REMEMBER WHEN YOU were given that one little word of advice five, eight, 10 years ago? If only you had implemented that very small change at that time, where would you be now? I recall a financial advisor 19 years ago telling me to invest $25 a week and 40 years later the compounding interest of that small amount would make a huge difference. Now, nearly halfway through that 40 year timeline and having NOT invested that $25 then, the number that I have to put away starting now is exponentially higher to meet the exact same goal.
“Small, seemingly inadequate changes that are done really well are the changes that make the biggest difference in our overall success” — words spoken by Jim Rohn decades ago that still hold true. Jim also talks about reading 10 pages a day. This small change would get you through 10 books a year. And 100 books in a decade. Think if you would’ve read 100 books about building a better business over the last 10 years. Your knowledge of owning a business and your little independent optical would certainly be in a different place than it is now!
We can’t go back 10 years, but we can start making changes right now. If there’s one simple change you can make right now that would greatly impact your optical’s success in 2026, would you do it? You bet!
Furthering our discussion from last month about exceptional offices, I would like to reflect on feedback that exceptional performing opticals have had retrospectively about implementing a small change that made a big difference.
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Here it is: Look at your 2026 calendar. I want you to block out a half day each quarter for quarterly check-in time with your team.
“What could this possibly do?” you might be wondering. This change alone will create a monumental success shift in your team’s morale and overall profitability of your practice. For those of you that have a very large practice, it will probably take you a full day to get through each of your employees, but the results are still the same. Setting aside a few hours every quarter to independently check-in with each and every one of your team members is a simple task that Spexy member doctors declare as being one of the simplest planning initiatives that has brought extraordinary change to the production of their teams! There are a few reasons why this small plan makes such a massive impact. One-on-one quarterly check-ins with each of your team members:
- Allows for the team member to reflect on what they are doing great and where they need to improve.
- Allows the opportunity for leadership to set expectations on performance and lay out what growth looks like for that team member.
- Allows the team member the opportunity to tell leadership what resources they might need to better perform these tasks or share struggles.
- Allows the team member and leadership to create a framework that will improve support from the office and see improved performance from the team member.
For more details on making this a success, follow the QR code for a video where I lay it all out for you.
The only way to achieve growth is for everyone to know how they can better play their part to grow the business. This simple activity helps leadership set expectations and check on the achievement of those expectations every quarter. Maintaining a reserved spot for quarterly check-ins throughout 2026 is a simple planning change that, if made now, will have a massive impact on your team’s production and sales performances throughout the year.
