At Rosen Coaching, one of our main tenants that we bring to our chiropractic coaching and speaking around the world, is the concept of “Care vs. Scare” communication. Both Dr. Russ Rosen and I work hard to help chiropractors communicate and practice chiropractic in a congruent model with our philosophy. Our vision is to have chiropractors step into their rightful place as the recognized leaders of true healthcare, worldwide!

Recently, while speaking at an EPOC group in Ottawa, and day in and day out in our coaching conversations with our clients, how deep this concept is embedded in the chiropractic profession really sunk in.

With each interaction in your office, you have a choice: To inspire others to action or to try and manipulate them.  This shows up initially during Visit 1 and 2, but will continue on through your daily interactions, and show up strongly again in your re-evaluations and re-reports, and especially how you handle difficult questions!

Inspiring others requires communicating the ‘why‘ behind chiropractic care and why you do it.  It requires a conversation of finding out where they are at, what they think and teaching under the radar to help them see there is another way. It means empowering people, giving them truth and consequences and leading them to choose what is right for them.  It doesn’t mean sugar-coating the truth, or not talking about consequences, but the intention is to inspire action and empower people.

Manipulating others uses scare tactics to coerce and strong arm people to choosing what you think is right for them.  It means a harsh tone and over-dramatizing the negative, making assumptions, painting people into a corner, giving them one good choice.  Yes this can work in the short term, but it’s not a good way to build strong relationships over the long run, in our opinion.  The intention is to manipulate people to do what you want.

The trick is to REALLY find out what is going on with them, and how we might be able to help them.  Then simply find out what they really want and show them how they can have it!

If you are up for it, I’d like to challenge you to see where in your practice and in your community you can inspire others more.  Will you take me up on it?

Tags: care tactics, Care vs. Scare, Chiropractic Coach, Chiropractic Practice Management, Chiropractic Wellness Model, communication, Rosen Chiropractic Coaching, scare tactics

Here is a post from one of my heros, Seth Godin, an author, marketer and thought-leader, on the lifetime value of a customer.  Too often when we’re coaching chiropractors or when chiropractors are considering coaching, marketing or any other ‘cost’ to growing a practice it is seen as just that – a cost vs. an investment.

At year end, have a look at your retention (Patient Visit Average) for the year of 2009.  We consider 60 PVA a bare minimum for a wellness practice.  Then calculate how much a new person is worth to you.  Not because we see people as dollar signs, but so that you can make good decisions on investments to grow your practice.  If a new person is worth on average $2000, don’t you think it’s important to have your systems and communications wired so you don’t blow it when they come in?  How about ROI and marketing decisions?  Without this knowledge, as Seth Godin states below, $50 investment can seem expensive.

Enjoy the read!

Embracing lifetime value

Tags: chiropractic, Chiropractic Coach, chiropractic communication, Chiropractic Consultant, Chiropractic Practice Management, Chiropractic Practice Success, chiropractic systems, Chiropractic Wellness Model, Lifetime Value, PVA, Retention, Rosen Chiropractic Coaching, rosen coaching, Seth Godin

Why haven’t chiropractors marketed chiropractic as well as ShamWOW has marketed a stupid sponge cloth? That thing is a global phenomenon in a microcentury and chiropractic is 1000x more amazing and has been around for 114 years! (If you don’t know what I’m referring to, click here).

One of my favourite leadership gurus is Robin Sharma who’s coined the term, Merchant of WOW.  And I think it’s time chiropractors started acting like Merchants of WOW.  It means obsessive attention to detail in every aspect of your office, it’s decor, the chiropractor’s healthy image, the “red carpet” service to every person that contacts or comes into the office. It means refining your technical skills, growing your understanding of our philosophy and taking your communication skills and procedures to the next level.

Every step of the way we want people to think and to say, “Wow”.

The trouble is, a lot of practice management companies teach chiropractors to make their patients say, “Wow, I had no idea things were so bad”.  And from our perspective, there is no place for Scare Tactics in a TRUE wellness chiropractic practice.  We feel people should say, “Wow, I had no idea chiropractic could help me in so many ways! Wow, I had no idea you could affect my nerve system and my entire body”!  We want to be motivating them by what they want, as opposed to motivating them with fear and what they don’t want. It’s subtle, but has huge ramifications on the relationship long term. Sure you might be short term compliance with fear, but it doesn’t last and the relationship is tainted.

So how do we do that? We teach them under the radar, planting seeds and asking questions to help stretch their consciousness with every interaction in the office: How the CA answers the phone, your First Visit Forms, the look and feel of your office, your communications and procedures of Visit 1, Visit 2, Daily Interactions, Re-Evaluations and Re-Reports, how you handle difficult questions and situations, and how you manage your team.

It’s time that people start saying ChiropracticWOW! The wellness revolution is upon us and it’s time we step up and lead it.  If you want to know more about our chiropractic coaching and how to THRIVE in a TRUE wellness model, let us know. We’re here to help.

Tags: Chiropractic Coach, chiropractic marketing, Chiropractic Practice Management, Chiropractic Wellness Model, communication, LAASR, Leadership, merchant of WOW, Robin Sharma, scare tactics, Success, Wellness Chiropractic, Wellness Chiropractors, wellness revolution

In the book, Change or Die by Alan Deutschman he studies the 3 keys of change, and what works and doesn’t work.

In a recent blog post, Ask vs. Tell, I explored the power of asking questions to shift consciousness, beliefs and therefore behaviours.   This follow-up post is meant to look at the two types of questions we can ask: Scare Questions or Care Questions. What do I mean?

A good portion of our profession and practice management companies uses scare tactics and fear to manipulate people to do what we want.  Our perspective, at Rosen Chiropractic Coaching is that fear and manipulation have no place in a chiropractic wellness model.  We stand for clean communication with compassion.

In Change or Die, Alan Deutschman explores the three “F” words: Force, Facts and Fear and why they don’t work. When the three “F” words become too much, people go into denial as a protective mechanism. They make irrational decisions that could cost them their life (only 10% of heart attack patients changed their lifestyle despite the fear and threats).  In contrast, Dr. Dean Ornish had 75% of heart attack patients change their lifestyle with the three “R” words: Relate, Reframe, Repeat.

So we need to relate to the people we care for. We need to build rapport, bond, connect, offer hope and relieve their fears.  We need to reframe their consciousness and beliefs about health, and ask questions to shift their current paradigm, to plant seeds and teach under the radar. And we need to repeat these questions in our daily interactions, our Touch-Tell-Ask-Teach and find ways for people to become successful every visit, working towards a new goal. We as their doctor, need to lead them, inspire them and empower them.  And we need to create a culture in our office creates a supportive community.

Because making changes in life can be challenging and these new behaviours need to be reinforced with love and support, not fear and commitment. This is exactly what we do at Rosen Coaching to help you have a thriving wellness practice! We address the 3 R’s in the LAASR Mastery process. If you want a communication system based on the 3 R’s then give us a call!

Tags: Alan Deutschman, Ask vs. Tell, care tactics, Change or Die, Chiropractic Coach, Chiropractic Coaching, Chiropractic Practice Management, Chiropractic Wellness Model, communication, Denial, Facts, Fear, Fear Tactics, Force, Leadership, Reframe, Relate, Repeat, scare tactics, Scare vs. Care, True Wellness Model, wellness chiropractic practice management