4 Team Building Tips Every Practice Owner Should Know
What I’ve learned over my tenure as a dentist is that I can only help so many patients on my own. By building a strong team, my talents are multiplied, increasing the number of patients being treated. Unfortunately, building a strong team isn’t always easy. Having the wrong team can be more detrimental to a person’s practice, patients, and health than having no team at all. Finding people who work well together, uphold high standards, and believe in your vision can be like finding a needle in a haystack. Despite the difficulty of this task, building a strong team is truly worth the effort. Through my experiences, I have discovered four tips to help build a successful team.
1. Hire for Personality, Train for Talent
I began my career by always hiring the wrong people. I would hire based off of a candidate’s experience and their resume, but once they joined the team, I would quickly discover they were the wrong fit. I asked my mentor at the time for some help hiring the right people. He asked a very valuable question- “Do you like them?”. As obvious as this sounds, leaders must stay mindful of the compatibility between themselves and the applicant. Rather than solely making decisions based on a person’s talents and experiences, one should consider the exchange of energy throughout the interview process. Simply put, if you cannot see yourself going out for dinner with the applicant, then they probably do not belong on your team.
2. Inspire a Shared Vision and Revolve your Daily Tasks Around that Vision
Shepherds tend to their flock for a reason. Without the leadership and vision of the shepherd, the sheep would wander without purpose. This also applies to business. The more transparent a leader is about his/her vision, the more tasks are executed that make this vision a reality. Humans naturally strive to be a part of something bigger than themselves. This greater goal makes their daily grind worthwhile.
3. Be Servant Leader
Servant leaders place the needs of others before their own. When serving, leaders must model the behaviors they want their team members to emulate. For example, I depict servant leadership in several ways. I arrive to work early and prepared, I set the pace of the office as I assist with sterilization, room turn over, and several other tasks the doctors and hygienists are expected to complete. I am in the trenches with my team though out the day instead of hiding in my office. Any task I ask of my team, I also ask of myself.
4. Coach in the Moment
No one likes to be called to the principal's office. Leaders should call out behaviors that can be improved upon in the moment. I call this, ‘drive-by coaching’. Calling out behaviors immediately prevents emotion from building over time. Critique should be factual, objective, and immediate, not emotional. This prevents unnecessary tension and promotes a learning culture where coaching is expected on a daily basis.
Leadership isn’t an innate trait; it can be learned and improved upon with practice. Leaders have extreme influence over the success of the teams within their business. Keeping these four tips in mind, every leader will surely bring their organization to new heights. As business consultant Ken Blanchard stated, “None of us is as smart as all of us”.
