Episode 7 – Leadership: Trust, But Verify

The first 15 years of my practice, my team hated coming to work. I was the worst boss on the planet. But I wanted a practice I could be proud of and share with other dentists, so I had to change the way I related to my team. When I was in the army, I was fortunate enough to have a great leader setting an example for me. He was right there in the trenches with us. But I forgot all of this when I went into private practice.

Success in dentistry is all about relationships. Over the years I’ve developed what I like to call “Trust, but verify.” Today we’re going to talk about giving your team responsibility and expecting it to be done. In the past, if my team didn’t get things done, I would rant and rave. I wouldn’t ask why or try to look for those “teachable moments.” It’s about coming up with a solid system, and then holding people accountable.

The more you “Trust, but verify,” the less you have to verify. Your team will start thinking “My doc really does cares about us and evaluating the systems and we can come together to make great things happen.” When we come together, it’s so much more fun doing dentistry when you have a team that is 100% behind your work. So listen in as we dive into these issues today.