Those New Year’s goals you set for your medical practice are a great motivating force, but at some point you may hit that proverbial wall and lose the drive to move forward. Because your practice’s success is too important to sacrifice, you need to stay motivated.
Here are four ways you can regain that momentum and get back to accomplishing your goals:
1. Don’t give up. Just because you went off track, don’t let that derail you completely from your objectives. Sure, you may have desired a complaint-free month and instead received four, but turn that negative experience into an advancement. Examine the source of your setback, implement any necessary changes to avoid it going forward, then get back on track. The simple truth: You won’t learn from your mistakes if you never make any, so look at failures as an opportunity to grow.
2. Rejoice in the small victories. Even small accomplishments and steps forward are worth celebrating. Have a way to let your staff know when you make progress with your goals. For example, hang a chart in a prominent location where your staff will see it, and tally new patient check-ins. Then ring a bell when you hit a certain mark as a signal that you’ve taken a step toward increasing your annual patient load and revenue. Remember: A goal is something that you work toward. Recognizing little accomplishments will keep your staff energized.
3. Accept the need to re-evaluate. If you start to sense a lack of any movement forward with one of your goals, re-evaluate it. From time to time you may enthusiastically set a goal that is simply not obtainable. Accept that reality, modify the goal by giving it more realistic, reachable milestones with trackable metrics, and move forward. You may have a goal that isn’t achievable anymore because of a change in federal regulations, which play a big part in the medical industry! Bottom line: Set new goals if yours become obsolete, or adjust them to match the current healthcare climate.
4. Reclaim your motivation. Take a moment to recall what it was that provided your incentive to reach your goals in the first place. Consider hosting a quarterly meeting with your practice’s staff to evaluate where you are and how to get to the next step. Offer motivational prizes and incentives for staff members who help meet your metrics, and regain that enthusiasm with which you started the new year. The good news: Your practice has huge potential; your staff just needs to be reminded and redirected!
Practice Builders can help you plan a profitable and productive 2017. Just email us at info@practicebuilders.com or call us at 855-898-2710 for a free healthcare marketing consult today. Let us help you stay on track with all of your practice’s goals, and keep a steady stream of patients coming through your doors!