Excuses Why I Don't Succeed, by Dr. Ogi Ressel

Monday, March 16th 2009

Warm hellos to everyone;
Ok......enough excuses.

Let's get down to the nitty gritty on this; many doctors seem to have every
excuse known to Man why they can't possibly succeed.

 Here are some of my favorites:

One doctor from the West Coast once said this to me; "You just don't
understand, Dr. Ogi. The people in my state have no money for Chiropractic care.
No one wants to spend money on Chiropractic." He said he as he was going bankrupt.
(I was going to fly out there to meet these strange people!). Four weeks
after Module I, this same doctor phoned me on his satellite phone from his boat
on the Pacific Ocean (how cool is that?) and told me that he just bought a plane
and that he doubled his practice.
I asked him if he moved. He replied; "No, why?" I said; "Well, you told me that no
one in your State has money for Chiropractic. So... you must have moved." He laughed
once he realized how silly his excuse was.

How about this one:
"My patients drop out as soon as their insurance is over."
You see that in itself is not the problem. It is only a symptom. Yes. They have
no idea why they are in your office. Do you think it is their fault? As far as they
are concerned that is what Chiropractic is - an insurable "treatment" of something
that is "out." Whatever.
And the fact that their insurance company only pays for their 12 visits must mean
that this is all they should require. Makes total sense to me! Why would they think
otherwise?
You never told them what you really do.
Do you think they reach Chiropractic Enlightenment and Nirvana all on their own steam?
No?
There's a shock!
If that is the case, what is the problem? You see, you just went along with their
perception of Chiropractic and accepted their coverage. Why? Because it was probably
easier to do so. Or - and this one may sting a bit - you don't really know what you do
either! Or why you do it.

Here is another:
"It's just my luck. I just have bad patients." Right. No comment here.

 Or another:
"I can't get my patients to bring in their kids."
Listen.....I mentioned this in a previous article in the WCA Journal;
the percentage of children you see in your practice is directly proportional to the
level of trust your patients have in what you do.
Ouch!!!
The reason the level of trust is not there is that your patients don't really understand
what you do. And you don't really know how to explain it to them at a level, they need
to hear!.
That's it!
Think about it - would you ever take your own children to a doctor you did not trust?
No?
Then why would you expect your patients to do what you wouldn't do? Something
to think about.....

"But, Ogi, I work downtown and see mainly adults who don't have kids."  (I like this one -
almost seems plausible....almost) And, of course, these people don't know anyone
who has children - they probably live on an island and never speak to another
Human Being.
Get real.
Everyone knows people who have children who need help. That is the reality.
The only reason you are not seeing them is because your patients have no idea
why it is so important.
Why would that be?
Well, most likely because you may not understand why it is important yourself or
people do not trust what you do - brutal reality.

How about this excuse:
"I advertise, do Mall screenings, have the biggest yellow page ad, and we can't seem to
keep 'em. I have a bad location."
That's not it. ...And this is the most difficult point to have you see. The reality is
that people will generally not see a doctor with what they consider a serious problem
straight out of your newspaper or yellow page add.
No.
They will most likely be referred.  They will also not see someone who is simply
mediocre, Ok, average, or second-best. No. They only want a doctor who is the very
best at what he does - I talked about this a hundred times!
They want a doctor who is caring, honest, has integrity, and will go out of his way
to help them. They want a doctor who is the absolute best. May I remind you that
you have the same want.

Here is the reality on this: When a patient finds a doctor who they consider to be the
best, would they be worried about his fee? Would they be concerned that his office does
not accept their insurance plan? Would they be concerned that he is on the 25th floor
above Mario's Bakery overlooking the back alley?

The answer to all these questions is a resounding NO! These things pale in
significance. They are not important. But here is the other side of this issue however:
If they are important to a patient, then their perception of you is that you are not the
best. Period.
If they even get the slightest idea that you are not the best then you have all sorts of
problems: location is not convenient, your fees are too high, you are not on their
insurance plan, your hours are not convenient - they want an appointment at 11:00 pm.,
they don't want any examination or x-rays, they only want you to crack that "one over
there"., they don't want wellness care from you, they don't come back for their report,
they decide to go see their MD, they want to pay you per visit until their coverage
ends, etc.

Please let me help you.

You see, success is not negotiable and failure is not excusable.

You need to realize this truth: If you are not succeeding and living your Dream Practice,
you are not helping as many people as you originally wanted to - and can.
...And I really want you to succeed - I want you to be able to help as many kids and their
parents as you can!
...And if you still have not done the Practice Health Mini Check-up on my web site,
what are you waiting for? Go to www.practiceevolution.com and just do it.

Make a commitment to do it now before that procrastination disease hits!

I know that this THOT was sprinkled with some "tough love" but I feel very strongly
about these issues.
There is no reason why you cannot succeed and help tons of people. None. The only
thing that stands in your way is you!
You know what to do.
Warmest wishes,
Dr. Ogi Ressel