Spring is here, which means longer days, warmer temperatures, and a feeling of starting fresh. It also means it is time for some spring cleaning. You know how to do that in the workplace, but what about in your chiropractic practice? Here are our tips to clean up some time-wasting habits this spring.
1. Attending meetings that have no agenda
When you’re running your own chiropractic practice, your time is limited. When you make time to attend meetings, be sure that they have an agenda. Agendas increase the likelihood that the meeting will run efficiently, and it can also help you determine whether or not you need to even attend the meeting. Agendas also help your team members to be fully prepared.
As you head into spring, consider making an agenda a requirement for meetings. You can also ask that notes be distributed within 24 hours to ensure those that couldn’t attend are up to date. Follow-up items and next steps will also help set the next meeting’s agenda.
2. Reading emails as soon as they hit your inbox
As your practice grows and expands, you’ll find that the amount of emails you receive grow too. If you try to answer every single email as soon as it appears in your inbox, you’ll find you have a hard time completing tasks. Think about it: how can you accomplish any goals if you are constantly pausing what you are working on to respond to an email?
You can accomplish a better balance by setting aside specific times to respond to emails and even phone calls. Whether that is the last five minutes of every hour or longer blocks of time in the morning and afternoon, carve out time that works best for your schedule.
3. Monitoring every step in a project
When you first started your practice, you my have felt it was a necessary part of your business to closely guide your staff through each project. While doing so allows you complete control over the task, it is also incredibly time consuming. As you move into spring, consider starting fresh and removing yourself from the approval process of minor projects. Trust that you’ve built up a strong team capable of supporting your mission, then step in for the final sign-off. This will allow you to focus on areas where you are needed, and will also empower your staff.
4. Having an open door policy…all the time
It’s important to monitor your time for more things than responding to emails and knowing which meetings to attend. You should try to limit as many distractions as possible, including an open door policy. Being available to your team whenever they need you can foster strong company culture and provide communication tools, but there may be tasks that required your undivided attention.
When these tasks arise, communicate to your team—in advance—when you will be available, close your door, and get to work. This can simply mean noting your open availability on a shared calendar or sending out a memo to the practice.
5. Continuing to complete administrative duties
You are well into operating your own practice and gone are the days of administrative duties being your responsibility. Scheduling, paying bills, and payroll are not the best way to spend your time.
It is important to remember that you can depend on the team members you hired; that is why your brought them on, after all. Your payroll specialist has experience and skills that you may not, and setting them up for success will also position your practice for success.
Spring into a successful 2019 by removing inefficient and ineffective habits from your day-to-day routine to maximize your schedule. For more tips on how to best run your practice, click here to request a free coaching call.