing proven step-by-step systems in your practice. Systems define exactly how the practice operates day to day and everyone on the team needs to know exactly what that means. Designing the systems, documenting them in writing, and then explaining to the team that these are to be followed exactly reduces the majority of practice stress.

Don't micromanage. Micromanagement in any form sends a clear message to the team: You don't trust them. This is true for the office manager and the doctor. Your role is to support the team, train them, guide them on systems implementation, and move forward, but it is not to micromanage them. If they think you don't trust them, they start to not trust you. Trust is the single most crucial factor in building team relationships.

Dr. Roger P. Levin is CEO of Levin Group, a leading practice management and marketing consulting firm. To contact him or to join the 40,000 dental professionals who receive his Practice Production Tip of the Day, visit LevinGroup.com or email [email protected].

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