Don’t Let Your Best Players Leave Your Team
Two attributes of many successful practice owners are self-confidence and a healthy pride in a job well done. While personal characteristics are unique to each of us, self-confidence and healthy pride are attributes that can be developed over time. The can-do, hardworking attitude that drives early practice growth requires these “players”.
These “players” are great teammates when they drive success. But over the course of a practice owner’s career, they can go through the “transfer portal” and join the other team!
When this occurs, they become the adversary.
What works earlier in one’s career can work against them later in their career. These attributes can make their insidious switch gradually, without being noticed, and become dangerous for a variety of reasons.
The illusion of control is costly
The defection of once valuable attributes has a way of turning off one’s “self-awareness mirror.” Sabotage becomes an inside job when self-confidence and healthy pride result in a practice owner’s illusion of control, the control of one’s future. Ironically, this illusion somehow prevents owners from making plans to control their future. This can have significant ramifications.
The illusion can result in giving up a few $100K’s of profit the last few years of one’s career and also a few more $100K’s when a practice is sold. While this is bad enough, there is something much worse. When an unexpected event occurs, 90% or more of a practice’s value can evaporate in 90 days without an owner in the practice.
How many practice owners’ families want to forfeit one million dollars or more? What will become of their staff and where will their patients go?
Weak? Vulnerable?
Some individuals believe that planning for inevitable future events makes them look weak or vulnerable, when in fact, the opposite is true. By taking control of your future, you can maintain consistency of success throughout your career.
If you don’t want to risk leaving those whom you care about most with a bad taste in their mouths as you step into the next chapter of your life after dentistry, consider taking positive action in these two areas:
1. Planning ahead in the event something unexpected happens
Prevent huge financial loss to your family
Show care for your staff and their jobs
Show compassion for your patients
2. Planning ahead for inevitable events
Improve profitability of your practice each year with a little help
Increase the value of your practice prior to practice transition
Seasoned practice owners can benefit by preparing for the unexpected and the inevitable. If self-confidence and healthy pride are still on your team, why not take action now?
Take control of your future
PVA℠ helps practice owners prepare for the inevitable transition of their practices to new ownership.
J. Robert “Bob” Brooks, CEPA, CBI
J. Robert “Bob” Brooks, CEPA, CBI, leads Practice Endeavors, an Ohio-based practice brokerage and dental realty company. His company provides practice owners with the tools they need to prepare well for life after practice ownership and to find the best price/best fit buyers for their seller clients. Bob was integral in starting the first of its kind dental practice broker credentialing for the International Business Brokers Association.