I hope you liked the activity last week. Well, I care less that you liked it and more that it brought a level of awareness to you and you found it beneficial – that is always my goal. Often “practice drills” are not fun but winning the real game of life and helping more patients are always fun.
My motto in dentistry, as you know, is to always do what will help more patients say yes since those are the only ones that you ever get to help.
The point of last week was for you to realize that you have control, both to lead patients to the positive as well as overcome any negative responses, feelings, or tendencies, so that you can influence them in the way that is in their best interests.
People either tend to be more optimistic or pessimistic throughout their life, we understand that. However, when it comes to buying decisions, it’s human nature to go negative with all of the reasons why they shouldn’t, can’t, don’t need it, it’s too much, etc.
This is true for anything that leads to some type of change or adjustment; not just with you and dentistry.
To combat this instinct, you need to be ahead of the dynamic and prepared for it with every patient visit. You simply cannot take the patients’ responses at face value because there is always something beneath the surface that you need to get to.
This is also true for you and me. We all have this human nature to go to the negative first.
If everyone stopped at the first “no,” there wouldn’t be much accomplished in this world. We are naturally defensive and first want to protect ourselves, which is why we START at “no” and work towards “yes.”
So, when someone goes negative, you empathize and express understanding. Then you course correct by returning to the positive outcomes.
In one of my favorite books, The Four Agreements, the author calls this “making assumptions” and that with assumptions you lose sight of the real significance of what is there.
You cloud your mind and become unaware of important observations. Basically, we give up way too early in the thought process to actually learn anything.
This goes for your own personal decisions, whether it’s goals you want to achieve or your own self-worth. You make assumptions and never give yourself permission to become everything you deserve.
The same goes for your patients as well as your perception of your patients.
Simply put: give yourself and your patients a chance. Do not default to the negative in your mind, in your words, in your assumptions, or in any other way.
This continues our theme from last week on the positive but you can lose the chance to do that if you are going down this path and writing off the opportunity too quickly because you are focused on or naturally going towards the negative.
Here’s my question for you…
Where could you strengthen your positive muscles and work on your own tendency to default to all the reasons why something can’t happen or why someone won’t say yes, instead of all the affirmative reasons?
How about in your own life… where are you in your own way of happiness and progress because you get discouraged or disgruntled or disheartened or frustrated too fast and therefore miss out on what is really possible?
You don’t have to be pie in the sky wishful thinker to simply be more optimistic. Stay grounded and focus on the reality of the situation without letting assumptions take over. You really do miss out on so in much life when never give yourself a chance.
Ponder. Reflect. Improve.
Commit to more positivity and help everyone win, especially you.
