4 Productivity Hacks to Create a Practice You and Your Patients Love

Remember the old cartoons where the coyote is chasing the roadrunner? That poor coyote is trying soooo hard to catch up. He’s running as fast as he can and has his eye fixed on the prize. But suddenly, out of nowhere, a bulldozer plows over him, and he’s flattened out like a pancake.

Have you ever felt like that in your practice growth? Day after day, you’re moving closer toward your goals – wanting to serve more patients, make a bigger impact, and boost the bottom line. You want to create a practice that you love, have a thriving business, and maintain your work/life balance.  

You can see it and feel it – you want it all.

But then out of nowhere, the bulldozer shows up and soon you’re lying flat on your back, wondering where the time went and why you haven’t reached your goals.  

I get it. I’ve been there too. When I started my practice almost 20 years ago, I was super excited about the ways I wanted to grow my business but at the same time, was overwhelmed by everything that needed to get done. 

But there are some things I’ve learned along the way that have really helped me to make headway on growing my practice that has made a huge difference. Keep reading for four of my favorite hacks to supercharge your productivity and create a practice you love.

1. Get Rid of Time Wasters

When you’re the only one running the show, it’s easy to get swept up in the details of running a practice. Sometimes, that makes it hard to discern which tasks are valuable and which ones aren’t.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Just because a task is a time sinker doesn’t mean it needs to be scrapped. It’s up to you to decide if it’s something that:

• Doesn’t add value.
• Isn’t worth doing.
• Needs to be delegated out.

To figure this out, sit down and write down everything you currently do. This includes:

• Seeing patients.
• Interacting and managing your team.
• Writing and posting your social posts, emails, and blogs.
• Reaching out to past patients you haven’t heard from in a while.
• Time spent scrolling through social media.
• Sales, invoicing, and ordering.

You get the picture. List out every single thing! You may find that you’re not able to think of everything in one sitting. That’s okay. Keep adding to the list as more things come to mind – you are actively working on creating a practice you love.

Once you’re done, take a highlighter and highlight every task that absolutely MUST involve you. These are the ones that only YOU can do and no one else.

Now, what about all those non-highlighted items? These are the tasks that either need to be delegated or ditched. In fact, that non-highlighted list can easily become the basis of your job description for hiring an assistant!

2. Use Systems to Work Smarter

When you look at the list you’ve made, you’re likely to notice that your tasks fall into two categories:  

• The urgent
• The important

Most of the time, we’re consumed with what’s urgent. These are the fires that pop up and require your immediate attention. They typically aren’t significant drivers of growth for your practice. 

These fires can be avoided by putting some simple processes or systems in place. It may take some work on the front end, but it’ll help your business run soooo much smoother. It’s also a vital step in creating a practice you love!

This could include…

• Creating a few short videos to get your front desk assistant or virtual assistant (VA) up to speed.
• Streamlining your patient check-in process.
• Automating your emails so your patients get appointment reminders and regular communications – without you having to manually send them.

I know…. systems may not feel glamorous, but they’ll help you work smarter and get more hours back in your day. Even better, they help make the hours you DO have, even better!

3. Commit to Powerful Mindset Work

The more you work on building your practice, the more you may notice the self-talk that crops up. Running your own practice has an uncanny way of bringing all of our pesky insecurities to the surface.

This is why it’s crucial to dedicate time to care for your mind. This means:

• Addressing imposter syndrome when it pops up.
• Operating from an abundance mindset. This is HUGE, especially if you struggle with owning your value and charging your worth.
• Staying on top of how you talk to yourself. Holistic practitioners are notorious for beating themselves up when they don’t see results in their patients. 

Being a holistic or alternative healthcare practitioner is a wonderful thing. But it also comes with its hard days. So, commit to a mindset routine that reinforces your strengths and nudges you towards more self-care and compassion.

4. Daily Routines

One of the things that catches practitioners who run their own practice off-guard is how hard it is to structure your day. It’s so easy to cram as much as you can in your day and then collapse into bed at night, completely exhausted.

One of my go-to practices has been to create daily bookends. You know those objects that go on either side of a row of books that keep them propped up? It’s like having those, but they’re for the end of your day.

Having daily bookends helps me start my day off on the right foot and finish the day well. It helps me end the workday at a decent hour, and it sets me up for success when I wake up the following morning. If you need help creating your daily bookends or want to check out mine, head over to this podcast.

Create a Practice You Love by Working Smarter

I know how easy it is for your days to get away from you. Before long, you can feel like that coyote on the pavement – flatlined, steamrolled and not sure what just happened.

But I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be that way. I’ve gone through the wringer (multiple times) and made tons of mistakes in my early days. That’s why I loooove helping other practitioners steer clear of the common pitfalls of running a wellness practice. I don’t want you to make the same mistakes I did – I want you to make a great income and love what you do.

So, if you’re looking for more ways you can side-step the common practitioner pitfalls, take advantage of my free Facebook group. In it, you’ll find other practitioners, just like you who need a little extra support and can give you advice to help create a practice you love. I’ll give you my best clinical and business advice and answer your questions. I’d love to welcome you in! 😊