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Attitude–Smatitude Can She Suck Spit or Not?

John C. Maxwell in his book, Attitude 101 reminds us that there is only one thing more contagious than a good attitude and that’s a bad attitude.  For some reason many people think it’s chic to be negative.  I was “observing” in a prospective client’s office for a couple of hours and while within earshot and clear vision of one of the Chairsides I witnessed the following:  when she went to get the patient from the reception room she “blurts” out her name and mispronounced it as well.  When the patient gave “Chilly Chairside” the correct pronunciation, I heard her say: “whatever”.  She walked 10 feet ahead of the patient without turning or saying a word as she escorted the patient to the treatment room where she was abruptly told to “sit in the big chair”.  This was a high-fear patient and when explaining this to “Chilly” there was not one hint of compassion or a desire to take the time to explain what was to come next.  Much to my surprise, the other Chairside, I will call “Caring” pulled “Chilly” to the side and urged her to be more kind and compassionate and to take the time to ask questions and listen to her patient.  Her reply: “hey, I’m doing my job.  I’m not being paid enough to be a babysitter”.

What do you think of that attitude?  I’ll bet you’re saying right now: “none of my staff are like that.  They really take good care of my patients.”  Are you certain?  When I revealed this situation to my prospective client he was dumbfounded and told me I must have heard this incorrectly.  Go figure that this clown thinks I make this stuff up????  In addition, he told me “Chilly” was the best Chairside he had ever worked with.  After further probing I discovered that he hired her almost “on-the-spot” because of her 18 years of chairside experience.  “Forget all those goofy questions” he admonished, “I need someone who can suck spit, hand me what I need, when I need it, so I don’t skip a beat.”

Wow, I thought.  This guy is clueless about hiring “right”.  If you want outstanding results in your business, you need good people with great talent and AWSOME attitudes.  I have learned that attitudes are habits of thought, and as such, I quickly assessed the habits of this doctor and team.  Incidentally, this prospect wanted me to “fix” his business problem as his income was well below industry averages and he wanted to know “what was I going to do for him”.  Guess what my answer was?  I’m not able to do a thing for you…as a matter of fact, consistent with my core values, you and your office are not a fit for me as I cannot “fix” anyone.

This guy and team had a depressing attitude toward taking care of the customer.  I had to wonder about the quality of employees he was hiring?  It certainly explained why his practice was deteriorating.  I did not accept his offer to work as his coach, yet I did send him a document to remind him of the attitude of exceptional customer care.  If you want it, click on this line to get your copy of “Because the Customer“.  You may want to use it as talking points for your team?  If you want to get a copy of John Maxwell’s easy to read book, click here to visit my bookshelf.

Dr. Ron is the only Master Certified Dental Coach (MCC) on the planet. He has blended 20 years of clinical dental practice with executive roles in financial planning and investment management along his graduate business training to provide his clients with the tools, support, and accountability to accomplish more. About Dr. Ron, "I count you as one of life’s best finds", says Dr. Gary Imm of Reisterstown, Maryland. He has authored many articles; manuals; ThinBooks ^tm; TeleClasses and if you visit http://www.drarndt.com you can receive one of his FREE reports, "9 Painful Mistakes Dentists Make in the Hiring Process"

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