We Asked ECPs What Took Them a Surprisingly Long Time to Realize They Were Doing Wrong

question:

What in your eyecare life did it take you a surprisingly long time to realize you’ve been doing wrong all along (it could be the way you use a computer, pronounce an industry term, something to do with your finances … anything!)

• Stringing semi rimless frames. Once I saw somebody do it the easy way I never went back. — Kevin C., Glenview, IL
• EyeMed contact lens evaluation copays. I found out after billing for five years that I was over charging so many patients. Oops! — Sophia P., Huntley, IL
• I finally realized that if I didn’t complete every task for the day, that it would still be there tomorrow. It’s not worth stressing over! — Susan K., Phoenix, AZ
• Asking for help — consultants, buying group, get a better HER, etc. — Kathryn C., Lititz, PA
• OMGosh… Silhouette drill mount frame repairs! Holy cow, I cursed them for years! — Amie R., Spring Hill, TN
• Realizing what was possible to repair and modify! — Sarah B., St Catharines, ON
• Putting money back in the practice. — BJ C., McQueeney, TX
• As a cold start practice, it took a bit too long to realize that dropping the bottom of the barrel vision savings plans are the best business decision we can make for success and growth. — Rita E., Forest Hills, NY
• Learning to file medical claims properly. There was too much trial and error. I urge all providers to know how to file claims and not depend exclusively on an employee or service. — Sonja F., Austin, TX
• I fear I judge patients to harshly. I always assume they will either buy or not buy a particular pair of glasses based on their clothing, hairstyle, speech etc. I need to step back and start asking what their needs are before I assume. — Heather A., Westminster, CO
• I recently discovered that I’ve been billing a specific material to VSP incorrectly for the last 13 years! — Christine H., Attleboro, MA
• Keeping certain employees too long! Sometimes everybody is better off parting ways. — Douglas H., San Angelo, TX
• Almost from the very start, every person in my practice pronounced the Plano is “Plan-O” instead of the more widely used “Plain-O.” It’s still hard to correct on the fly when I’m on the phone with a lab. — Harris D., Scarsdale, NY
• Pronouncing Fresnel. I said it wrong for YEARS! — Justin T., Pittsfield, MA
• I didn’t realize that I was putting the wrong count of units down when filing VSP. — Emily C., Charlotte, NC
• I was late for work all the time. It took me about eight years to change my hours to 10:00am-ish to 5:30pm-ish, now I’m always on time. — Julie U., Jupiter, FL
• Using the wrong numbers to calculate a KPI. — Lisa S., Vancouver, WA
• What I’ve been doing wrong all along was being passionate about the accuracy of the work done for a patient. I thought an employer, especially an independent optometrist, would appreciate that but it’s all about the money for optometrists or corporate. — Paul W., Tallahassee, FL
• Finally realizing that FANG stocks were such a good investment. Granddaughter’s education at University of Kansas (Rock Chalk) was totally paid by Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook stock). — Texas S., Citrus Heights, CA
• You cannot please everyone — especially when it comes to frame selection — so choose what makes sense for your demographic and focus on your target audience. — Cynthia S., Lewis Center, OH
• Why did we EVER do our own shredding? So cheap to outsource to a medical records company! — Jenna G., Fargo, ND
• It’s been a few years since this realization started and it’s a hot topic in the industry. But the frames you are buying from the big companies are rarely any better than what you would get from a place like Warby. Going with independent companies (not all) gives you a better likelihood of actually offering a quality product that’s made to last. — Travis L., Logan, UT
• Working for chains that don’t give a s*#t about patient care. — Rick R., Girard, PA
• Traying jobs when they were started instead of filing the paperwork and waiting for the complete job to tray! We would run out of trays and tray slots. — Dave S., San Luis Obispo, CA
• Valuing my time. — Dave G., Lansing, MI
• That it’s okay to delete old emails! — Maggie C., Winston Salem, NC
• Don’t get me started on the spelling of some optometric words … that aside I think it would be don’t sweat the small stuff. You can’t control or perfect all small things. — Zachary D., Saint Peter, MN
• Don’t sell yourself short. For years I was afraid to raise my prices and suffered for it. Find a good markup rate and stick to it. It took a good sit down with my accountant and lab owner to figure it out. — Robert L., Jefferson City, MO
• Put blue at with photochromic treatments. — Melissa T., Branson West, MO
• I wish I realized sooner that building a practice by yourself would end up trapping you as the sole income producer. The E-Myth is real. Read the book. — Tory M., Dumas, TX
• I should have had more of a focus on the eyeglass side of my business. I always concentrated more on the medical side of the practice but over time have seen how well some of my colleagues do on the glasses end and realize that is just as important to patients. — Marc U., Pine Beach, NJ
• Waiting too long to be the owner of an optical store. — Mickey B., Fort Worth, TX
• I’ve realized I’ve been unnecessarily scared of asking patients why they want to take their prescription/not buy glasses from us at their exam. I don’t know why that was so intimidating to me, but honestly if you don’t ask those questions, how will you ever know if it’s something other than finances? What if they hate your frame selection? What if they didn’t even realize they COULD order glasses from you for some weird insurance reason? I feel like I’ve missed out on a lot of potential sales just by not asking people “why” they aren’t buying from me… — Morgan D., Carmi, IL
• Benchmarking! I didn’t know how to benchmark and where to find how much I should be spending on this or that and it too me years to find the resources that would help. — Nytarsha T., Zionsville, IN
• I was following shiny objects instead of taking my time to find my own passion and what I truly enjoy doing. — Adam R., Palm Beach Gardens, FL