Temptation is roughly defined as anything that “promises” satisfaction.
At first thought you may wonder how Temptation could possibly be associated with your chiropractic office.
However you would be surprised at how often a chiropractic business owner is tempted.
So before you discount this post as not applying to you, remember this… Nobody is above Temptation.
It is how you respond to it that separates the long term successful chiropractors from those that flounder and often fail.
Temptation can include anything from the urge to get the latest laser on the market to ditching chiropractic altogether and moving towards perceived greener pasture services like functional medicine or weight loss.
There is nothing wrong with chiropractors doing functional medicine or weight loss but is it not chiropracTIC. So what about you?
Have you been tempted to get a new $8,000 table that you can’t or can barely afford? Or perhaps you are wanting to pay yourself more money at the sacrifice of maintaining a bank balance that would cover at least 3 months of overhead – which by the way is the minimum you should have in your business account at all times.
When I started my first practice, my business partner and I paid ourselves $1,500 a month for the first couple of years. We were both young and single and 15 years ago you could survive on that. In contrast we sold that exact clinic to a new grad that bought it and immediately started paying himself $9,000 a month AND spent all of his working capital on buying new equipment.
We of course warned him against this very thing but he ignored all advice, dismissed our offer for free consulting as ‘not needed,’ and ended up shutting down a little more than a year later.
His weakness towards Temptation shortened his business Duration.
If you need the equipment write off or have the money to pay yourself more then perhaps your temptation is validated and you can proceed.
If you aren’t sure then perhaps when you are tempted to make a big change you should first assess the health of your business.
Every Temptation is an Invitation to Assess the Health of your Business
Every time you are tempted to make a hire personnel, add new services, buy equipment or make any other change in your practice that will significantly alter current office flow, protocols or cost you a lot of money, you should first spend some time assessing the true need for it.
The easiest method is to simply get a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle.
On the left side of the line write down all the Pros of giving in to the temptation. On the right side write the negative or Cons of making the move.
As you write the pros and cons it will likely become quite evident if what you are tempted to do will deliver the satisfaction you are after.
And keep in mind that temptation doesn’t just have to do with changes or purchases.
You may be tempted to go skiing with a friend rather than do an upcoming weekend marketing event.
If you are overflowing with patients then perhaps the trip makes sense. If you are struggling and wondering how you will pay bills in the coming months, then it might be a good idea to resist the temptation and instead spend your time building your business.
Whether you recognize it or not, temptation is all around in your work environment just as it is in your personal life. The better you are at recognizing it and analyzing its validity before giving in, the sooner you will be making better decisions that will impact the health of your chiropractic office.
