Financial Integrity - I'm on to something

A few months ago, I shared with you some observations about Integrity.  Since then, I have given some thought to the various decisions we make when people expect us to demonstrate "integrity" within our practices. Let's define integrity as consistency of actions, values and principles. Now consider all the areas of practice where we are entrusted to act in an integritous manner.   ("Integritous" may or may not be a real word.)

We all want to do right so we should always take steps to ensure integrity in our Patient Care, Team Leadership, and Business Management.  This helps us determine that the practice we are running is the practice we have dreamed of.  By examining our activity, we can compare our actions with our intentions.

It is within that light, that I would like to explore a new realm of Business Management,Financial Integrity.  It is different than financial management or balance sheets.  It is not just about spending control or budgeting.  Those are very important financial strategies but Financial Integrity is about the countless money related decisions we make all day, every day.  Financial Integrity is about the practice consistently making and spending money according to the principles and values of the practice.

I know it is getting kind of deep - but stay with me for one more minute.

I became interested in this when I began trying to get a handle on how we received our money.  Just so you know, it's ridiculous.

• Most patients have some sort of insurance and we file it all electronically.

• Some is done at checkout on the insurances website, so we "know how much to charge the patient."

• Others are filed when glasses are ordered by the lab technician.

• But if they don't get glasses, it is filed by someone else.

• Medical claims are filed by our EHR program, which talks to our clearinghouse once the claim is authorized.

• Sometimes claims are denied and need to be re-filed.

And let's not even talk about secondary insurances.  There are co-pays, co-insurances, deductibles, writeoffs, and allowables.

No wonder John Rumpakis is in such high demand!

To take a quick look at your Financial Integrity what is your answer to the following questions:

• Does every discount given in your practice match your discount policy?

• Does every deposit make it to the bank?

• Is every denied claim dealt with or is it just written off?

• Is every copay collected?

• Does every frame, box of contacts make it into stock?

• Is that pile of returns always returned?

• Are you charged the correct amount for every lab job?

• Do you get every discount you are entitled to from your lab?

• Is it possible that your trusted staff is stealing money or stuff from the office?

For me, the answer to every one of these questions is "I don't know."  It is critical that I get to work on my Financial Integrity.

A plan to ensure Financial Integrity involves a system of constant self audits and adjustments based on the audit findings.

Systems to Evaluate Financial Integrity

As a rule, it is recommended to pick a vision and a medical insurance to audit each month.

• Choose 10 patients from each and simply follow the trail. There can be breakdowns in fee collection, verification, filing, refiling, writeoffs and payment application.

• And audit one big vendor per month. We audit our optical lab and our contact lens distributor twice per year because this is where most of our money goes. We compare prices charged with prices promoted and look for discounts that should be applied.

Systems to Improve Financial Integrity

There is always a balance to efficiency and accuracy.  When you are balancing your checkbook and you are a penny off, do you spend time looking for it, or just adjust?  What about $1.00?  $100.00?  For the practice we need to incorporate systems to make it all work.

Our nightly routine used to include balancing the deposit with the Daily Report.  But if you pay 3 people for one hour to find $45.00, you have lost money and hurt morale.  If you don't find the $45.00, you set the precedent that it doesn't matter.

We adjusted so that the report is run at the end of the day and entered into a Google Drive document.  The checks and cash are collected, uncounted, and put into the safe.  The following morning the safe is opened and the money is all deposited.  This deposit, credit card charges and EFT's are all entered into another document, without looking at the EHR report.  If the amounts matched, we are good.  If not - we investigate.

This is an example of one system we have incorporated to help us develop our Financial Integrity.  We wanted to end the day on a high note as often as possible and if we do find an accounting error, we have all day to find it. Two separate people are involved so there is less chance of shenanigans.

What other systems can we put in place to ensure our Financial Integrity?  Let me know what has worked in your practice. 

This is a hot topic right now.  More to follow.

See you soon,

Mike

Highlight Video from San Diego

Leadership OD just wrapped up another incredible practice management event.  The Executive Retreat was a great success and we are getting some great feedback.

(Check out the 

Highlight Video

 from Caroline Rothschild Productions.)

Rusty Simmons, OD from Arkansas said, 

"I was extremely impressed with the retreat. The content was excellent and the passion of the leadership team is contagious.  I want to attend the next conference. I have already contacted some friends to recommend that they attend."

And Dr. Aaron Werner from San Diego said, "I liked the opening evening's conversation that set the tone for the next 2 days and the involvement of the sponsors who were participants as well as sponsors."

We heard these types of comments over and over and are working on a testimonials page so you can see what everyone had to say about the event.

What's Next?

The next events from Leadership OD are the Fall Strategic Escapes which are limited to only a small group of doctors to dig deep into every practice and leave with a well thought out plan to implement.

Find out more here.

We are committed to continuing to bring more value to your practice, so stay tuned!

Special Thanks to All of our Sponsors

• Carl Zeiss Vision

• RevolutionEHR

• Demand Force

• ABB Concise

• National Recalls

Do you want a raise?

Anyone who is a reader of the Sunday comics knows that Dagwood Bumstead has been trying to convince his boss, Mr. Dithers that he needs a raise.  He has been working diligently on this, to no avail, since before any of us were even born.

How do you give raises in your office?

A common question among OD's.  And I have learned after several years of working with eye care practices is that we are all over the place in how we compensate our staffs. Hiring them and agreeing on a starting salary doesn't seem to be the big issue, but knowing how to continue to adjust the salaries seems to be the challenge.

It seems there are two basic schools of thought on adjusting staff salaries:

1) The Grid Method

 is very objective and ranks each area of the office into various levels of expertise.  As you earn increasing levels of expertise in different areas of the office, you become more and more valuable to the company.  Therefore, your pay rate increases.

2) The Merit Method 

is more subjective because it ranks the staff member on levels of performance and rewards going above and beyond expected levels of service.  Performance can be graded and evaluated in a number of ways, but must be defined beforehand.

So which is better?  It depends.

Performance Based practices gravitate toward the Grid Method and Relationship Based practices lean toward the Merit Method.  In our practice, we have merged the methods to fit our Practice Personality.

Download our Salary Adjustment Process Here

It reflects what matters most to us,  it is systematic and allows for flexibility to reward excellence.  We have Salary Adjustment meetings yearly, every summer, and meet with each employee.  Arguably, that is not often enough, but it assures we give it the attention it deserves.  And it is clear that no one is guaranteed a raise, they are "Salary Adjustment" meetings and sometimes salaries are adjusted down.

Like everything, we need some kind of system that we can manage well, is responsible and is fair to the team members.  Those offices that do not have a system in place to adjust payroll wind up doing it as a reaction.  In other words, when morale is bad and things seem to be going badly, they consider giving everyone a raise or a bonus - to boost morale.  This works for a minute.  It also teaches staff that weak performance leads to increased pay.

There are also two schools of thought on when to make these adjustments:

A) On the anniversary of the hire date - Good because it spreads out the increased expenses but difficult to keep up with.

B) At a predetermined time of year - Easier to keep up with but can bump up expenses faster than you like.

Take home points about Salary Adjustments:

• Look at your budget and your current expenditures to see what you can afford.

• Utilize a system that fits your practice - it can always be adjusted

• Decide how often this will be performed

• Communicate the system to the team - set the expectations

• Meet with each team member to adjust pay - if needed

• Evaluate the system - make changes for next time

• Schedule the next Salary Adjustment

Getting started is the hardest part.

Sincerely yours, Mike Rothschild, Leadership OD

p.s.   By the way, I don't think it is a good idea to get a raise for just not getting fired.

Dad's To-Do Lists

Currently I am in one of those phases where I am bringing together all of my task lists, attempting to merge them into one usable document.  I have notes in my phone, on my wife's tablet, but mostly there are various sizes of paper scattered throughout my surroundings. Many are random observations of things that need to be "fixed" scribbled on a notepad from a tech's pocket.  Others are partially completed lists from earlier in the year on a folded and wrinkled piece of notebook paper and there are printed emails because they are too important to just sit in my inbox with the other 200 or so messages.  We even have a several page document spelling out the family plans of summer and exactly how much "freedom" can be expected this year.  And yes, there are even some chicken stained napkins scattered around.

On this day, working on this particular project I am reminded of having dreaded the duty several years ago of sorting through my father's possessions.  My dad may have qualified as a hoarder except for the fact that he was meticulously organized and took very good care of his stuff.  And he had a lot of stuff.

As expected, we came across many of his known organizing systems that he effectively used to keep up with the things that mattered to him:

• A small, slightly curved 5 ring binder with information about his antique race car that he constantly worked on. He needed it small so that it fit in his pocket when he went to car shows. It was organized into parts he needed, parts he had and experiences he had with the car.

• An index card file box with information about his collection of cameras. The cards were colored coded by camera. There was information about service records, accessories available and articles from photography magazines.

• Dozens of matching, full size binders all clearly labeled by date and sorted in order. These binders held thousands of photograph 35mm negatives from when cameras actually used film. Each in a protective sheet, labeled by date and event.

• Pilot's Log Book with details of every mission he flew from training, to active battles, to instruction and finally to weekend reserves.

We always kind of made fun of Dad for his scrupulous approach to organization, so these systems were well known to the family and no surprise to find.  But what was surprising was all the abandoned and failed organization systems.  My dad also had half completed lists on notebook paper, notecards bound by rubber bands and flowcharts never fully implemented.

When I first saw these things, I felt a tinge of sadness because these failed systems seemed to represent the things that Dad never accomplished.  But as time has passed, I realize that they were stepping stones, learning curves and rough drafts.

Isn't that how you make yourself better, just keep building on your experiences?  And doesn't that mean learning from successes and failures?

But dads - do your kids a favor and once you have given up on a system, throw it away.

Wishing you a very Happy Father's Day,

Mike

Just for fun - Your song for summer?

Every year about this time I start paying attention to lyrics of songs playing on the radio, looking for a theme for the summer.  I try to imagine that the songs have a depth and were written to bring structure to all the craziness that I always bring on myself. I know you do it too.

This year, I was close to deciding on Blake Shelton's "Boys Round Here."  How can you not love a song with the lyrics, "Chew tobacco, Spit"?  But I just wasn't feeling it.

So finally I decided on an oldie (relatively), but a goodie.  This summer, we will live by the wisdom in the Black Eyed Peas' song, "I've Gotta Feeling."  It goes on to say, "I've got a Feeling that tonight's going to be a good night."  If you decide to look up the lyrics, beware that not every version of the song is appropriate for all audiences.

So what's your theme song for the summer? Rolling Stone has asked its readers for the best summer songs and they are all over the place:  Anything by the Beach Boys, Boys of Summer and Under the Boardwalk are all getting votes.  But so is Summertime by DJ Jazzy Jeff, who I have never heard of.

But I want to know what you think, so I set up a poll for us to use.

Here's how you vote - Text a Message to 22333, then enter 43496 and your answer, or just Tell Us Online.

You can see our results here. (If this works, I didn't test it.)

Everyone at Leadership OD has been working hard to bring you new programs and new events and I really do "Gotta Feeling" that great things are coming.

Have a great summer and I hope to see you in San Diego.

All my best, Mike

A Training Strategy that Works

I enjoy helping doctors develop a training plan for their staff.  It seems to be challenge in every single practice, including mine.  It seems odd that it would remain a problem with all of the available resources out there.  I googled "Optometric Staff Training Programs" and got over 3 million sites. I have studied this problem for many years and now know the root of our training dilemma. Most doctors don't need a new training plan, they need a whole new strategy.

All OD's are obviously influenced about the methods used to educate us.  So it makes sense to the doctors that it is better to start training by teaching the basics of optometry before we begin teaching the skills needed to run our systems.  But if the systems are good enough, then teaching the "why" is just a confusing and wasted step.

I realize this goes against what most people believe, but think about it from a perspective of a new employee in an office with systems and processes already in place.

View a new twist on staff training strategy (PDF)

Effective training programs need to be coordinated with good systems of operations, a quality hiring process, strong orientation program and good leadership.  It can be confusing and can sometimes seem overwhelming.

What's all the Arguing About?

Recently, I have shared a variety of perspectives on the best way to solve many of the challenges we all face in our practices.  These differing techniques come from some of the brightest minds in all of optometric practice management. So why all this controversy?  Why the debate, the tension, the unanswered questions? Because Leadership OD is about expanding the limits and breaking through barriers.

There is no one "best way" to run an optometry practice.  We all have different dreams and different visions of what we want to accomplish in our own practices.  Ultimately we want to serve our patients, but even how we decide to do that varies from doc to doc. Our communities are different.  Our available resources, our team members, our values, our stage in life - All different!

So while there are many many similarities in our struggles, there are still those things that make it unique to us.  And that's what makes it great!

It's like when Curly tells Billy Crystal in City Slickers, the secret to life is just one thing.  But you have got to figure out the one thing for yourself.  True in optometry practices too.

Not Arguments - More Like "Explorations"

So last week, Dr. April Jasper and I debated the logic of collecting a patient's fees prior to the exam.  I have an enormous amount of respect for her, and admire all she does for her patients and our profession.  She has reminded me many times to keep the patients' needs first and how to lead with compassion. But she hasn't convinced me of this new strategy, yet.  (But I don't think she's giving up.)

And before that, Drs Carl and Katie Spear challenged the techniques employed by Drs Amir Khoshnevis and Dave Lupinski to reduce the strain of "showrooming" in our opticals.  These doctors are all thought-leaders in our profession and have a strong grasp of the variety of influences on the business side of our practices.  They each investigated the problem and the trends, and tested the outcomes.  Ultimately, each practice employed a different strategy to overcome this vital issue.

I am lucky enough to have frequent conversations about issues I face with each of these doctors, among others. I can count on hearing a variety of perspectives before making my own decision about what is right for me.  I know the energy they put into their individual practices, and they understand what makes each of us special.

Mike

The Best Time to Collect Fees - Does it Matter?

Dr. April Jasper from West Palm Beach, FL is one of the most sought after lecturers and consultants in all of optometry.  She is on a number of panels and works as an industry expert in most areas of our profession.  A great deal of April's success is due to her strong support system.  Her practice is truly a family affair with her husband, parents and children all playing critical roles in the practice management. At our Executive Retreat earlier this year, we were lucky enough to hear April's lecture on bringing excellence into the exam room.  (Here is a highlight video.)  As always, she delivered a number of proven methods on how to thrive during tough times while giving us the motivation to get out there and do it.  If you ever have a chance to hear April Jasper present, don't miss it.

April got me to thinking

Here's how April got my attention: She asked, "How would you like to have zero in AR?"  She's wasn't asking about Anti-Reflective treatments, she was talking about Accounts Receivable.  The thought was so foreign to me, I simply could not understand how it could be so.

Just like you, I wanted to know more.

She explained to me her system of collecting all exam fees before the exam.  Co-pays, Deductibles, Co-Insurance,  Optional Optos fees......All of it! - Before the exam even starts!  Crazy - right?  That's what I was thinking too.   But this is April Jasper and she knows what she is doing, so you might want to listen to how she has done it and how it is working.

CLICK HERE to read how Dr. Jasper does it.

But nobody's always right

So April makes a good point and a strong argument.  Ultimately, I decided not to incorporate this into my practice.  The reason is NOT because I was unwilling to deal with the hassle of making changes.  I live for these types of changes.  I decided "to not to" because I have another priority in my practice that is counter-intuitive to collecting fees up front.

In our practice, the main focus in to get patients  finished with their exam and back into the optical 30 minutes after they walk in the door.  We have found that people are happier when they are not rushed when shopping for eyewear or making decisions about contact lenses.  And "Happier People Spend More Money."

Every system in our office is designed with this in mind.  Chief Complaints and some history can be taken when the confirmation call is made or when the appointment is scheduled.  Many of us ask our patients to fill out "paperwork" online, so we actually make sure it is entered prior to the patient arriving and we don't ask what was asked  in the paperwork.  Our techs are receptionists and we try to not let anyone sit down in our waiting room.  We try to greet you by name and walk you to the Pre-Test room.

We don't always succeed but we are continuing to try and we continually focus on it.  But it is such a big part of who we want to be, every decision about EHR, staffing, scheduling strategies, patient communication and everything else goes back to....will it help us get our exams to the optical in 30 minutes?

See you soon,

Mike

p.s. We would like to know how you do it - Click Here to respond anonymously how you collect exam fees.  I will share the results later in the week.

Two Ways to Fight ShowRooming

Showrooming - the growing trend of shoppers to visit a brick and mortar store to test the merchandise only to buy it for a better price on the internet.  Trendy apps like Red Laser and Price Check are making it easier to compare prices on any product.  Recent reports show that 35% of US consumers have "showroomed." What businesses are trying

Some techniques, that don't seem to be getting favorable reviews, are being labeled as "shopping fees."  A specialty food store in Australia posted a sign on the front door describing a $5 fee for "just looking."  The sign went on to explain the reason they were forced to this policy.  It was signed "Management."

Some shoe stores are now charging what is called a "fitting fee," about $20.  And as you know, a lot of optometrists offices are charging to measure PD's.  Other businesses are installing kiosks for their online stores and instant information to reviews and other information.

Electronics giant, Best Buy has been affected by this trend for many years.  They have responded in a number of ways and have most recently incorporated two different strategies to combat the trend.

1. Price match guarantee and apps.  Best Buy's price match policy promises to match prices found in any other store or from many online sites and mobile apps push coupons to their shoppers.

2. Create an Experience - Best Buy's two biggest vendors are Samsung and Apple.  Both businesses are creating Boutique spaces within the walls of Best Buy.  This floorspace will have product specific experts, specific branding and other special features.

So what does all this have to do with us?

We have all known for a while that our patients are trying on frames in our practices and asking our experts for advice. Then writing down the details of their favorite frame so they can think about it and asking for their PD measurements, just in case.  We have all been talking about what we are going to do about this.  We have panicked, signed up for online stores and gotten defensive when our patients asked about our prices.

A few practices have had some good success and I have been studying what really works.  And  unfortunately, charging a patient to measure their PD doesn't make a dent.  If you give it some serious insight, you will realize that whether or not you charge your patients to measure a PD will not matter - at all.

To combat optical showrooming, there are at least two effective strategies that we can employ within our practices.  We can either promote the fact that we have packages that compete with the low prices available on the web or we can strive to create a boutique experience that can not be duplicated from an online vendor.

Learn more from these thought leaders

Amir and Carl will both be showcasing their individual perspectives at our Executive Retreat in July.  Not only will both of them share their views and their results, they will also provide plenty of opportunities to confer with them on which strategy is the best fit for you.

Registration is now open so if you are interested in attending, please sign up now.

What will happen next?

It will be interesting to see which strategy Best Buy continues to go with.  I don't think the "price-matching" and the "electronics boutique" strategies will both work in the same environment.  I think eventually they have to decide.

For now, I have to decide if my practice will go with the Carl and Katie Method or the Amir Method. But one thing's for sure - I have to do something.

I would like to know what you think - Please email me a line about how you will continue your efforts to compete with online sales.  I am particularly interested in anyone's efforts to offer online opportunities through your own practice.

Either way - share your thoughts.

Thanks, Mike

Melissa Teaches Me a Lesson About Data

So much data In today's word, the most successful organizations are the ones who best collect, sort, analyze and react to data - right?  The amount of data we can collect about our practices is endless. Percentage booked, income per exam, optical capture rate, and satisfaction survey results. The list can go on and on.

It's all in our patient care too. We have worked hard for years to become better and better at collecting patient care data. And I must say, we are good at it. We use computer programs and images from advanced diagnostic equipment. We can measure microns of nerve fiber thickness, microvolts (or something) of optic nerve signal and catch the tiniest changes in macular thickness. We display all of this data on a big screen to analyze it and expertly explain it all to the patient.

We have instant access to countless pieces of data regarding any patient at any moment. Insurance coverage, co-pays, deductibles and balance. Age of current glasses, time since last exam, replacement schedule of contacts. I know VA's, CD's, EOM's and IOP's. I can record your ICD-9 and my CPT. Clickity, clickity, click.

This data is instantly available for the rest of the team to proficiently continue the process.  (Just like we wanted.)

But.....there's a twist.

This week, for reasons I won't bore you with, we were experiencing problems. Our normal system is for the technicians to enter the room near the end of our exam.  As I transfer care to the tech, they escort the patient to the next area, usually the optical. Right on schedule, the door opens and Melissa walks in. I am disappointed to see it's Melissa and begin wondering what's wrong.

It's not that Melissa isn't capable or even good, she's great. Melissa invented our technician system. She is a part of the original Leadership Team, the founder of our Orientation Program  and still who we all turn to in stressful times. Currently she is working on improving the front of the house. She hasn't been in an exam room in years. So my question was, "Where is everybody?"

A little distracted, I continue with my dissertation about the images on the big screen t.v. Pointing to the screen, I continue to explain how the OCT findings relate to the photos and fields. This new test blah, blah, blah.

Then I hear Melissa, "Mrs. Riggs, do you understand what he is saying?"

I turned and saw instantly what sparked Melissa's question. In my exam chair sat a confused, overwhelmed little old lady who was trying to decide what to name her seeing eye dog.

While in the exam room, Melissa also showed genuine compassion for the patient in more subtle ways too. She moved the big monitor away from the patient's side so she could guide her into the slit lamp. That helped me and the patient.  And when the patient started asking questions about unrelated issues, obviously more relaxed, Melissa took over. She said, "I have a nice video up front that explains that very well." As they disappeared down the hall, I knew the patient was in good hands.

The way we used to be.

Melissa's unexpected entry into the exam room showed me how far we have drifted from who we are striving to be. By having a visit from "The Technician of the Past" I can see that we sometimes let data take too much of a prominent role. And because of that, we can take our eyes off of what matters to the person right in front of us.

Same is true for the staff, the team members that bring that care to those people. As you advance your practice with new technology, new efficiencies and new advances stop to look at it from the patient's view and the staff's view. And schedule a time to look at it again with an open mind.

What was she thinking?

I talked to Melissa about our "experience" and asked her to share what she was thinking while in the room.  Look for that side of the story next week.

Until next time,

Mike

p.s. While writing this, an old song kept popping in my head.  Think you know what it is?  Click here to find out.  Just the part up to "Ba da da da da da da".

Lessons in Integrity

It's Saturday and I am at home for the day with my 13 year old son so the tv automatically goes to ESPN. (We don't want to admit to each other that we may rather be watching something else.)  Many of you know that this weekend the conversations were not about college basketball or NFL playoffs, but about two interviews with high profile sports stars.

lance

Lance Armstrong did an Oprah interview last week where he finally took responsibility (sort of) for his use of performance enhancing drugs while earning all of his Tour de France wins.  And Notre Dame's Manti Te'o reveals that the sentimental story which led to his widespread popularity was a hoax.

Like only ESPN can do, these stories were played and replayed all day.  Like many watching, I kind of feel like a chump because I fell for both of these stories.

teo

I thought it was "neat" that this Notre Dame kid who had been through so much was having all this success in college football.  All season long, every story about Te'o included a comment about the fine character he demonstrated when he stood by his girlfriend while she lost her battle to leukemia.  The fabricated story got this young man a lot of positive attention.

Lance Armstrong has been accused of doping forever.  He always denied it and I always believed him.  An old Nike commercial featured Armstrong saying, "People always ask what I am on.  I am on my bike, busting my a**, six hours a day.  What are you on?" He truly confronted his accusers and I bought it.

Both of these men found themselves caught in a web of lies and they decided to let the lies persist, or made up new lies, rather than making things right.  They were headed down a slippery slope and didn't try to come out of it until they were caught.

The Lesson

Thankfully, when I have a lapse in judgment, it isn't analyzed all day on tv.  Because I, like you, have made my share of stupid mistakes.  I have done things I knew were wrong and I am guilty of trying to cover up some of those mistakes.

There is still a difference in the man I am and the man I want to be.

As people, we all have our own shortcomings, but what about our practices?  Can an entire practice lose it's way too?  You bet.

We each have a Vision of the practice we are working to build but few of us keep that Vision at the forefront of our attention all the time.  So we all occasionally lose sight of what we are trying to become.  We either get so busy with the hectic days or we let ourselves get distracted and all of a sudden the practice is headed in a different direction.

Maybe your patients are in the waiting room too long, maybe the frames you provide to your patients no longer meet the quality you say that you provide.  And maybe you are skipping important parts of the eye exam saying it improves efficiency.

How do you grow?

1. Make a point to really study the Vision that you have created for your practice.  Schedule time to look at what you've written about your goals and dreams.

2. Look at what is most important to you and compare that to what you are really doing.  Find a way to measure it.

3. Recognize your shortcomings.  It is easy to justify why you are performing badly in one area or another.  Here's a big one in my practice: "Our glasses sales are down because we have been doing a lot of medical."  Maybe it's true, but it is still a cop out.

4. Realize that your shortcomings in one area probably means you are cutting corners in other areas too.  Resist the urge to start fixing things until you figure out the source of your problems.

5. Come clean.  While this is difficult to do, the entire team needs to be aware that things are slipping away from what we are trying to become and things will be changing so we can "right the ship."

6. Plan.  I am a strong believer that everyone needs to be involved in coming up with the plan to get things back on track.  Sometimes this is not feasible, but usually you can make it happen to some degree.

7. Prioritize.  Believe me, you can not fix it all at once.

8. Get to work.

Remember that the first step to making things better is to quit making it worse.  

See you soon,

Mike

A new twist on Resolutions

It is on this day that many of us will make New Year's Resolutions with no real intention of keeping them for very long.  We pledge to eat better, watch less TV or get that closet straightened up - finally.  Many of us will make "professional" resolutions like to do more with staff education or to improve accounts receivable.

But this year, I challenge you to do something a little different.  "Resolutions" are known for failing far more than they succeed.  So this year, pick two "goals" and develop a plan to make them happen.

What's the Difference?

A resolution is generally a plan to change your behavior from a bad habit to a good one.  A goal is a desired outcome that you can plan for and start taking steps to make it happen, adjusting along the way if necessary.

Why Two?

I always recommend you make two big goals for the year.  One personal and one professional.  We all have many things we need to accomplish in both our personal and professional lives.  But by breaking them down to two, you have to consider it all and identify what matters most to you right now.  As you put your energy into your biggest priorities, the others either start falling into place or quit mattering as much.

For Me?

Professionally, I expect this is going to be a big year.  We have some big changes in the practice planned and will require some serious attention.  I must get a better handle on the strategy we incorporate in our optical and with our third party billing.  Leadership OD will be continuing to develop new programs and new relationships.

After looking through all I need to accomplish this year, I have decided to pick a primary professional goal for the year.  In 2013, I will develop and bring to market one new interactive tool that will help doctors run their practice better.  Step 1 - get feedback for what is needed.

Personally, I need a great deal of work.  My diet seems to be getting worse and worse.  I am not getting any younger, but still have no idea where I stand with blood pressure or cholesterol.  My health needs maintenance, but also this year, I will have one child turn into a teenager and one teenager turn into a driver.  My primary personal goal for the year is to watch one movie per month as a family - all year long.

The movies will happen. The health stuff - we'll see.

I thank you for a great 2012 and look forward to staying in touch throughout the new year.

Very truly yours,

Mike

Happy Holidays from Leadership OD

We want to take a moment to wish you and your family the happiest holiday season. We all hope that you find time to slow down and enjoy quality time with those you love and celebrate the true meaning of the holidays.  

I wanted to update you on our plans for the upcoming year:

• More Events - The Executive Retreat in Atlanta will be well attended and there seems to be a demand for more.  So, the next CE event is planned for the summer in San Diego and now we are thinking about a Fall event.   We are also talking to other seminar providers about joining forces.  Stay tuned.

• Practice Management Applications - Like the Marketing Calculator and the Practice Personality Test, we will be developing more tools that can be used in the practice to keep you more in tuned with the day to day management of your practice.

• BluePrint style modules - Many practices need the BluePrint but are not quite ready to invest the time or money needed for such an intense program.  So we are working on ways to break it into smaller lessons and programs.

• Online Collaboration - We are planning an online "study group" that we can meet virtually to give each other the support we all need from time to time.

• Marketing Support Services - Effective and consistent marketing is tough.  We plan to make it easier by creating a service that helps manage your online presence while balancing with the traditional marketing methods that you can not neglect.

But first, I am going to see all these end of the year patients, spend all the time I can with my family, laugh all I can and eat whatever I want.  There will be time for all of this next year.

Very truly yours,

Mike

No Excuses

maynard

This weekend, I attended the Georgia School Board Association annual meeting.  (Now, that is a party.)  And I had the opportunity to hear a great motivational speaker, Kyle Maynard. Kyle was born with arms that ended at the elbows and legs near the knees. Yet he has wrestled for one of the best teams in the Southeast, set records in weightlifting, fought in mixed martial arts, and most recently became the first man to crawl on his own to the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa.

Kyle is a very down-to-earth speaker who seems to just tell you what’s on his heart.  He has obviously had some tough obstacles and keeps a good attitude about it.  He seems to be very wise and has a lot to give to everyone he meets, even though he only 26 years old.

The lessons he talked about really resonated with me as he pointed out that many of us tend to focus too much on what’s wrong and too much on our problems.  We all have the inclination to concentrate our efforts and our energies on the reasons that we can’t obtain everything we want.  He encouraged us to look past what’s wrong to what’s possible.

Kyle told the story of how he lost all of his early wrestling matches.  He wanted to quit, but his parents enforced the family rule that if you begin a sport you must finish the season.  So he kept going, kept trying new moves, learning from mistakes and kept losing.  Finally, he won and the obstacle was crossed.  No longer was his disability a barrier to victory and he began winning.

He shared with the audience stories about the people who felt sorry for him and wanted him to quit.  These were people who cared about him, felt sorry for him and wanted to protect him from more failure, to guard hem from more embarrassment.  He talked about how he is now very aware of people always trying to project limitations on others, often with the best of intentions.

He told stories of his struggles and triumphs and how he often felt ready to give up.  He spoke about having a successful motivational speaking career and griping about the aggravation that comes from that same success.  Kyle learned that you have to put energy into taking care of yourself before you help others, before you can lead.

I realized that we consistently make excuses to protect ourselves (and others) from failure.  “It’s too risky, it’s too expensive, it’s not the right time or it won’t work here.”  I wish I had a nickel for every doctor I have heard say, “I could never get my staff to do that.”

Kyle made me see that as a leader, I sometimes try to change others when it is me and my attitude that needs to change first.  I need to grow before I can effectively bring about positive change in others.  Do you ever do that?

Kyle has written a book titled No Excusesthat is on the New York Times Best Seller list.  He has been on Oprah Winfrey and Larry King.  I had the chance to meet him after his presentation and got two signed copies of his book.  

It is time to start thinking about a theme for the upcoming year.  “No Excuses” is sounding pretty good to me right now.

Have a great week,

Mike

I am thankful for my optometry family

I come from a long line of optometrists.  My Uncle Buddy and his dad, my grandfather, practiced together for a while and his daughter and I were classmates at SCO.  I am a fourth generation optometrist and somebody said that there were 22 of us in the family.  I am an optometrist because my grandfather made me feel the joy he felt as he dispensed a pair of glasses and “watched her face light up as she saw things that she had never seen before.” But really we all come from an optometry family.  We all benefit from the chances taken and the battles fought by those who came before.  Whether it is being called “doctor” or treating glaucoma, we owe it all to someone who took a chance on our behalf.  I am thankful for them all.

I am thankful for those who continue to go up against “Goliath” for our profession.  Some are fighting on Capitol Hill both in Washington and on the state levels.  We have people who are working hard with the bureaucracies of insurance companies too.  There are others who continue to work to improve our standing within the medical community.  It is an on-going effort and I know many people who do far more than their fair share and I benefit.  Thank you.

I am thankful that I am finding my way to contribute to the profession and how you are allowing me to do that.  Bureaucracies and politics, it turns out, aren’t my thing.   I like a good fight as much as the next guy, but my passion is helping the dial spinners, one at a time, who are just having a tough time figuring out what to do next.  Those doctors who take such great care of their patients, but may be having trouble making ends meet at the end of the month.  I love watching a young doctor’s face light up and she sees her practice and staff from a perspective that she’s never seen before.  And helping them all figure out how they can give back to our profession.

I am thankful to all the doctors and students who come to me after a presentation and say, “I really liked your message and think it is just what I need at my office because this is my problem…..”  And I particularly like hearing that you tried something I suggested and it actually worked.  Especially when it meant you took a step that was bigger than you thought you could handle.

I am thankful for those who invested time and money in the development of the BluePrint™ when it was just a collection of ideas on a legal pad.  Your trust in me to create a tool to make a difference in practices is a gift I will always cherish.  I am thankful for the developers of the program who convert drawings and abstract notions into something that actually works.   I am thankful to those of you who are ready for whatever is next.

I am thankful for my team at WGEC and the patients that trust us to care for their vision.  I do push and I do want more and I know that I am relentless in making our practice all it can be.  And many times, I throw out an unrealistic challenge and move on to another project before we see it through.  But we always accept the challenge and consistently work to become a better practice.  We sometimes lose our way, but never for long. I am indebted to you for continually striving for the best for our patients.  We are West Georgia Eye Care!

I am thankful for my health and my friends.  I take both for granted far too often and sometimes need a knock in the head to realize how precious both are.

And I am thankful for my family.  My wife, Christy and our two wonderful kids, Caroline and Samuel, are everything to me.  We are a family committed to laughter, togetherness and love for each other.  Too often I let the things that matter the most slip away because of what I have let sneak up on me.  I have made so many mistakes and taken so many chances and every time I am encouraged to jump again.  I know that I have been blessed with a family that loves me no matter what.  Who could ask for more than that?

And I am thankful for you, the readers of this newsletter.   I know how busy you are and it means a lot to me that you take the time to read these messages from me.  I hope you will click here and share with me what you are thankful for today.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Mike Rothschild, Leadership OD

My Hair!

In the movie Oh Brother, Where Art Thou, Ulysses Everett McGill played by George Clooney was always worried about his hair.  He declared himself a "Dapper Dan man" because of his loyalty to a brand of hair grease and he always grumbled "my hair" whenever he roused awake.  In the movie, the point is well made that Everett is grateful for his gift of a thick head of hair and is committed to taking care of this precious gift.

I have had a good run with hair myself.  As a child of the 70's, I grew up in a time when haircuts where seen as "over-rated."  The men all wore polyester leisure suits and had long sideburns and the boys all had hair well below our ears and bangs covering our eyes.  Then there was high school and college in the 80's.  Now it is called a "mullet," but then it was a "lady magnet."

On to the working world and professional school, so the time came to get serious.  I already had business in the front, but I had to finally let go of the party in the back.  My part moved gradually from the center to the side which is more appropriate for grown men.  This is the hair that served me well for the last 20 or so years.

Sure, the hairline is going back a little but I have plenty of time before I have to make another hairstyle change.  I have been passively doing some research.  I notice the Hair Club for Men commercials and have paid attention to the availability of Rogaine and other medical products.

I have asked my friends what they knew about the procedures, the products and cover-up methods.  I watched with some interest as Matt Lauer cut his hair really short and pretended nothing had changed.  I have been using expensive shampoos for years and scrubbing hard because a barber told me a long time ago that it helps scalp blood flow.

But again, I have plenty of time.  Right?

I mean - I have seen lots of pictures of myself over the years and I usually pay attention to my hairline in the photographs.  But it turns out that I am always looking at the camera, usually with a big toothy grin and the hairline looks ok still.

And then there were the videos.

Recently the Mike and Amir video series from Review of Optometric Business was released.  I asked you to watch and you went in record breaking numbers to see the discussions.

mikeandamir

I watched the videos myself.  Like always, I was watching for ways I could improve on communicating the points I am trying to make.  The videos were set up kind of like a friendly debate, where your strategy is to keep talking so the other guy never has a chance.  But you have to breathe sometimes.  And during one of my breaths, Amir starts talking.

So naturally, I turned to him, ready for when he stopped for a breath and there it was!  My forehead was sticking out so far - I thought Amir was in danger of being knocked out of his chair.

The saddest part is that I have all of these people who I call friends and none of them told me that I looked like the biology professor at LaGrange College that we called "Dr. Forehead."

You have got to tell a brother!

When did this happen and why didn't you people tell me how bad it had gotten?  Now this important decision has turned into an urgency.  Where is the phone number for the hair club?  How much does that cost?  Doesn't that Rogaine stuff burn?  What am I going to do?

I can do this.  Let's do this like the OD that I am.

Which is better?

1. Shave it all off like Mr. Clean or Michael Jordan,

or

2. Comb it over, covering the bald area

I remember learning about my dad's baldness as the wind blew his comb-over straight into the air.  I was devastated I could never do that to my kids so the "comb-over" is out.  "1 is better than 2."

How about now? 

3. The "Matt Lauer," really close haircut, but not shiny

or

4. Rogaine

Rogaine requires consistent application from now on and is not guaranteed to re-grow hair.  "I choose 3."

And one more time....

5. Plugs

or

6. Transplant from the back of the head

The most dreaded answer in all of optometry -

"I don't like either of those."

So (1) is cut it all off, like Mr. Clean.  And (3) is cut it so short that you still need shampoo but not a comb, the Matt Lauer.

This has been a big deal to me and I am even having dreams about haircuts.  But now that I have made up my mind how I am going to face this problem and I can move on.  Not deciding is a nagging issue that won't go away.

Making a decision allows you to start moving ahead.  And often, you find a lot of unexpected benefits, like freedom to ride with the window down anytime and head rubs from just about everybody.

So if you are trying to make a decision about an issue that you know you need to address, make the decision and move on.

Right now, you are trying to decide if you are coming to the Executive Retreat in January.  Just decide now to register and start making plans to be there.  You will be enrolled in the BluePrint™ and can start improving your practice right now.

Just do it because you know it will be great and you need it.

See you there,

Mike

p.s. Oh Brother, Where Art Thou is full of great lines and you should watch it if you haven't seen it in a while.  In addition to "My Hair," another quote from the movie I like a lot is "Damn, we're in a tight spot."  If you find yourself in a "tight spot" from time to time, I have an answer for you.  Click here to see how to get out of your "tight spot."

Moving Past "Old School" Conferences

I love practice management conferences.   I have been to a lot "traditional" conferences as both an attendee and as a speaker.  I always leave with some good ideas from the presentations I hear but mostly new ideas come from the conversations with other people in a situation similar to my own.

Do the ideas fit my "Vision?"

My vision is the master plan for why I am in practice in the first place.  What the final picture of my practice looks like.  My vision is where my time, my energy and my passion go.  Sometimes the ideas from the conference are a fit, and sometimes they would work if I put in the time and energy and more often than I like, the idea just stays an idea.

The typical sequence after an "old school" practice management conference is we leave with 100 new ideas that would make our practice better.  Most of them are scribbled on a notepad from the hotel.  We keep hearing new ideas, from different speakers and they all seem to offer similar ideas.  But every once in a while, they contradict each other.  So, who's right?

Then on the flight home, hopefully we sort through the ideas and try to develop a plan.  But Sports Center is on in the airport and I'm really kind of sleepy so the plan waits until I get home.  Then my attention turns to my kids who I haven't seen in a couple of days and they need homework help or I am late for this or that, and next thing you know I am at the office.  So I plan to go in early to sort through my Marriott note pad sheets with all the ideas but there are several "fires" that I need to put out before patients start.  And you know the rest of that story.

It is time for a new type of practice management conference. 

Times are changing and it is time for us to change with them.  For a practice management conference to truly work there has to be an inventive, modern method to tie it all together with what you are already working on.

We created the BluePrint™ about one year ago to give practices an affordable way to get an intense consulting program that involved the entire practice.  Very personal, very individual.  But what's missing from that model is the collaboration with others in your same situation.

So in comes the Executive Retreat which is designed to join the ideas with the vision.   CE from speakers that are talented and proven, who still actively practice and deal with today's issues.  Not only do they live through the same issues you do, you will be able to show them your vision and let them help you incorporate the new ideas into a workable model just for you.  All by the warm comfort of the campfire.

It's about what works for you.

And every practice will be included in the BluePrint™ program and will have a strong handle on the current direction and plan of their practice. 

Truly, Mike

More Smoke Alarms

Earlier in the week, I shared with you our concept of "smoke alarms" that we set up to let us know  when things are not going the way that they should.  My favorite is our dirty sidewalk. Dr. Gina Wesley from Minnesota tells me that the light in her lab is her "dirty sidewalk."  She says, "...so sometimes I come in on Monday morning to see that it's been on since Friday evening. Sigh. Then, I start thinking, what else is being missed?"  

Now I want to share with you a few other "smoke alarms" we have set up.  I admit, the dirty sidewalk thing, as I am sure Gina's lab light, became a "smoke alarm" by accident.  But these we set up on purpose and they serve us well.

Low Daily Deposit (use with caution) This is the most common and arguably the most real "smoke alarm."  We all know the pain of not having enough money in the bank.  To determine how much you need to put in the bank every day, I simply divide my annual budget by 250 (5 days a week, 50 weeks a year).  It's not perfect, but plenty close enough.

But I argue that this "smoke alarm" comes way too late.  If your having cash flow problems now, it was caused by mistakes you made months ago.  This "smoke alarm" is easy to set up but a bad one to depend on.

That was weak, but here are some good ones:

Optical Scorecard Our mission statement clearly states that we provide value in the highest quality products.  We are also relationship based and sometimes find ourselves not recommending the best because we are worried more about the patients' pocketbooks.  We can't help it.

Sometimes, we lose a patient to an online provider or somebody yells at us about how much we charge them for glasses.  To avoid this, we start leaning toward the inexpensive stuff that makes sure we won't have to discuss money.  We know it is wrong, but like you, we do it.

Since we know that about ourselves, we complete an Optical Scorecard every Monday morning.  We count how many "good" frames we sold compared to how many "other" frames we sold.  We either pass or fail.

If we pass, pat on the back.  If we fail, a list needs to be completed where every person in the optical affirms whether she is following our routine in the optical.  Usually, just the conversation corrects the problem.

Take a look at our Optical Scorecard.

Number of Exams Eye Exams are what keeps our office alive.  But at the same time, we are very heavily medical.  We do so much medical testing that sometimes we let our schedule fill up with OCT's and Visual Fields that we turn away eye exams.  When we do that, we also are turning away glasses sales, contact fits and CRT patients.

And sometimes we are just slow.  Is that because we are behind on recall or another part of our marketing strategy?  Or are our no-shows up?  Or what?

Either way, we look at number of exams every week.  If we fail to hit our minimum number of exams in a week, we immediately initiate a spending freeze.  Because if this is not fixed now , we are going to have cash flow problems soon (See Daily Deposits).

If you would like to know how many eye exams we have to do every week, Click Here.

Exam Time When a patient walks into our office for an eye exam, we have 30 minutes to get them back into the optical, examined and happy.  We have determined that this is really important to our overall success.

Many people will say that 10 minutes in the "waiting room" is acceptable or a long wait is ok if the patient understands that they will get the same time and attention as the other patients.  These are all excuses we tend to use when we are failing to do it right.

Our target is 30 minutes.

To make it work, most of our patients need to fill out paperwork online and it needs to be entered into the record BEFORE the patient shows up.  We need to be ready for the patient and not make them wait at all.  We need to be efficient and thorough, address the patients needs, and get them out in the optical in a good mood.

We have a patient timer system so we can spot check ourselves to determine what part of our exams are breaking down.  We are used to being timed.  When a patient shows up, regardless of appointment time, we click the start button on the timer and at certain points in the exam, the time is recorded.  No math, or synchronized watches - just read it off the timer.  Here is a copy of the sheet we use.

How long is a typical patient in your office?  Have you timed it lately?

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To set up some Smoke Alarms for you and your practice, just answer these questions.

• What are the three parts of your practice that must be run well for overall success of your practice?

• What is your standard level of performance in these areas?

• What is the lowest acceptable level of performance?

• What is a quick, easy and reliable way to regularly measure this performance item?

• What are some of the things that may lead to decreasing performance?

Now you have 3 smoke alarms.  

That's all you really need.  Any more than that and alarms are sounding all the time and nobody pays attention to alarms that are always going off.

Until next time, Mike

Who is Sweeping Your Sidewalks?

I am going to share a secret with you.  Sometimes, my practice does not run as well as it should.  But when our performance is slipping, I like to know as soon as I can that we need to start getting our act together.  So we set up some "Smoke Alarms" to let me know ASAP that we may have a problem. One of my favorite smoke alarms is an un-swept sidewalk.

Our office is set up so that the staff uses a sidewalk beside the building, to get into the backdoor.  It is a narrow space between the building and a small retaining wall.  We have trees around our office and the wind blows every leaf and piece of trash from a one mile radius to our sidewalk, where it piles up.  If we let it, the trash piles up and it looks bad.  Luckily, our patients never use this sidewalk, so who cares if it looks bad?

Well, I care.  I don't like walking through trash piles to get to work, so we have added "Sweep the sidewalk" to our daily checklist.  Simple enough.

These facts are all very important in the overall management of my practice.  Because a dirty sidewalk is almost always a sign that something else is wrong.  I am going to spell out three problems that are pointed out by a sidewalk that doesn't get swept:

1 - We are not completing the checklists:

We have checklists for everything.  Our exam checklist has items such as Smile, Introduce self to Patient, Ask them to Follow.  In our business, it is the little things that matter.  In addition to our exam checklist, we have daily checklist, room opening checklist, meeting checklist and closing checklists.  All of the little things are listed because they matter.

Every item on every checklist needs to be completed, big and small. We are typically good about the big things, but sometimes forget the small things, like sweeping the sidewalk.  So if we are not sweeping, what else are we not doing?  Smiling? VA's? Asking for Referrals? Taking the deposit to the bank?

Whenever the sidewalk is not being swept, you can bet there are other things being skipped too.

2 - Not training the staff as completely as we should:

We have three steps to our training: 1) Watch me 2) I watch you and 3) I slowly fade away.

Our biggest training weakness is to walk away from someone before they are fully trained.  We even train proper sweeping of the sidewalk.  Everybody knows how to sweep, so if we are going to be weak on any part of our training, we will be weak on training of sidewalk sweeping.

Since our sidewalk extends into the parking lot a little bit, all new sweepers stop sweeping too early UNLESS someone showed them where to stop sweeping.  When sweepers are stopping short - time to re-visit our training program.

Again - Wouldn't you rather know your training program was getting soft when you are teaching sidewalk sweeping and not dilating pupils?

3- We may be losing our "Teamwork" mindset:

Even with the level of attention we seem to give our sidewalk sweepers, it remains a task that no one fights for.  Never once has anyone said, "Who swept the sidewalk?  It was my turn today! No Fair!" It is actually one of those tasks that everybody hopes someone else will do.  It is on a checklist, but sometimes the day gets away and it hasn't been done.  We had a chance before patients showed up, and while the last patient was in the optical for 30 minutes.  In other words, we have had plenty of opportunities, but have not taken advantage of them. When we are acting like a team, we are communicating well and planning ahead.  We are ready for our patients and we look out for each other.  We take care of the hundreds of tasks that must be accomplished every day - including sweeping the sidewalk.

When we aren't working together as a team, we let the little things sneak up on us and the undesirable tasks get left for someone else to do.  Anytime the end of the day comes and the un-swept sidewalk causes us stress, it is time for us to visit our communication and teamwork.   If we are whistling while we are sweeping, we are acting as one.

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For us, an un-swept sidewalk is called a smoke alarm, because it is annoying but it is telling me that smoke is in the area and there may be trouble.

It is a good one because we all walk on that sidewalk every day and since we keep it clean, we notice when it is not.  Smoke alarms make a loud, obnoxious noise that bothers anyone who hears it.  The noise is a problem, but it is not THE problem.  You probably have a "pet peeve" in your practice.  There is probably a good way to turn it into a Smoke Alarm.  Let me know if you have one that works for you.

In upcoming blogs, I will talk about other smoke alarms and how to set them up and how to make a big deal out of a small problem.

Are you buried? Or is it just me?

I am buried.  The practice is booming.  We are having unprecedented growth and we are gearing up for continued expansion.  New staff is learning what it is like to be on the team, we are using a more balanced marketing strategy that is bringing in new patients from all over the place, and our new systems and processes are finally starting to come together but unveiling new issues.   All good stuff - but hectic.  On top of that, we are bringing out some new advancements for LeadershipOD.  We are planning our first LeadershipOD CE conference, BluePrint is gaining ground as more and more practices are graduating and expanding the program.  We are continuously looking for new ways to expand the services we offer to those wanting to gain a better handle on their practice for a reasonable cost.   All good stuff - but frantic.

Not to mention that school started back in Georgia too.  We have a new 10th grader and 7th grader in our house, and school starts 15 minutes earlier than it did last year.  We are getting back in the groove, but seem to be having an extraordinarily hard time of it this year.   Plus community organizations all seem to want to have a meeting right now.  Three dinner time meetings this week.  

All good stuff - but chaotic.

It may sound a lot like I am whining, because I am.  But I know you feel the same way.  If not at this moment, it is coming - again.  All high achievers, like us, go through periods of time where we are trying to do too many things.  There are only two ways to handle this situation:

• Try to do it all, and do it all poorly

OR

• Decide what matters the most and do that

When I catch myself in these times, I feel like I am literally being buried by an avalanche or a rock slide.  (I need you to use your imagination here.)  I see myself standing at the bottom of a cliff, looking up at boulders, rocks and pebbles all falling on top of me.  Each one is a task, something that I need to catch and take care of.  My hands are already full of things I have already caught, and I am surrounded by the ones I have missed and they are stacking up around me.  (I feel my heart rate going up as I type this.)

Traditionally, I keep looking up, catching and dropping rocks as fast as I can.  I only see the rocks that have already hit me or are about to hit me.  Since I am directly beneath the falling stones, they block what is above them.  I have no choice but to deal with the things that are demanding my attention now.  This is a tough place to be and I am not doing anything well.  Eye exams are rushed, staff is not being coached, plans aren't getting made and (worst of all) kids are not being listened to describing the first days of school.

There is a Better Way

Now, as soon as I feel myself being stretched too thin, I step away from the cliff, get out from under the rocks that are falling.  (Please try to use your imagination again.)  By stepping away, I have changed my perspective of all the $#@*! falling down around me.  Instead of just seeing the problems that are hitting me, I can see better what's coming.  How long will this last?  Anything coming later that needs attention now?  What matters and what doesn't?

Now instead of trying to catch what hits me first, I can make decision about what to catch and handle and what I can let fall.  The boulders I catch can be organized, planned and acted on.

Does this mean some things are going to be left undone?  - Yep.

And we will talk about that soon enough .

Please join me while I take a step back, look at everything that's going on, pull out my Executive Summary from the BluePrint program and decide what I am going to get to work on.  After all, the things I am whining about are the things that I love to do.

I am digging out and I hope you are too,

Mike