By Debra Wiggs, FACMPE, V2V Founder
A client of mine recently did the right thing and freed her future. Prior to that, the practice she oversaw had been operating at a frantic pace. Everything was reactive. Nothing was done as a result of deliberate behavior or within a structure. And so her staff could never settle into effectiveness. Instead, they would change at the direction of one individual with no premise. What this approach ended up doing is imposing change without meaning, which was not only worthless but at times detrimental.
Why STAT management?
It is unfortunate how many practices I work with that have been operating using what I call STAT management. The origin of this approach isn’t too difficult to discern. After all, the practice of medicine is replete with STAT situations that demand urgent action. But the same cannot be said about the business of care.
When it comes to the business of care, the only situations that warrant a STAT type of fast reaction is when something’s metaphorically “on fire, illegal or someone’s going to die”. Those situations represent a very small percentage of the scope of the business of care. The rest of the time, you can and should be deliberate in your processes. That doesn’t mean being slow, pedantic or procrastinating. Instead, a methodical approach ensures our response is focused and productive.
Permission to pause
Shifting your practice in this direction may seem overwhelming. But it can be done. It begins by giving yourself permission to pause. There is real power in that pause. It’s where our most effective decisions and actions are born. Neurologist-psychiatrist-holocaust survivor Victor Frankel alluded to this dynamic when he stated: “Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
I challenge each of you to nurture that space, so you can begin to unlock the growth and freedom your practice deserves.
