Episode 17
17: Debunking the Biggest Myth to a Great Dental Practice - Dr. Craig Spodak
Dr. Craig Spodak is here today. He is an amazing dentist with an amazing practice. His website is even incredible. He is a third generation dentist who was very excited about dentistry and had a lot of ideas he wanted to implement when he joined his father’s practice. These ideas didn’t happen until 2006 when he took over his father’s practice.
He now has a 13,000 square foot practice with 9 doctors and 52 team members. It is a multi discipline facility with an on-site lab. We talk about and debunk the biggest myth to having a great dental practice. We also talk about challenges with having a large team and how to empower team members to take ownership. This is a great show and Dr. Craig Spodak shares a lot of wisdom.
You can find Craig here:
Show Notes
[01:56] Craig is an amazing dentist and person. He hangs out with people like Richard Branson and Tony Robbins. His practice and his website are also amazing. Craig has 52 team members. His practice has nine doctors, and it is 13,000 ft.².
[02:13] He is a third-generation dentist. He graduated from Tufts dental school in 1998. He joined his father in Delray Beach right after school.
[02:33] He had all of these ideas that he wanted to do, but the practice was limited in some ways.
[02:45] Craig saw dentistry shifting and wanted to branch out and try all of his cool ideas.
[02:59] In 2006, Craig took over the practice and added specialists and started building a lab.
[03:10] He loves dentistry, and he practices every single day.
[04:01] The huge myth in dentistry. Put the customer first or the customer is always right is a business myth.
[04:09] We are now dealing with people where it's a different generation and it isn't about a work ethic, it's actually about believing in something.
[04:34] Management and business principles comes from the factory where people are just widgets or a machine.
[04:56] People have to believe in what they do. We have a noble cause and that causes to create a better world through the power of compassion. It's not just fixing teeth.
[05:10] If our patients feel love and compassion from us, they will love us back.
[05:17] Nowadays it is whoever adds the most value to the patient. You can't achieve this without putting your teams needs above all else.
[05:29] Your team needs to feel love, supported and trusted.
[06:04] If a patient violates our core values or treats a team member poorly, we will fire them as a patient.
[06:34] Dentistry is a service industry. When our patients interview us, we are also interviewing them.
[07:20] Living in community with each other. We all have to come together to serve a common purpose.
[07:40] We act as adults and all agree to live in community.
[07:59] Coach and be coached. We are open to being coached.
[08:46] I want to grow. The real opportunity is what you don't know about yourself.
[09:43] There is a logical sequence to how a practice develops. At the beginning you have a lot of time. You have a small team, and you are putting your patients first.
[10:32] When your practice grows, you need to define your culture.
[11:02] Figure out why you're doing what you're doing. Craig read many inspirational and business books.
[11:45] These books alone will shift your difference in how you do things. Millennial's will work really hard for you as long as there is a why.
[12:22] Creating a culture of engagement.
[12:34] Millennial employees will check in on social media and gets 100 comments. Engaged employees that believe what you are magic.
[14:25] Management is an outdated concept. You need the construct of what to do or core values.
[14:52] We focus on turning our people's brains on.
[15:27] Now different teams like the admin team will hire their own people. They even hire and fire, so I am creating small self-managed teams.
[16:30] Peer-to-peer will make people tend to raise their own performance.
[17:58] Being charitable is one of our core values. We started our own nonprofit called All-Star Smiles.
[19:23] Craig is a huge believer in accountability. If you are a champion, you own it. You don't have to do it all, but you have to own it until completion.
[20:46] What's the cause? Who's the champion? And what is the timeline?
[21:10] A decision without a date is just a wish. Everything on the by when board has a date.
[22:08] The team has huddles where they have kudos time where they give each other compliments and appreciation. They also have a private Facebook group.
[23:51] Craig was getting complaints from employees by showing up late. He hung out with Richard Branson and realized that Richard Branson wasn't late and didn't make excuses.
[25:44] Making the choice to be around people who are way ahead of you.
[28:24] The process of getting curious, requesting information, and figuring out how to make things right. All communication is either a loving response or a cry for help.
[28:56] The quality of your life is directly related to the quality of your communication.
[29:28] Tony Robbins new book is Unshakable and Craig is in it.
Links and Resources:
Unshakeable: Your Financial Freedom Playbook
