The MOO factor is about the “margin of opportunity” that exists between where you are today and where you can be.
The MOO factor is about the “margin of opportunity” that exists between where you are today and where you can be.It’s about the time you have left to accomplish your goals and fulfill your dreams. It’s your chance to win.
You have short-term MOO of one day, one week, and one month, to longer-term MOO of months, years and a legacy. This is your time to be your best and maximize your potential. This period of time and what you accomplish in it is all about you and how you show up every day. Your belief system, certainty, clarity of vision, character, goals and relentless action will determine your success during your MOO journey.
5 principles to compete and win in the game of life
Be a dreamer. It’s your life and you get to write your dreams and live them. You must see it before you can be it. Where do you see yourself in one year, five years, 20 years? You must be crystal clear about what you want, when you want it, and how you are going to get it.
Put a plan in place and get up each day with focus and action to make it become reality. Dreams do require you to believe in yourself and your potential.
One of the greatest gifts we have in chiropractic is the ability to help our patients be healthy enough to achieve their goals and dreams.
Be disciplined. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power. The only discipline that lasts is self-discipline. Self-discipline requires you to hold yourself to a high standard.
Discipline is without a doubt the most important character trait it takes to develop a successful practice. Many times it is not that you do not know what to do as much as it is getting into the habit of doing it. Each day you must have the discipline to have a plan and work on it.
Being disciplined allows you to have consistency in your life and practice. Practice growth requires a better you and consistent systems and procedures. With discipline, you can maximize your MOO.
Take personal responsibility. Be responsible for your life and practice. Where you are in your life and practice is a reflection of what you have been seeking. If you are unhappy with what you see, then it’s time to work on changing you.
I recall a doctor years ago who desperately needed help. He had been in practice about 10 years and was only collecting $4,000 a month, but his overhead was $13,000. He was disgruntled and ready to give up his practice. He had found a part-time job driving a limousine on nights and weekends. In talking with him, he was blaming everything but himself.
The first step was to help him take full personal responsibility for where his life and career had been going. It was after he looked in the mirror and changed what he saw that he changed his life and career. He took responsibility for his failing practice and became more disciplined about what he should have been doing all along. Today he has an associate and is collecting around $40,000 to $50,000 a month.
Good leadership is about taking responsibility for where you are and not making excuses. When you change, your world changes.
Walk your talk. Be a person of great character. Your ability to develop a reputation as a person of integrity and honor is the highest achievement of a successful life. Walking your talk is about sticking to your values and maintaining the best qualities.
The only competition you ever have is with yourself. Do you get adjusted? Do you exercise regularly? Do you perform good examinations? Is well care important to you? Patients will always measure up to their doctor’s expectations. What are your expectations? Pain care? Feeling better care? Wellness care?
Build relationships. Every day you are in the relationship-building business. But you must first have a good relationship with yourself before you can be shared with others. How do you feel about you? What kind of thoughts do you have about yourself? Are you proud, confident and grateful for who you are?
Building yourself up will allow you to build up others. Make it your business to meet and greet everyone at events, parties and other social functions. Handing out your business card to everyone you meet can return huge dividends: “Here’s my card. Everyone needs to know at least one chiropractor; you never know when you will need one.”
These five principles are necessary for you to show up in your practice and community. How well you master these principles will have an enormous impact on your ability to have successful practice growth.
Dennis Schone, DC, is the CEO and president of HealthFirst Chiropractic. He is a consultant with more than 35 years of experience in private practice, and is the author of The M.O.O. Factor. He can be contacted at bonedr@copper.net or through livehealthfirst.com.
