June 2006

A proven strategy for chasing your dream

by Dr. CJ Mertz

Surprisingly, not all chiropractors have a dream. For many, their dream began by getting accepted to go to college and then slowly drifted away in the process. Others have a big dream in front of them, but face the frustration of feeling that as time goes by, they're not any closer to it. Regardless of your circumstance, it's time to kick start your dream and realize you can still make it happen.

Every day, the phone rings at our headquarters with chiropractors describing the pain they feel from somehow getting "lost in the wilderness." Some are adjusting 50 per week and others see 500 per week. While their pain sounds much the same, you can't compare someone who's paying his or her bills to someone who isn't ‑‑ that person's pain is deepest of all. Most all of this pain is preventable when a chiropractor is given the right paradigm for practice.

You can't have the major premise of your practice based upon anything which is, operationally, the means to an end. Practices set up to serve a particular type of insurance, technique or marketing tactic carry with them a high rate of frustration (and failure). Chasing a dream must begin with the end in mind, not the means. Dreams are led by purpose, not tactics. A purpose‑driven dream would sound like eliminating subluxation, eradicating suffering or propagating lifetime family wellness. A purpose‑driven dream is the first key to making your dream come true. And, the bigger your purpose, the more likely your dream will turn to reality.

Unfortunately, becoming a truly purpose‑driven chiropractor seems to be something passed down by a "secret handshake" from one doctor to another. If you don't find the right group of DCs to guide you properly, you'll miss out on experiencing the wonder of a purpose‑driven practice.

The second important key is to deeply attach yourself to the biggest goal you can envision, in other words, the biggest goal you can feel and sense inside you. It may produce butterflies in your stomach, but you also have confidence that you can make it happen.

If, however, the goal is so big that you can no longer "associate" with it and/or feel your body deeply connected to it, then the goal can work against you. Also, if your next goal is too small and it doesn't cause any real stimulation, you often experience little or no growth.

So, having a gigantic purpose connected to the biggest goal you can envision means you're already halfway there!

The third key to chasing your dream includes attracting the right talent and executing the correct strategy. These two dynamics must occur at the same time or both will be ineffective.

You'll fall way short of your dream if, for example, while you have the best talent and most passionate CAs you're operating within a practice strategy that is unorganized with an inferior structure. Likewise, to implement the world's best practice strategy and then have to manage people who are resistant to change, who only do what you ask them to do and require you to be constantly looking over their shoulders to drive work performance is futile. Don't settle for anything less than the best fit team with the best fit practice strategy and reaching your dream will be just a stone's throw away.

The fourth key is learning to take the next level step (risk) with the highest intensity possible. The smaller the step the better, as long as your intensity (and your team's) is performed full‑out. Chasing dreams doesn't happen by putting your toes in the water. Nor do you succeed by simply jumping off the deep end. The greatest success you'll ever have is right there in front of you. It requires you to venture into the unknown and to do so with bold conviction.

That's why the first two keys are so important. Replacing a CA, enhancing your office layout, upgrading your marketing and advertising programs, and transforming your practice procedures are just a few of the next level steps you need to take in order to realize your dream.

It's not necessary to try and take all the steps at once. Yet, moving forward isn't optional. It's time to get your act together and take ownership of your future. Not long from now, every family in your community will want to have a chiropractor on their health care team. Position yourself now or stand aside and watch other practices experience legendary growth. The choice is yours ‑‑ and so is the dream.

Make your mark. Put your own brick on the wall‑of‑fame in chiropractic for all time. And, don't be afraid to ask for help. (Mine is money‑back guaranteed so, call Tony today and ask him how you can chase your dream absolutely risk‑free.)

(Dr. CJ Mertz is executive director of ChiroUSA, and founder and head coach of the prestigious Waiting List Practice [WLP] chiropractic training organization. See the WLP 300 patient per week opportunity on the back page of this issue. For information on WLP coaching services, call Tony Shinn at 877‑TEAM‑WLP.)