An Irreplaceable Dental Assistant

Are you looking for job security?
I bet you are.

When you are irreplaceable, it means that you will never have to look for a job again.

New opportunities will find you.
Think about it. 

Are there people who you've worked with who are just so well-rounded that they seem to manage just about any situation?

They communicate well with patients, they are good team players, they have a good working relationship with the boss and the team, and they are excellent at what they do.

I guarantee you that this didn't happen overnight.

It took a lot of work; it didn't happen by happenstance.

That person made a decision to do things a certain way, and you're looking on and admiring the end product. 

When we see someone we admire, it’s usually after years of investing in developing themselves - developing their people skills, gaining technical knowledge, becoming efficient, honing communication skills, and understanding how to navigate their way around different personalities and the team.

Quite frankly, becoming a leader in that person's own right. And that's what you need to become a leader in your own right. 

Did you know that the hardest person to lead is yourself?

I can tell you, as a dentist, I depend on my team to guide me through the day.

We know what our mission is and what our core values are, and they guide us through the day.

So, I would say that the dental assistant is the glue. 

Each dental assistant is a connector; the assistant is who soothes and reassures the patients. 

They translate. What do I mean by translate? Many times, I'll do my best to explain, and at the end, the patient shakes his or her head and says, “Yeah, yes, doctor.”

Then, they turn to the assistant after I have left the room and say, "What does she say, honey? I didn't understand a word she said." But that's okay. My dental assistants often have to explain and re-explain so that the patients understand. 

In addition to that, they have to be properly prepared so that I can provide quality care in a clean environment with properly sterilized instruments.

The dental assistant also coordinates with the business's system to ensure that the people at the front desk are aware of the treatment that was provided and future treatment.

Honestly, that's just scratching the surface of all the things that a dental assistant does.

Let me tell you,
no dentist in their right mind
ever fires
an
irreplaceable
dental
assistant.

Irreplaceable assistants are often relied on more and are eventually given more responsibility and are elevated to leadership positions.

You decide how high you climb because the sky is your limit.
What am I going to do for you through my podcast? I am going to provide you with the support to ensure that you have the encouragement, the strategies, the guidelines, and the support to SOAR.

So here's my question:
Are you ready? Well, if so, let's go! 

What is one of the most popular questions that children are asked?

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” or “What do you want to do?”

But today, I'm not asking you, what do you want to do? I'm going to ask you, what kind of dental assistant do you want to be?

Take a moment and write down three or four descriptive terms. 

I'm giving you some examples:
reliable, efficient, likable, and thorough.

Now, think of your four.

Let's face it, we're all different. We all have different personalities, different backgrounds, and different life stories. We know our strengths and weaknesses.

Each one of us is going to have a different set of words. So let's say you tend to run late. One of your words may be to be punctual. If you're a bit of a scatterbrain, then being more organized may be one of your goals.

Take time to think about what it is about you that you want to improve on next.
Let's think of a strategy.

So let's say you're perpetually late.

You may want to set your watch or your clock 15 minutes faster; you may decide to get up an hour earlier.

You could leave the house with enough time that even if you encounter traffic, you'll still be on time. That could mean leaving 15 minutes earlier or half an hour earlier; only you can decide.

If traffic builds up after a certain time, you may elect to leave your home early, get to work on time, and then go to the lunchroom and have your breakfast, rather than risk running late as the traffic builds up.

These are very specific things, and this is how you have to look at each one of your words. 

Specifically, what are some things that you know that IF you do those things, may help you to become what those words are?

Someone who wants to be thorough may keep a small pocket notebook to record anything new, or the order of things, or things that need to be in a certain place, anything that will allow you to record so later on, you can go back to it if you can't remember. See what other people are doing.

You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Google it. I love the University of Google.

There are so many things that you can learn from other people. It is okay to borrow somebody's techniques or look at their ideas; that's fine.

Then, after you've done that, give yourself a timeframe. How long are you going to take to go from where you are now to where you want to be with each one of those words? 

For instance, how long do you think you want to give yourself to get into a routine so that you are always punctual? Be realistic with it. I mean, don't say two days if you know that it really will take you three to four weeks, or even three to four months, to get into a routine that works for you.

Whatever it is, give yourself a timeframe. Remember, we're not looking for perfection, but you want to get closer to doing those things well because you know that's going to make you feel so much better about yourself. And it's going to make your teammates feel better about having you on the team.

Then look back and see what you've accomplished. Measure it. Measure the process. Perhaps you used to be late three or four mornings a week, and now you're never late, or maybe you're late maybe once in a blue moon.

What we've gone through is the process of goal setting. Goals are these things that we want to accomplish. But a goal is not a goal until you've written it down. 

Your goals should be SMART.

A goal should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based.

• What specifically do you want to do?
• How are you going to measure it?
• Is it realistic? 
• Is it attainable? If your goals are far beyond your reach, you're going to get frustrated if you can't attain them.
• Is it relevant to what you're doing?
• And we said to make it time-based, which means you're giving yourself a specific time in which to get it.

Personal goal setting is one of the best ways to improve.

Let me let you in on a secret.

The hardest person to lead is you.

When something doesn't go well, it’s easy to blame it on someone or something.

But if you can assess it and determine what could have been done differently by you, the one who you control, and you think about how you're going to adjust the next time around, you'll be better prepared, and you’ll feel so much better about yourself, because, despite whatever, you were able to push through, and achieve or maintain whatever it is.

And you know what?

As we set these personal goals, and achieve them, we set new ones.

And as you set a new set of goals, you push through, and little by little, you look back.

Maybe you're that person who you admired in somebody else some time ago.

As you move on your journey to becoming that person that everybody wants on their team, to become that person that your boss can rely on, to become that person who feels good about what she does in the workplace, her character, not her reputation.

Because your reputation is what other people see that you want them to see.

Your character is who you are
when people are around
or they're not around.

Remember, the only person you can control is you.

Start by setting some personal goals. Make them smart. And as you achieve one set, you challenge yourself to another set.

Here is a word of encouragement for you as you lead the most difficult person to lead--yourself. It comes from the Bible. It's from the book of Philippians 4:13. And it says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

Girl, you're a rock star. Guy, you are a rock star.

There is nothing you can't achieve.

Rock on my dental assistants! Becoming irreplaceable doesn't happen overnight.

It happens one goal at a time. So let's set some goals.

SMART goals:

>> Specific

>> Attainable

>> Measurable

>> Relevant

>> Time-based.

We'll meet again soon because we're better together. 

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 Would you like to LISTEN to this article?

This is Episode 1 of my Irreplaceable Dental Assistant podcast.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

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