RICHARD DRAKE , DDS
IS AVOIDING DISCOMFORT KEEPING YOU FROM DSM SUCCESS ?
M y middle son , Garrett , spent a semester abroad in Spain during his undergraduate education . I recall an email I got from him , “ Dad , you always said we should live part of our lives out of our comfort zone . Well , right now my comfort zone is 8 ’ 2 ” by 9 ’ 3 ”. He knew no one ; he never heard a word of English ; the food was different ; the culture was different ; the people were different . “ Dad , these people don ’ t eat dinner until 11:00 at night !” Fast forward 4 months . Garrett was now a seasoned world traveler capable of communicating in a different language and fitting in .
Ask yourself , “ When was the last time I was out of my comfort zone ?” Human nature steers us away from discomfort , from pain , from unfamiliarity , from anything that takes us out of our comfort zone . You ’ re probably asking yourself , “ What does this have to do with success in dental sleep ?” I ’ m so glad you asked !
Ask your staff , “ Do I talk too much ?” Be sure to pre-qualify your question with “ I promise you won ’ t be fired with your answer .”
Talking too much makes you feel good . But what you don ’ t realize is that the patient sees it as lack of confidence and possibly even lack of competence .
“ Jim , you are at severe risk for having sleep apnea .” Pause . Silence . Wait …. “ Wow , Doc . What do I do about that ?”
“ Would you prefer to do a home sleep test or an in lab test ?” Pause . Yes . Here ’ s the painful part for you . Silence . RESIST the urge to speak !
“ I ’ m quite sure a home sleep test would be better than going to a lab .”
“ Jennifer will help you get that sleep test set up . I ’ ll see you in about a month to go over the results .”
Even if you talk slooooowly , this entire exchange can be done in UNDER a minute !
Delegate to your staff how to fill in the holes for the other questions the patient may ask . How much does it cost ? Why am I at risk ? But you get out and don ’ t talk anymore .
So when you do it the Dr . Drake way :
1 . The patient has direction and purpose
2 . Your hygienist is ecstatic that
you didn ’ t talk too much and put her behind schedule
3 . You have more time to do something else that is productive
Everybody wins . No one is confused . No one is unhappy . No one is behind schedule . And you are seen as a confident , competent doctor who really knows her stuff .
IN SUMMARY : Get out of your comfort zone and learn to be comfortable with silence .
JOIN ME AT THE NADSM SYMPOSIUM !
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RICHARD DRAKE , DDS
Dr . Richard Drake has been exclusively treating snoring and apnea for 18 years . He Co-Founded Dental Sleep Solutions and DS3 and has a state of the art sleep practice
in San Antonio , TX .