A Wake-Up Call: When Business Basics Slip Away

Author

Kevin Ng
January 01, 2025

Hi Friends!

I had a sobering moment last month when my accountants delivered news I hadn't heard since our startup phase: we lost money. While I knew November was tough, the actual numbers caught me off guard.

Just like I discussed last week about taking ownership of problems, I found myself facing dozens of reasons why we lost money - many beyond my control. People were sick, school was in session, patients weren't showing up, and we were transitioning to fee-for-service. It was tempting to blame these external factors.

But here's the hard truth: I had let go of the wheel. I used to pride myself on our ability to navigate through any ebbs and flows in dentistry, believing we didn't need to follow typical revenue trends. Instead, I found myself distracted by the hundreds of different fires that arise in running a dental office, losing focus on what truly matters - revenue-generating tasks.

In a way, I had allowed circumstances to dictate our revenue. I fell into the trap of accepting external factors as excuses rather than challenges to overcome. While all those factors probably contributed to our situation, focusing on them wasn't helping us move forward.

Though I'm still working on a clear pathway out of this hole, I've started implementing small changes in our scheduling to focus purely on increasing our capacity and production. Sometimes it takes a wake-up call to remind us of business basics - revenue generation is the lifeblood of any business.

I'm sharing this because I imagine many of you have faced similar moments in your businesses. Have you ever found yourself drifting away from the basics? How did you course-correct when you realized you'd let your foot off the gas?

Until next time, keep your hands on the wheel!
Kevin Ng

P.S. Sometimes the best way forward is going back to basics. What fundamental aspect of your business might need renewed attention?

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