Episode 505: What is Your Practice’s X Factor?

Question: Does it feel impossible to hire right now?

Kim Creer is here to talk about something a lot of people are having a hard time with these days: hiring. Kim is a stellar example of resilience and innovation, and she shares the steps she’s taken to hire in markets it’s impossible to hire in. She and Kiera discuss the following:

• Having an abundance mindset

• Edifying your doctors

• What the role entails

• Raving about your culture

• Knowing what sets your practice apart

It can be done, and Kim is living proof! She also gives advice on proper compensation and utilizing your network.

Episode resources:

Listen to episode 271, Stop Holding Your Team Back!

Reach out to Kiera

Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast

Become Dental A-Team Platinum!

Review the podcast on iTunes

Transcript:

0:00:05.6 Kiera Dent: Hey everyone, welcome to the Dental A Team podcast. I'm your host, Kiera Dent, and I have this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective, because let's face it, dentistry can be a challenging profession with those two perspectives. I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, filler, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants, where we have traveled over a 165 different offices, coaching teams. Yep, we don't just understand you, we are you. Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental, and I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams, grow VIP experiences, reduce stress and create A teams. Welcome to the Dental A Team podcast.

0:00:49.2 KD: Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and you guys. One of my favorite things about podcasting is that I get to meet really, really, really awesome people, like that's it. I seriously get to meet the coolest people and then I get even luckier and I get to coach some of the coolest people, and they also get to coach me, and I learn awesome things, so today, our guest is one of my favorite people, her and I've coached together for years. I met her in her practice, she was pregnant, and now I think she has a two-year-old, so I'm super excited to bring, she's a hygienist, turned office manager, Kim Creer, welcome to the show today, Kim. How are you?

0:01:27.5 Kim Creer: I'm great Kiera. How are you?

0:01:29.3 KD: I'm good, is that right, your little man is two years old now?

0:01:32.4 KC: He is... Can you believe it two and a half and just as spunky as can be.

0:01:37.9 KD: That's so fun. So not only does Kim know how to do clinical hygiene, she also runs a huge practice with how many doctors do you have Kim?

0:01:45.5 KC: We have five doctors now, five hygienists and a whole bunch of extra admin and assistants so I think there are 22 of us total now, so.

0:01:55.2 KD: That's insanity. And Kim and I met because Kim had moved from hygienist to office manager. It was kind of a quick shift of roles, and I remember you're like, I don't even know what I'm supposed to do as an office manager, and I will say you have had one of the craziest journeys I've ever seen from going from having a baby to your doctor had an accident and was actually not... Your main producing doctor was in an accident and wasn't able to work anymore, that was a pivot for you. You went through COVID, I remember you were figuring out all the forms through COVID, you were basically running the practice through COVID times, 'cause there was no real doctors around to help you out, and then you were losing doctors and losing hygienist and turning over people, like you have had a wild ride as an office manager, did I kind of do a nice recap for you, anything I missed of craziness in your office management career?

0:02:43.5 KC: I'm sure there is, but I think that's enough. I'm not getting pass that. [chuckle] It has been a wild, wild journey, but it's been a ton of fun and I appreciate you every step of the way of helping me to coach me and guide me and just be someone to bounce ideas off. And I have a great team too, great doctors that have been very patient with me and also helped me to learn and given me honestly a ton of autonomy to make mistakes and figure it out, which has been huge itself.

0:03:11.4 KD: That's awesome. And Kim, I think something I love about you is I would say when I think of Kim is the word resilience. You come back swinging constantly, if something pushes you down or you were thrown a challenge in life, you have so much resilience, and I would also say innovation. You think outside the box, you create, you reach out for resources. You don't just sit there passively, you will proactively contact me, text me, message me, go find people, you will... You hunt people down, you interview different companies to figure it out, and so I would say resilience and innovation are two key attributes and traits that I feel have made you insanely successful in your career as an office manager, and it's been a short time, but huge attributes that I feel even seasoned office managers sometimes fail to have. So Kim how did you kind of develop that resilience and innovation, because I don't feel like most people have it, and you been able to do it through some of the craziest times, which will be a good segue into the reason I brought on the podcast, which guys get ready it is, she's got a massive trick that you all are gonna love, and I can't wait for her to share it, so Kim, how did you build this like resilience and innovation throughout your career?

0:04:21.9 KC: I think the biggest thing for me is always just, I've come into my career and I started as a hygienist, like you said, and I've always just been a student of the game. And I think that's the most important thing to always just stay in the mentality is, I'm learning, I'm growing, I'm here for it, kind of mentality. I went from being a clinical hygiene and loving it too. My body like you can't do this anymore, and learning the business side of the practice in a small practice, and then going to a much larger practice and then learning all of the curveballs that come your way, and if you just always stay in that mentality of, I'm here to learn, I'm here to grow, and I'm okay with saying that I don't know how to do something, and yeah, I'll tap into the resources I have. You give me tons of resources all the time, whoever I can ask or go to and learn from, that's what I'm about, and I tell everyone that, even within my office, I'm big on trying to help them to do the same, to learn and grow and pivot and change at any moment, that's what keeps you flexible, that's what keeps you able to have that bounce back, 'cause I just know like, I'm just learning something new, I'm moving on. So that's just what I do.

0:05:25.0 KD: I love it, and I love that you called it mastering the game, because I think when we make it hard, it feels hard, but a game is fun. I know as children, we loved to play games, Candy Land was my dream, 'cause I wanted Queen Frostine, she was my favorite one to get like I loved the game. And so really seeing it as just this fun game that we get to play, and I also think, Kim, you are so resourceful and truly learning constantly. You will have something where I know we'll say it on calls even and you'll say, Kiera, I don't even know what that is and so we'll find resources, and you've never been afraid, like you said, to say you don't know, so I'm putting you on the spot, I did not prep you for this part, but what... Are there any other things that you've learned throughout your time as an office manager, any tips or pearls that you feel if you could go back and tell yourself two years ago, two and a half years ago, gosh it's probably three years ago now, since you got put into this role that you wish you would have told yourself that would make being an office manager easier for you, any things that you would go back and tell yourself three years ago, that might be helpful for some listeners today.

0:06:28.3 KC: Gosh probably so many things. But I think, you know, one of the biggest ones is, I'm a very patient person, but really just it takes patience to a new level. And a lot of it is just patience with yourself not even with other people and projects, you know, it's being more patient with yourself not expecting yourself, like I can tell you all day like, I've just always been a student of the game, but it doesn't mean that there are not times that I get frustrated with myself, get impatient with myself for not knowing something. And so giving yourself that much earlier than what I gave that permission to myself, I guess I would say to be a little more patient with myself and understanding and allowing myself to not know things and move into those things. Like I said, that just wasn't right out the gate. I can say it three years later, but... Just give yourself some grace and then that helps you give that grace to your team to leading a team of 20 plus people, is much different than being in a practice that has four operatories and five employees total. So it takes a lot of patience and a lot of grace and just remembering that people are people, nobody's a number, nobody's... It's not all about that. Not when it comes to our patients and our team of people that we work with. Remembering that always that people are people, people make mistakes, and we move past it, we learn from each other. And that's just how it goes.

0:07:52.1 KD: Yeah, I love it. And I will say something else, Kim that I've watched you evolve over the years, it's been fun to like, see you as a baby office manager to like this very grown mature office manager, who I just think is a huge role model to so many people, and then cheering you on the podcast as well. But I think something else, I remember the time and I'm sure you remember this, when you finally started taking admin time and doing the important things. And I remember your collections, you called me and your collections skyrocketed. Just by doing, like you dropped your AR so much. Do you remember this time when were like... I just blocked my admin time and I actually started taking time to do the things that were the most important to move the practice forward. Do you remember that Kim? Like it was... Like I am still floor dropped of how much you got done, by just taking your like set admin time consistently.

0:08:41.8 KC: Yes, Kira. And it's something I still struggle with. I'm not gonna lie, like, I have my admin time. But there are times that I do have a big open door policy I don't... Like I close my door when it's just like, hey, please don't interrupt me kind of thing. Because I need that time to work on the practice. But... So I still do struggle with it. Sometimes I'm like, Yes, I can answer that question now. So I'm not gonna claim to be like, perfect admin time, but it is huge, you do need some protected time, there are things that you need designated to work with. I don't remember the exact numbers but I do remember, like, collecting a whole bunch of money that month, and being like, whoa, like we went from, like being questionable about our goals to being like, boom, we're definitely hitting bonus kind of thing, within the matter of, I think it was like a week of doing that. So I do remember that being huge.

0:09:28.0 KC: I've been able to actually give that gift to some of my other front office team members. They were struggling with some things. We do traction style meetings in our office, I share... Podcast listeners know a lot about how we do that. And they were having some struggles with certain things and like, waiting for them for the solution. But I wanted to give it to them, you know, and I wait for it and I wait for it, and finally I was like, guys, here's your solution. And I'm able to give them admin time. And Kiera you'll love this because another area I struggle with as an office manager, I still struggle but, delegation, I have been able to delegate out most of that collections and billing type things. I have a couple of really great team members who've really embraced it, are really good at insurance and billing. And now they get admin time and do that quota practice, and it's huge, and they love doing it and they feel really good to get those numbers down, so.

0:10:15.2 KD: That's awesome. And Kim, I just like, I know the topic we have today is not what I just asked you about.

0:10:21.3 KC: It's okay.

0:10:22.2 KD: I just think you're such a fun example. And I hope you guys are listening. I hope people can hear the fun in Kim's voice. Kim, you see these things as opportunities, you, like you said a student of the game and giving that, I hope you guys heard what she said, I give that gift to my team members. So you see admin time as a gift rather than an obligation and I really do believe Kim, your positive spin that you put on things has made you an exemplary leader. So with that said guys, Kim's a rockstar, everybody should hire a Kim or mold into and morph a Kim. Like if you notice, Kim was not, like you had a lot of the key traits. You were a master of office management when you were placed in this position. So also helping people see you can have this rockstar of Kim three years later, but I would say it was about six months, you were like really jamming and jiving and I think life propelled you a lot faster just by the opportunities handed to you. But the reason I wanted to bring Kim on the podcast today guys is because Kim has successfully figured out how to hire in a market where you cannot hire. She... Kim, we've talked about this so many times you live in a tricky area to hire and you freaking figured it out.

0:11:28.4 KD: I'm so proud of you. I remember many coaching calls and you're like Kiera... I felt like it was a lunch order menu every time when I'd get on the phone, it's like, okay, who's up for hiring today? You've got a dental assistant, and a hygienist. And now a front office. Oh, and by the way, I need to find another doctor. And I need to find these people like yesterday. Oh, and now I've got another assistant. I remember it was just like, person after person, after person. You were going through the COVID resignation as well. So Kim, what are some of the tips that you have found that you've just put into play? And I will say you have tried so many different things, which is why I wanted to bring you on the podcast of it can be done even in a hard market. Kim is walking proof of that.

0:12:07.6 KC: Yes, yes, Kiera. When we first met and I'm... Roll on this, oh my gosh, if I could put it on my list of things like to delegate out I'm getting rid of it. And I'm still will say I'm going to get rid of it as soon as I can give it to somebody else, but.//

0:12:22.5 KD: Amen.

0:12:22.6 KC: It is so challenging, you know, to do the hiring part. And there was a time when oh my gosh, it was just stress, after stress, after stress. And I will say the biggest thing that I changed was to have an abundance mindset and get out of my ideal ideation of having a scarcity mindset. It's really hard to do, you know. You go into it. You look at the market, you look at your team, you make decisions for your team every day. And your team knows when you have a scarcity mindset. Sadly, recently we did have to make some changes with our culture and a person with a scarcity mindset would say, "We can't do that. We can't make that change." And I did have to just step in and say, "Hey, we're making this decision." And guess what? Within two weeks, we were able to bring somebody in that was a much better fit for the practice. And so, number one, that's the first thing is have an abundance mindset. It helps you make the decisions in your everyday practice, but also makes you less scared of when that hiring situation comes about, whether it be for addition or replacement. Right? So that's huge.

0:13:26.3 KC: And Kiera, I can't count on all my fingers and toes how many times that you told me that but until it finally became, I don't know what may even made it click. I do know what made it click. It made it click when I really realized the weight of the decisions that I was making for my team. And when it comes to a point of, that you have to make those decisions for your team and make those changes for them and seeing the relief in that immediate shift when you do, that's what makes it more real and makes it so much worth it when they see that. So number one, don't scarcity mindset, I know it's scary to go out there into the market and you feel like you wanna just go knocking on doors to look for people.

[laughter]

0:14:09.8 KD: That's like the most perfectly...

0:14:12.8 KC: Don't be scared of it.

0:14:17.3 KD: Oh, it's such a perfect picture, Kim. I'm like, "Amen." And it's funny that you say that because Shelby who runs our whole company now is literally my next door neighbor. And I literally knocked on her door and was like, "Do you want a job?" So it's not... Guys... It's still available, but yes. Continue on, "Have that abundant mindset." And then...

0:14:32.6 KC: Well, that's really funny. I was not victimizing you by saying, "Knock on people's doors."

[laughter]

0:14:37.5 KD: I didn't feel... I don't think you even knew that Shelby was my next door neighbor.

0:14:40.8 KC: I didn't.

0:14:42.2 KD: Yeah. It's a pretty funny thing. Guys, if you have a next door neighbor who will just, out of the goodness of their hearts, water your plants because they realize you are a terrible gardener, and your plants are dying in the sun and they just say, "Oh yeah, I just added a little more water for you." And Shelby was the nicest person I'd ever met. She would just take care of my plants when I was out of town and would water them for me. And I was like, "This girl is pretty magical and I want to work with her." And lo and behold now she runs our company. So funny story on that, but yes, continue on, okay. So that's Kiera's tip, meet all your neighbors and see if any of them are worthy of a job. Beyond that, Kim's got the better ideas. So... [laughter]

0:15:18.5 KC: Yeah. So yeah, absolutely. First of all, of course you have to know who you're looking for. And sometimes that takes some time to really dive into and realize, "who are you looking for?" You realized that in Shelby, you didn't know until you found her, that that's you and what you were looking for...

0:15:32.1 KD: Totally.

0:15:32.5 KC: But she had those characteristics. So Kiera you've always described it as kind of building your avatar. Who are you looking for? And in some instances you don't even realize that you are looking for something different than you already had. You know what I mean? 'Cause you get stuck in this life of like, "This is what we've always had and this is how it's always been done." That doesn't mean that's what you really truly want. So taking some time to dive into, "Who are you looking for?" Get your team on board with that. For example, if you're hiring an assistant, have your assistant teams help you like, "Who are we looking for? What are we looking for? What are we willing to do when we bring that on?" And by that, I mean experienced versus unexperienced, right? "Who are we gonna look into? I'm not gonna train a dental assistant. So let's talk to the assistant team. Are we willing, ready, capable of bringing on a dental assistant and training them in our state we can do that. We just have to do x-ray certification later.

0:16:24.6 KC: So checking with that, what are you capable of doing?" So building that first. That helps you really just feel more confident too when you're going out there looking, right? I wanna talk about a little about the ad, because I think is one of the biggest areas that it gets really challenging, is not... It's getting people to even apply and believe me, we're still sometimes putting ads out and just getting little trickles if we're lucky. But a couple of things I would just wanna point out about the ad is we do still get success. I know it can be frustrating, but I have hired people from Indeed and ZipRecruiter. So still posting your ads out there? A couple things I wanna say is when you're writing your ads, if you're looking for somebody with experience, I've found that putting a whole bunch of job description and duties type things in the ad, they don't wanna see that because they know pretty much what they're coming to do, if they have experience.

0:17:17.7 KC: What you wanna put in there is what sets you apart. What are they gonna get to do that they might not get to do where they are? What kind of technologies do you have? Room for growth and increased duties, room for leadership roles, tasks and duties that are allowed in your state that your doctor actually allows them to do. That's kind of a funny thing to say, but you'll be surprised how many assistants I have come and say like, "Oh, like the doctor would let me do that?" So those are things you don't realize that do sets you apart and get people to apply.

0:17:52.8 KD: That's clever.

0:17:53.7 KC: One other...

0:17:54.3 KD: That's real clever because...

0:17:54.4 KC: Yeah, It's... You don't think about it.

0:17:55.7 KD: No. And that's your ace in the hole because I know at the practice I worked at, my doctor was super, super, super picky about temporary crowns. So I couldn't make temporaries. And yet as an assistant, I was bored outta my mind and holding a darn pin cushion, #doingrootcanalsalldaylong was so boring for me. And so to read a job description, that's clever Kim, 'cause you're switching it up instead of having all the things you're wanting to get from this person, an experienced assistant's going to know. And it's like, "Here are all the extra things that you get to do." Now, if I'm a brand new newbie assistant, I might be terrified of needing to make a temporary crown, being terrified of having to place fillings if I'm not an EDA. So I'm not going to apply for that position because I know I'm not qualified, but yet the people you want will apply 'cause that's exciting for them. That's genius, Kim, continue on, share more.

0:18:46.0 KD: Hey Dental A Team listeners. You guys have heard the early bird gets the worm, right? What does that even mean? Well, it means that the early bird is the person who maximizes on benefits, optimizes their practice and they take advantage of great deals. So guys right now this week, last chance to save on Dental A Team's virtual team summit. It's all about optimization and execution, with an emphasis on full team. And then Saturday is all about leadership. So guys don't miss out. You know you're going to come, so you might as well pop on over to thedentalateam.com. Snag those early bird tickets because once they're gone, they're gone and you'll be paying more for the same event. So head on over to thedentalateam.com snag your early bird virtual summit for April 22nd and 23rd, and I'll see you there.

0:19:32.5 KC: Yes. So, in that, you wanna include your edification of your doctors and your other team members with that, is you get to learn from, I say, I have X experienced actives in my practice. I have three actives here, you get to learn from them, you get to grow with them. We have these amazing doctors, so edifying your doctors in opportunities, so, yes, you are gonna have assistance, you are scared to make those temporaries, but they probably want to make them. Putting that in there too like, "Hey, we have great people, we're adding to our team, we want to add to our five great hygienists, we want to add a fifth team member." People want to see that you have other people there and that they're gonna have good people to learn from and train from and to build a family with. Dentistry is a lot of family oriented people. People always call their dental home, their dental family, things like that, so getting to see and hearing about what the rest of your teams looks like, those are things that I found that people like to see in those ads as well.

0:20:36.6 KD: Interesting, Kim. I love that you took a totally different spin, 'cause I feel like oftentimes, and I'm guilty of this, of thinking of what I want and painting up this perfect person rather than showing my ace in the whole of, this is why our practice is so incredible, and why you'd want to work here. And then like you said, edifying, because the number one thing I will tell you, more than money, more than location, is do I have confidence in the doctor that I'm working with, because if that doctor does not do good dentistry, there is no way, shape or form, I will do any position in that practice because I can't ethically back this provider. So, the fact that you are putting those things in there Kim, is probably why you're getting all these people to apply 'cause you are speaking a breath of fresh air that a lot of people aren't doing. Brilliant, I love that.

0:21:25.3 KC: Yeah. So, something huge, I'll kinda transition into the energy profits for this and is what I've learned is, you're selling yourself and your practice just as much as that person is selling themselves. It used to be, I feel like an interviewee process where somebody comes in the interview and they're the one that's nervous. They're trying to sell themselves, and tell you all the reasons that you should pick them to work for you. Now it's, I want you to know why you should pick me, because I can guarantee you that they have 20 other offices in the click of a button that they can go apply to and get an interview and probably a job offer. So I think switching that mentality too of why should people come work for you. So...

0:22:08.1 KD: That's a good point. Keep going, sorry about that.

0:22:11.2 KC: Yeah, that's okay. So, why should people come work for you? And really take a minute to think about it, and if you don't have a ton of good things to say, then you need to re-evaluate. Is it you? Should somebody else be doing that interview? Do you need to fix or change some things in your culture? Do you need to invest in some technology, some continuing education? You know, those types of things that people look for, things that are so simple. Compensation is great, but like you said, it doesn't matter what you're paying, if it doesn't work out. There are offices in my city that are offering $10 to $20 an hour for employees, $10 to $20 over the average dollar per hour amount, huge, huge offering, but guess what? They're always hiring.

0:22:54.6 KC: It doesn't matter how much they're paying, people don't want to stay there, they wanna come to a place that's better. They wanna make that move because you have something to offer that their current position doesn't. So, go and take some time to figure out what set you're apart, and if you don't have something that sets you apart, find something that sets you apart. People who are into marketing and marketing their practice for patients, they know that, that's the first thing people tell you when you're marketing. Why not think of that from a hiring perspective too? Why should somebody come work for you? Why should a patient come to your practice versus Joe down the street? So, really just taking that into thought and building that out for hiring as well. I think even the tiniest little thing, Kiera, do you know how many people I interview and get to the hiring process and they're so excited and shocked that I'm gonna buy their scrubs for them?

0:23:46.4 KD: That's crazy.

0:23:48.7 KC: Okay, I'm not talking spending 20 grand plus plus on like a scan or whatever, it's something... It can be the most minute things for some people that other practices aren't doing.

0:24:00.3 KD: And I think that you have found your... I think they call your X-factor, like what sets you apart from every other practice. And Kim, you brought up a good point that I don't think I have even considered that the tides have turned. It is no longer the employers hold the cards, it's the employees who hold the cards, and like you said, they... I remember we were sitting at the hot tub, Jason and I go to the hot tub a lot, we call it the think tank, it's where some of our best ideas come up, and I was sitting there one night and there was this guy who came in and he said, "Yeah, I just quit my job because honestly, I know I can get a job. There's so many people hiring, I can just quit and I will have a job tomorrow from somebody else." And I was like, the sad reality is he's right.

0:24:41.0 KD: People will be hiring. They will hire him, and he did not have any loyalty to his employment of work. And so I love that you have thought through this, Kim, of pivoting it and then finding your X-factor as to why people would want to work for you rather than somebody else. And you're right, it doesn't have to cost a lot of money. I was telling somebody, Dental A team, for my headquarters team, I started realizing, alright, trends are changing, people don't wanna work in an office 8-5 when you're talking about a corporate 8-5 job. So, we've literally made it flex Mondays and flex Fridays, so people can either come to the office if they want to on Mondays and Fridays, or they can work from home. Well, you better believe that I actually have a pretty dreamy candidate pool because that job is something people... That cost me no money other than innovation of thinking of how we're going to run our office. But that's not traditional, traditional is everybody comes in 8-5, but we don't live in a traditional world. And let's actually talk about what is traditional. COVID shook everything up, there is no such thing, in my opinion, as a traditional practice anymore. It is...

0:25:46.7 KD: Completely revamped, so I love Kim that you talked about writing your ad and listing off the things of what you're looking for, shaking that off and doing more about the, what is it that they get to do in your practice, raving about your doctors, then having an interview where you are just jazzed about life, about your office, and if you are not that person, shifting it to someone else, and then little things that are your x-factor that make your practice so fantastic that they would want to leave a practice to come work for you, or when looking at a candidate, choosing between 20 different offices as candidates, they're gonna select your office because guess what? It does not pay.

0:26:24.3 KD: People think that they've gotta compete with pay, but it's often times it's like you said, a dental home, a dental family, and Kim, I love that you put on there how long you've had employees with you because that longevity shows. I know when I look for jobs, I look for the longevity, how long have people been with this practice because that tells me, are they a churn and burn practice, or are these people that actually enjoy their jobs and wanna stay with their jobs and they're not going to be shifting over? I don't care if they get paid more, but the longest term employee is six months, I know that's probably gonna be a harder job than somebody who has an employee who's been with them for four years, and if you don't have that, there's other things, like you said, Kim. Paying for scrubs. What about... I know an office does dips Thursday, and they all bring dips to the practice and enjoy different types of dips. So it's like chilli cheese dip and nacho dip and fruit dip, and that's something that that practice does that's a ton of fun that shockingly is different than other practices. So Kim, those are really, really, really good ideas. Any other things that you've found that have helped you be able to hire, in these harder times to hire that you'd wanna add, you already have given an extensive list, so I am not expecting any more. That was beyond, and it taught me a ton as well, so thank you.

0:27:35.2 KC: Yeah, you're so welcome. So other than just edifying your team, your doctors, your culture, your practice of itself, what do you have, what are you bringing to the table? Obviously, those are just key. Conversation is obviously be fair, be within your range of what you need to be. I have not had to blow my budget once to bring somebody in. I hired and retained seven employees last year, so it's possible, and that was in every department, a hygienist, a doctor, front office, and a couple of assistants. So it's possible. The other thing that we just did not mention Kiera is tapping into your network. When you build a place that is great to work, you are about your culture, you're about your team, your team's gonna wanna tell their friends. So tapping into your network as well. Hey, do you know anybody who might wanna work here? Do your friends know anybody who wants to work here? If you post your ads on social media, hopefully your people share them. If they don't, maybe it speaks for itself a little bit. You know, is there a reason they're not sharing that to their friends or are they unhappy here? What do we need to do to fix that? Tap into your network. If people enjoy working for you or with you, they're gonna share it with their friends and wanna bring their friends to you as well. So that's a huge one.

0:28:47.6 KD: That's a really good point because so many people don't remember to ask their team, and if your team really does love working there, odds are they do have friends and other people. I know an office, their whole team, they have grown and retained people, and it's because there's one girl in the practice who is just a little walking advertisement and she will talk to her friends and she just pulls in a hygienist and then a dental assistant and then a front office, and it is crazy to watch that practice grow when it's so hard to hire all because of word of mouth and being raving fans of the practice.

0:29:22.0 KD: So gosh Kim, not only do you talk about how you're an incredible office manager and being a student of the game, but then tying into all these pieces, and guys I've had so many coaching calls with Kim and on our last call, I was like, "Kim, I need you to come on the podcast because so many people don't believe they can hire in this market, and yet you have done seven people, hygienist, doctors, the hardest positions to hire you have successfully done in the hardest years to do it," and so I just appreciate you, one, for being one of my dear clients and friends, and also for being willing to share these because I think you gave people hope and excitement and buzz of things that they can do differently to be able to help their practices grow. So thank you Kim. I just appreciate you so much.

0:30:05.3 KC: You're so welcome, and I appreciate you. Like I said, this all started with our growth together, so we just keep it rolling and you're right, I think my biggest advice to everybody is to keep that smile on your face, stay passionate about it, and your good days will come.

0:30:20.0 KD: Yes, I agree you guys, and that is coming from Kim who has gone through so much craziness, I don't think most office managers would have stuck with it. You have gone through the ups and the downs that I've even been like, "Kim, I don't know how you stick with it." That is so much that you have done. So guys, I hope you have just jotted something down from what Kim shared. Kim is an example of who I hope all of you are striving and aiming to be, and I know Kim is not, she's not at the end of her growth. She will constantly continue to grow and it will be fun to continue to watch her and support her. So guys, take some notes. Go try it out. Be optimistic. There is abundance out there. The people that are meant to come to your practice will come, but you gotta make sure you are fishing with the right bait and then keep that smile on your face. Kim, as always a pleasure. I love it. I can't wait for our next call. Thank you for sharing this, and all of you, thank you for listening, and I'll catch you next time on The Dental A Team Podcast.

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0:31:11.9 KD: And that wraps it up for another episode of The Dental A Team Podcast. Thank you so much for listening and we'll talk to you next time.