Rediscovering Your Passion
In this episode, Allison and Shawn share a message of hope and encouragement to dentists who are stuck in survival mode. In crisis, it’s easy to become bogged down by all the details that are required of you and lose the heart of what you are doing. Business can easily become mechanical as dentists go on autopilot as they oversee changing protocols and guidelines. This powerful message is a reminder to look at patients as individuals with unique needs and to rekindle the spark in your dentistry.
More than ever, patients need a dental provider who is ready to listen to the struggles they are dealing with. When dentists take the time to listen to their patients, to really look at their individual goals and needs, it benefits both patients and dentists. When patients feel heard and understood, and that their needs are acknowledged, it builds up trust with their dentist. No longer is the dentist someone who is trying to push an intervention on them, but someone who has tremendous value as they are offering solutions to the problems that are bothering them. This type of authentic connection grows your practice, and it also benefits dentists as it reconnects them to the heart of their dentistry.
When dentists remember why they got into this field, and reconnect to the dreams they had as they entered this profession, it can reenergize them to get through these challenging times. We all need a ‘why’ behind the ‘what’, and identifying what brings joy and what you love allows you to do more of that in your practice and bring your happiness into the workplace. Some dentists live for the relationships with their patients. So reconnect, slow down, create time and space into your day when you can listen a little more. Once you create space for this type of connection to your patients you will feel more fulfillment.
It’s hard to find hope for the future of your practice in a time when the world is in such chaos. But going back to the foundations of who you are as a dentist can equip you to get through these turbulent times and open up a new perspective. You might just begin to see some hope on the horizon.