Are you ready?

There are many moments in a person's life where they are presented a challenge that they may not feel ready for. There is one moment that exemplifies this more than any other…..the birth of your first child.

Many have had this experience and most everyone knows someone who has. There are months of preparedness, education and celebration getting ready for this special day. We had done it all, went to the hospital, followed the directions, greeted family. We were all ready.

And there she was!

I can recall an unrecognizable, yet very strong emotion that contained elements of joy, excitement, love and fear. The fear was not being ready for this.
Whatever we had done to prepare was suddenly inadequate and I knew it. I clearly remember thinking, "I am not ready, I haven't done enough, I need more time. And hey, I thought it was supposed to be a boy?"

That baby is now a senior in high school and we are preparing for another life altering event, sending her to college. We are preparing, but I know I won’t be ready. I anticipate the same thoughts as she drives away next Fall.

This fear of not being ready often spills into our professional lives. No matter how much logic we can bring into our preparedness, the things that most often hold us back is emotion. It’s the fear of not knowing what to do.

Not knowing is OK

Just like it is unrealistic to expect to know everything about parenting when your child is a newborn, you rarely need all the answers to make a big change.

Practice Ownership decisions are the most common that are not made in due to fear of the unknown. Buying / Selling / Starting / Partnering / Soloing - all full of unknowns. There are formulas and criteria that are frequently published, but there are no guarantees.

Other big decisions that often don't happen in our practices because of fear:

Hiring a new associate
Buying new equipment
Offering new services
New location
More staff
Less staff
Staff Development

I understand that you want all the answers, but you almost always have to move forward without them. Do your research, make a decision and go. It’s ok that there are still some unknowns.

Moving Forward......

“What’s the worst thing that can happen?” Most ask it all the time, but rarely answer it.
This time, stop and really answer it. “What is the worst thing that can happen if you...open a new practice?...... hire a new associate? .... buy that new equipment?"
Then decide.

You can do it,
Mike

p.s. I would love to hear what decision you are not making, because you just can't decide. If you are willing to share, just COMPLETE THIS FORM. We will share comments in an upcoming message, protecting your privacy of course.