8 Tips To Be A Better Leader

Proud to once again be a part of Dentistry IQ’s 100 Best Tips   Here’s my latest contribution in Dentistry IQ 8 Tips To Be a Better Leader 

8 Tips to Be A Better Leader including a tip from Ginny Hegarty, SPHR

Real-time feedback is where people strategy and strong business results intersect! Nothing changes without your feedback. The more timely your feedback, the more agile your team, and, therefore, the more effective and profitable your business. Embrace a proactive human resource strategy for performance appraisals – this coaching should be a real-time conversation about personal and professional growth to challenge and support team members to take their performance to the next level. The world has changed: mobile phones, Facebook, Twitter, and texting create immediate feedback in every aspect of our lives. It’s time we raise the bar on human resource leadership in dentistry.
-Ginny Hegarty, SPHR Dental Practice Development, Inc.

Rewrite the Rules

It’s easy to tap into your inner child during the holiday season.  Once the visions of sugarplums have finished their dance, bring that ‘3-year old you’ into your business and let that child loose to ask “why?, why?, why? as 3-year olds do.

Pepper yourself and your team with questions about why you do things the way you do them. Step back, take a minute, think it through…

  • is there a better way?
  • a smarter way?
  • an easier way?
  • a less expensive way?
  • Is this guideline helping us or holding us back?
  • Is the reason for this policy even valid anymore?
  • Does this guideline fall short given all the new technology in place?
  • Does this policy apply with this new team we have?
  • Are we stuck in the past and missing opportunities?
  • Is our communication clear enough that our expectations will be met?
  • Does my team know what I need from them?
  • Does my team know how to evaluate their effectiveness?
  • Does my team have the resources, training and support they need and deserve?
  • Am I aware of all of the new federal and state guidelines that I must be following?

The quality of your answers will be a direct result of the quality of your questions. Shake things up and start 2013 off with a brand new energy! Challenge your team to come up with great questions and plan a brainstorming party. Yes, your strategic planning meeting should feel like a party as you create an energy that  excites and inspires you to build a blueprint for success in the New Year.

Objectivity can be elusive… Want help? … that’s what we do. Click here for information on our team workshops and consulting services:  http://bit.ly/UgEjtW

“Rewrite the Rules – Don’t Just Create More Exceptions To Them” – Jeffrey Hollender  Cofounder, Seventh Generation

 

Plan to Work Less in 2013

“If you’re going to work hard, you might as well be working hard at working less. The real measure of success is how free you are—financially, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually—to live life the way you want to live it.”            -Great advice from T. Harv Eker

Did you know that studies show that 70% of the time businesses that struggle to meet their goals do so because they have a poor plan? Only 4% of the time does poor business performance correlate with economic conditions.

It’s a great time of year for a refresh, a new beginning. Make plans to begin your new year with a clear plan, a strategic plan in    10 Simple Steps: Here is a link to our strategic planning guide that will support you to bring your team onboard, engaged and inspired to make 2013 an outstanding year:  

 http://bit.ly/VBuHpv  (https://ginnyhegarty.wpengine.com/resources.html)

Stepping Outside of the Box

In today’s competitive business climate, it makes great sense to step outside of the small sandbox that is your dental world and learn how to lead your team in Stepping Outside of the Box with inspiration from Corporate America.

Great idea from the Westin

I love businesses that think outside the box to engage clients and exceed expectations.  The good news is that it’s really not that hard to set yourself apart. Take a look at the photo with this blog post from the Westin hotel. How great would it be to have workout shoes and clothes waiting for you at your hotel when you travel? No more squeezing your Nikes into your suitcase or worse, not being able to keep up with your exercise goals because you just can’t fit those Nikes into your carry on luggage.

If you like this idea, you’ll love my “Stepping Outside the Box” presentation on innovative ideas from Corporate America that can set your practice apart. Learn more at ginnyhegarty.com/speaking.html

 

Team Brainstorming Strategy

Someone once had the bright idea that anyone who brings a problem to the table must also bring a solution. The conventional wisdom was that it would focus people on solutions and avoids a gripe session, but the reality is this concept will shut your team down.

If you require a solution to every challenge, you risk never hearing the questions or finding the opportunity in the challenge.  Stop requiring solutions; instead invite people to bring their concerns and their goals to you. When planning your next team meeting agenda, keep it simple; say, “Tell me where you are now and where you’d like to be. As a team, we’ll brainstorm the possibilities together.”

This team brainstorming strategy is a game changer… try it and see for yourself.