March 2009

Dealing with 'the monster'

by Dr. Robert Schiffman

As humans, we're susceptible to impulses of fear, failure and self-doubt. When I was reminded of a story about President Lincoln, I thought about the fact that he often perplexed his generals because of his leniency regarding deserters in the Army of the Potomac. His rationale was very simple as explained in this quote: "If the Lord has given a man a pair of cowardly legs, it's hard to keep them from running away with him." Lincoln's approach was one gentle way of understanding (and making allowances for) human foibles. Not only did he have the courage to persist in conducting a bloody war but he also had the courage of being ready to pardon some of those who could not fight in it.

Another leader met with this type of problem was Ferdinand Foch, the World War I French Marshall who also had victory at the "Miracle of the Marne" battle. While reprimanding a colonel for disciplining one of his officers for showing fear, he was quoted as saying, "None but a coward dares to boast that he has never known fear."

It's true that as leaders we often encounter many hurdles or blockages but one thing I've learned is that it's critical to meet expectations. And the only way you can do this is by leadership. The word "leadership" comes from an old Norse word meaning "to make go." Leadership is needed in organizations to make things go, to muster and coordinate direction, ardent commitment and resource alignment.

I've been a chiropractic coach for a very long time and have also maintained a high volume chiropractic office for nearly 30 years. I've worked with many leaders of all ranks and functions during this time and have observed that most of them seem to think of leadership as just a 9-5 job that's only for the office. They don't see it as a life dynamic.

Most people are seeking more for themselves but the only way to realize it is to promote leadership that delivers more accountability. The way to do that is to have the leadership dynamic on and off the clock. If you can't make your leadership your life and your life your leadership, you'll diminish both. My intention is to provide the support that's needed beyond training to enable other chiropractors to apply that complex mix of management and leadership skills to their office.

Most offices of chiropractic are facing competition, but rather than competing with each other we should instead compete with our doubts, fears and failure -- and expect more from ourselves, more initiative, more innovation and more results.

As a leader, you don't have to watch a movie about the battle between two strong forces, you do it every day. One of the forces we face is the three-headed monster of fear, failure, and self-doubt. How you deal with this triple threat determines to a great extent how your life develops.

Even though we know that fear, failure and self-doubt are each separate, they cannot be separated. The prospect of failure can lead to fear of failure, and fear of failure can lead to self-doubt, which closes the circle by leading back to fear of failure. Of course, this three-headed monster is comprised of any number of combinations. For instance, self-doubt may lead to failure or failure may lead to self-doubt, which leads to fear.

Don't concern yourself with the combinations that can afflict you. Concern yourself with how to deal with them. The main thing to understand about how to deal with the monster is that if you're NOT dealing with it, you're doing something wrong.

Leadership isn't about living an easy life for ourselves but a hard life for other people and for the patients that you serve. Fear, failure, and self-doubt are natural outcomes of forward-thrusting leadership. This is especially so for leaders who are trying to motivate people to meet extraordinary challenges. You'll never know how good you are as a leader unless you're motivating others to be better than they think they are. In doing that, you'll inevitably get at least some of the people angry.

Most people are settled into a comfortable status quo and resist and resent being challenged to break out. But if you aim to get great results, people not only have to be pushed but more importantly, they must be challenged to push themselves. So, if you're not getting some people angry with you over the pushing, you're doing something wrong as a leader. You're not challenging people enough.

(Studying under CS Gonstead ignited Dr. Robert Schiffman's passion for chiropractic. The Life University graduate's career accomplishments have won him much recognition, and he is one of the most sought-after speakers in chiropractic today. Dr. Schiffman -- founder of the Principled Revolution, Get the Big Idea! Seminars and Coaching Programs -- continues to maintain one of the world's largest volume practices. Contact him by calling 877-251-0181, or visit online at www.getthebigidea.com .)