5 Tips to Building a Championship Team

We routinely present, speak and coach on the “Key Areas of Business”. One area often over-looked or taken for granted is Leadership. Today’s message is intended to inspire and motivate you to look at your current staff (which we prefer to call TEAM) and step up to an all new level of leadership.

From our experience in opening and owning dozens of chiropractic, medical and weight loss clinics over the last several years, we have come to realize that it is all about the groundwork you lay and accountability you hold when it comes to building a championship team. 

We have, also, come to realize this: WITHOUT a championship team, you (as a doctor or clinic owner) will never likely reach your ideal or optimal level of success. You may never reach your FULL potential. Oh, you can have a group of people who show up to “work” and “punch the clock” with no real concern of the results your business attains – or the people you serve. But those doctors and clinic owners who LEAD A TEAM and develop a connected group of engaged, caring and fired up people are the ones who maximize their service, results, impact and income.

That does NOT happen by accident. When you see a clinic in which it has occurred, it is not that the doctor/owner got “lucky” and found the right helpers. Nope. They do some vital things very intentionally. Like the 5 things below. Here are a handful of pointers to put into action immediately!

1. BE-come a better YOU first. Lead by example. Consider your own standards and habits. Think about your diet, exercise and attitude. Be optimistic. Check your appearance. Check your ego. In reality you are a PART of the TEAM. Yes, you are vital. And you are probably the quarterback or “ring leader” but you must be a team player first to be a GREAT leader. Be personally accountable. Ask yourself: Do you keep up your own responsibilities? Does your team see this in you? How do you act when no one sees you? A mentor once taught us “Your business (practice) cannot out grow its leader”. Work on you. The better you become, the better those around you tend to be.
2. Know yourself and hire accordingly. Personality profiling and tools like Enneagrams are invaluable to fill your positions appropriately and build a great team. Be aware of your own strengths and weaknesses. We all have some of both! Hire “up” to accommodate your weaknesses. Then be intentional about complimenting your unique personality type. For example, if you are a “raging bull” driver personality who starts a lot of things but drops the ball when it comes to follow up and follow through, then you better make sure that you have a detail-oriented individual in a position to clean up your mess. Know you and have a clear vision of what you want to build. Then surround yourself with people who can become that championship team.
3. Put incredible S.Y.S.T.E.M.S. in place. One of the best things the leader of a business can do is develop and work from an Operations Manual. Have this in place for every position and each process in the office … including YOU. Along with defining each role and the preferred or optimal way that role is to be done, define with clarity what your role is and how it is to be done. We always say that S.Y.S.T.E.M.S. stands for “Saving You Stress, Time, Energy and Money.” There is so much truth to this. If you do not have defined systems, an Operations Manual and clarity for each person and process please know that your team and even your patients sense it. An inconsistent, unorganized and unpredictable way of doing things rarely results in a championship team.
4. T.T.H.A. This stands for Train them. Trust them. And hold them accountable! Train all the time, not just every now and then. Make training a part of your culture. Have a recurring training schedule planned and presented to your team. This should include things like daily huddles, weekly training (done at a predictable and set aside time), team meetings and perhaps a quarterly rotation of key topics to be consistently reviewed and refreshed. This enables you to effectively evaluate your team, adapt systems as need and achieve your desired outcomes. It also allows you to be doing YOUR role when it’s “Go Time” – meaning when it’s time to be seeing and serving patients. At that time, you must let the team do THEIR thing … and you do yours. You should not be focused on your team at that point. Rather, be focus on your patients. And stop harassing your team doctor. You don’t belong at the front desk. Show trust and confidence. If you have trained them then let your team do their thing. Of course, have measures and accountability systems in place to be assured that the job was in fact done appropriately.
5. Make yourself replaceable. Not that you HAVE to leave! Lol! But if/when you want to then your business/practice ought to be able to carry on just fine without you – if you have systems in place and have done the TTHA thing! If you cannot replace yourself in your office then you, in fact, have a PERSON dependent practice; not a SYSTMES driven business. Having a clinic that you can leave for days, weeks, or even months without the wheels falling off is the most gratifying experience a practice owner can experience. That requires a true championship team. Make the possibility or option of doing this a reality by keeping in mind the things above!

If this seems like A LOT to figure out and take on, you’re right. It is! It’s the very reason that all doctors and health facilities are not successful. It explains why so many never reach the level of success they dreamed of when they started school or opened for business. It’s also the reason many doctors/owners should consider becoming a part of a successful and growing community of providers who have the proven systems, ongoing training, built in accountability, coaching, and culture to equip, empower and energize them and their team.

Leadership requires investment and development. Activate DNA Weight Loss is about more than just helping doctors and clinics implement weight loss. We are ALL about developing leaders … and championship teams. If you’re not a part of our family, maybe it’s time you connect with us and step up to that next level of leading. Doing that is SIMPLE. Just Click or Call. Learn more. Share your goals and needs. See if our approach resonates. No catch. No obligation. Talk soon!