In part two of this four-part series, Kirk Behrendt brings back Carlie Einarson, one of ACT’s amazing coaches, with the next building blocks to sharpen your vision: defining your core purpose. She explains why crafting a strong core purpose is important, the steps to do it, and how it will improve your practice. To learn the next steps for a better practice and a better life, listen to Episode 807 of The Best Practices Show!
Learn More About Carlie:
Learn More About ACT Dental:
More Helpful Links for a Better Practice & a Better Life:
Episode Resources:
Main Takeaways:
Quotes:
“There are several reasons why [defining your core purpose is] really important. One being it drives consistency in your decision-making of your practice. It also fosters team motivation and retention and strengthens patients’ trust. So, it comes back to all three areas of who you are as a business owner: your ownership and your decision-making, your retention — your team members and your patients — and what we're there to do with patients. So, it's huge.” (1:20—1:49) -Carlie
“Having a clearly defined purpose does bring the right patients, and it communicates that to the patient so that they know what kind of care they're getting. It builds that trust . . . Again, it goes back to the chief repeating officer or coming back to that consistency. If you have a business that does something really well and you go there, and you're spending your money to go there, you're spending your time to go there, you know what you're getting in return and that builds trust. It builds confidence in that relationship, versus if you do too many things, if you're not consistent with it, you go and you don't know the outcome as that patient or that customer, it doesn't build that trust. So, having that consistency builds the patient's trust each and every time they come in with you. It's not just about profit or results or anything like that. It's about the patient care and giving and providing that same thing and having everyone know it, whether it's you, team, patients — all three areas of the triangle.” (6:08—7:13) -Carlie
“It comes back to, why do we exist? That's the foundational layer. Every time I get a new coaching client and I start working with a new doctor, I end up asking them, ‘How did you get into dentistry?’ I then say, ‘Why did you get into dentistry? What do you like about dentistry? What makes you passionate? What is the reason why this practice exists?’ That really gets the whole conversation going. And you keep having to ask, why? What? Who? Why, again, and then it comes back around to your core purpose and that consistency.” (8:49—9:23) -Carlie
“A mission, in my personal professional opinion, is something that is closer to a goal, and it's something that can change over time. So, ultimately, your business direction might change, and your wants might change, and what you're looking for might change throughout your career. That mission is a little bit different. It's kind of like mission accomplished. It's kind of like a goal. I would say that a core purpose always remains constant. It is truly the why. Why are you in dentistry? Why are you here? Why are you helping these people? What is the why? And it doesn't change.” (11:37—12:14) -Carlie
“[Simon Sinek] said people don't buy what you do. They buy why you do it. I had to listen to that a couple times. I'm like, oh my gosh, that's a big thought. They don't buy your stuff. They don't buy your fees. They don't buy how beautiful it is. They buy the why of what you do first.” (13:19—13:39) -Kirk
“People that you surround yourself with normally don't remember what you did. They remember how you made them feel. And it's very similar to that. That why comes to that feeling. If you guys have the same why and the same purpose, the same values, it brings in team members, patients — everybody. It's that timeless purpose that's really integrated in yourself and your organization. It's really that foundation that shouldn't change.” (13:43—14:10) -Carlie
“[A strong core purpose] improves the decision-making process, it improves the alignment, and it improves the long-term goals. You need to share it with everybody and have it be very clear so that if you are going in the wrong direction, like you said you've done before, you have team members or a partner or somebody else saying, ‘Hey — no, no, no. Come back over here. That doesn't align with our vision and our purpose in the business.’ So, knowing what those are and having them at the forefront of your mind makes it so much easier.” (15:58—16:26) -Carlie
“When you go against your core purpose, you're going to feel it. It's going to be a deep, subjective pain that you can't really diagnose. You're going to be like, ‘Mm, that doesn't feel right.’” (17:55—18:05) -Kirk
“Decision fatigue is a real thing. You, as a business owner, are making decisions all the time. You have decisions in your business, you have decisions in your personal life, kids — everything — and so many decisions coming at you. It's an easier decision to make when you have that purpose behind it and you can say, ‘Nope.’ Or you know if you made the incorrect decision a little quicker if you know it goes against that core purpose.” (18:29—18:59) -Carlie
“Like you said, [your core purpose] should not be very long. It should not be, ideally, more than one sentence. ACT’s is a phrase. I don't think everybody in dentistry's core purpose is going to be a phrase like that. But one sentence, maximum two. The shorter, the better, because you want to get that purpose across. Short, sweet, and to the point. It doesn't need to be detailed. As to the point as it can be.” (22:02—22:29) -Carlie
“Use really simple, clear, inspiring language that people can get their brain around. “Excellence”, for me, is a tough word because my definition of excellence and yours are going to be different. They just are. Better practice, better life — that's really simple. Wherever you are right now, it's going to be better.” (22:32—22:56) -Kirk
“[Your core purpose] should have your passion come out and have your passion be shared, flag in the ground, being like, ‘This is what I do.’ It's inspiring showing your passion, having it clear and simple. You want it to connect with the heart and the why of the company, why it exists, why you're here, why you're doing what you're doing. It's really important to have that flag in the ground of like, ‘This is it.’” (24:11—24:35) -Carlie
“[Core purpose] is an internal statement. Like you said, if anyone wanted to come into ACT, you'd be so excited to share them. And it can definitely be public too. I think it's both. It's really important that it's both, and it's talked about internally, and it's really lived and shown publicly.” (25:51—26:08) -Carlie
“[Core purpose is] more for internal than it is external or finding patients. The internal aspect of it is the power. It synchronizes your actions and your decision-making. You're going to find that the more you lean into core purpose and really have it come alive, the higher quality of people you will attract to be part of your team. They're going to say things like, ‘I want in. This is a pretty cool place to work.’ So, there's a mountain of opportunity in coming to core purpose.” (26:12—26:45) -Kirk
“The main takeaways would be staying consistent, having [core purpose] be your guiding light, your North Star, sharing it with your team members, your patients, having it be inspirational, and starting with that Five Whys exercise. That's going to be a little uncomfortable and you might have to take it to several different stages. Like you said, most people don't get their core purpose the way they want it the first time. So, keep asking yourself why. Keep taking it one step further until you get it where you really want it.” (26:58—27:29) -Carlie
Snippets:
0:00 Introduction.
1:08 Why defining your core purpose is important.
3:55 Consistency motivates team members.
8:49 Figure out your why.
11:25 Core purpose versus mission, explained.
14:10 The role of core purpose in team culture.
15:46 A strong core purpose will improve decision-making.
19:01 How to define your core purpose.
25:48 Your core purpose is internal and external.
26:46 Last thoughts.
Carlie Einarson Bio:
Carlie Einarson is a lead practice coach who has a passion for helping others succeed in the dental field. She loves helping to create a stable foundation for practices so both professionals and patients have a great experience every time they walk in the door!
Carlie graduated from Utah College of Dental Hygiene. She has ten years of experience in the dental field, including clinical dental hygiene, front office, and leading teams.
In her free time, she enjoys spending quality time with loved ones, traveling, skiing, playing volleyball, and golfing.