Imagine you have a patient in your exam room. They seem healthy enough. They don’t have any complaints and appear happy. Their body weight looks fine, and the cursory physical exam is normal. You think everything is hunky-dory. Then you are handed a couple of sheets of paper with the results of the laboratory blood work. Now, if you’re a medical student, you glance over the paperwork hoping the report has normal values listed to help guide you. Better yet, the report will flag anything abnormal.

The reports from this lab don’t do that. All you get is a number. What do you do? Do you shrug your shoulders and determine the patient is fine and send them on their way? Alternatively, do you hit the pause button, research and learn how to use the lab results, so you make the best decision for the patient?

A competent physician would take the time to learn how to interpret the lab values and incorporate the data with other findings. You want to solve the real problems...

I’ve witnessed some leaders, young and old, new and experienced, struggle with making critical decisions. They tend to get bogged down with data and fear. I believe fear contributes to a leader’s inability to reach their potential as an effective decision-maker. Fear is normal when we lead and make decisions. If you have difficulty making decisions, here are some tips to help you make decisions and overcome any fear.

1. Ask “Am I comparing the right things? Opportunity costs are everywhere as we make decisions. When we say “yes” to something, we are saying “no” to other options. However, when we are comparing our opportunity costs, make sure you are comparing the right things. The other day I was discussing with a friend a decision he was facing. He was faced with three different options he could choose from in dealing with his issue. As we began to examine the opportunity, I asked, “Are these all three of these opportunities...

Good leaders ask good questions. They do this so they can gain understanding and help those they lead understand as well. Change managers do the same and are always asking questions that will help them implement change effectively. Here are a few questions I ask as I approach any process improvement plan.

1. Does this process support the mission and purpose of the organization? This question first assumes you know and understand the mission and purpose of the organization. That’s the what and the why of the organization. It’s what you do and why you do it. Once you have firmly established the mission and purpose, you can then evaluate the process in relation to the what and why of the company. Does this process help move the company closer to achieving its mission and purpose? Is it required? How strongly does it support the mission and purpose? If the answer is no, why are you using the process in question?
2. Does this process add value? Does this process make a meaningful...

The other day I was helping my daughter prepare for her volleyball team tryouts. She was getting frustrated as she was comparing herself to some of the other girls who were also trying out for the team. She kept focusing on “the numbers.” How many times she could serve a ball properly. How many times she could bump the ball. The problem was she wasn’t hitting her desired numbers. I asked, “What are you focusing on?” “I’m trying to get at least this number on this drill.” Then I asked a question, “What do you think will happen if you just focus on making the best hit you can?” She said she didn’t know and I suggested she try that first. Soon after focusing on hitting each ball the best she could, her performance on the drill dramatically improved. She even exceeded her own expectations. This encounter reminded me of what we face in our practices and business.

Monitor What’s Important

When we set out to perform...

A few days ago, I had a conversation with my son. He did not want to participate in a particular event. Reading between the lines, I knew he was afraid of what the other kids at the event would think of him. He was nervous he would look foolish. He was scared he would fail. He was letting his fear of what others think of him hold him back. I’ve seen many physician leaders do this very same thing. A strong leader recognizes their fears and knows how to overcome them.

Watch Your Self-talk

One of the first things I find myself doing when I’m anxious about a particular situation is to ask “What am I thinking? What am I feeling?” Sometimes I have to ask this question out loud. I do get some odd looks sometimes, but saying it out loud helps snap me into focus. I can remember the first time I when on a solo flight. It was only me at the controls, the only person in the plane. I was nervous and remember thinking I might crash and die. Then I began to focus on other...

Recently, I was having a conversation with a friend about some very controversial issues facing our business. At the end of our of coffee, he said he started the conversation planning on dismissing everything I was about to say. He assumed he knew what I was going to say and the reasons behind my statements. He was asking me for advice, but rather than preparing to listen; he was spending time making his rebuttal and prove his point. I could tell his defenses were up and it would be fruitless to argue with him point by point. Instead, I helped him see the situation differently by asking questions. He said he caught himself holding an assumption about me and the situation when I asked a specific question he hadn’t expect. It jarred him, woke him up if you will.

Too often in life, in leadership, and in negotiations, we assume we have all the knowledge and information available or needed. Many times we don’t listen to the other side or anyone else because we’ve...

I’ve been watching physician leaders over the years and have seen some excellent leaders and some weak ones. I think there is one trait that separates these two camps - humility.

Humility Isn’t Being Weak

Webster’s defines humility as “freedom from pride or arrogance.” It comes from the word humble which means being free of haughtiness. Throughout history, when we examine the lives of good leaders there is a common problem which contributes to their fall. It is pride that gets many leaders into trouble. They display an attitude of superiority and contempt for people they perceived to be inferior to them.

Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself. Humility is knowing your strengths and weaknesses. It’s understanding that you don’t have all the answers and may need to rely on others to provide you that information. Humility isn’t being weak; it’s having the right mindset to lead.

Humility is a Mindset that Sets the Direction...

This last summer my family and I went to a water park while on vacation. It was fun and relaxing. One of their favorite rides was the lazy river. When I asked my daughter why it was her favorite, she replied, “Because I can just drift along. It doesn’t take any effort at all.”

In the lazy river, the water doesn’t move that fast. You can easily walk against it if you want, but it's strong enough to push you past you might want to go such as an exit. The point of the ride is to drift along and let the current take you where it will. Over time, I’ve noticed that some leaders tend to drift in their duties. They might be rushed, trying to juggle clinical and administrative duties and set the administrative functions on the proverbial back burner. To be honest, I’ve probably drifted myself at one time or another. Drifting in your leadership is dangerous because you don’t know where you’ll end up and that might be an unwelcome surprise, and...

The other day I flew from my hometown to Denver. I was taking my daughter out there to visit her friends. There were a few isolated thunderstorms around, but we thought they would be gone by the time we arrived in the area. At least that’s what the experts were telling us. Using the data provided by meteorologists, we took off and headed to Denver. As we approached Denver, it became quite clear the storms were still present. The experts’ predictions didn’t come true. We landed at a small airport and waited. Eventually, the storms passed, and we made it to Denver. We accomplished our mission, going to Denver, for a specific purpose, my daughter seeing old friends.

Managing change is very similar to flying a small plane. You collect the opinions of experts, plan your trip and head out. You’ll have bumps along the way and may even face severe thunderstorms at times. Things might be delayed, and your trip doesn’t go as planned, but if you stay focused you...

Everyone makes mistakes, even leaders. I’ve made more mistakes than I want to admit as a leader. Mistakes can be costly, but nothing is more expensive than not learning from your mistakes. Do not waste the tuition costs of your mistakes.

I've seen people from all walks of life fail to maximize the tuition their mistakes cost them. Mistakes, missteps, and errors provide us an opportunity to learn. If we fail to realize the teaching point, we will be worse off because we will likely make the same mistake again.

How to Learn From Your Mistakes

Learning from your mistakes isn't always easy and straightforward. Sometimes it can be straightforward, yet other times, the water is a bit murky. The best way to analyze the learning experience is to ask yourself some questions. Here are a few questions that can help you begin your trek down the learning path.

• What happened?

  Ask yourself what really happened? Do you understand the gravity of the situation? Write down on a piece of paper...