#36: The Build-Up Weekly

*Welcome to the 37th edition of The Build-Up, where we deliver insights and inspiration for dentists on every stage of the private practice journey. If this email was forwarded to you, you can click here to subscribe.

Dear friends and colleagues,

I hope you’ve all had a great week and are looking forward to a relaxing weekend. Interstingly, tomorrow is 2/24/24 and my grandmother’s 92nd birthday, so happy birthday Grandma!

Here’s what I have lined up this week:

• When Your Patients Have $$$ [practical advice]

• Earning Vs Building Vs Granting Trust [a little philosophy]

• Thinking about DSOs or Private Equity Deals? [webinar recording]

Let’s go!

Maximizing Tax Return Season

The OpenDental blog had an interesting post recently highlighting the increase in healthcare spending after folks start receiving their tax returns - and how to capitalize on that increased spending.

Take a look at this chart from JP Morgan:

That is an enormous spike in healthcare spending!

From the JP Morgan research:

In other words, patients use their refunds to pay for and receive treatment that they would have otherwise put off.

What does this mean for you?

If your patients have been putting off treatment, now may be the time!

Consider sending out a letter or email encouraging them to use this money to prioritize their health and appearance.

Here’s a basic template that you can adapt to fit your own practice:

Earning Vs Building Vs Granting Trust

Over the last few weeks, I talked a lot about trust.

In researching the topic, I noticed a pretty fierce debate online between the idea that we build trust vs the idea that we earn trust. Others suggested that trust is granted.

I am a philosopher by training, so I thought it would be fun to think through these different ways of talking about trust.

What is really happening behind the scenes?

Is there one best way of talking about trust?

Let’s do a little philosophy.

The typical English expression for increasing our trust is building trust.

So if building is the prevailing image, let’s talk about it.

Over the last six months, I built a small ADU (accessory dwelling unit - basically a granny unit in my backyard).

I was the owner-builder and did most of the general contracting myself, working with the city and coordinating subcontractors, etc.

Sometimes I felt like this:

But in all seriousness, building is crazy.

When you build, you start from bare earth and then decide what you are going to put on the land.

You can build anything you want.

You are limited only by your skill and resources and the laws of physics (and the building code and city planning department).

So how does this relate to trust?

In one sense, building means putting in the work. We work on building our relationships. We work on building trust. We work on building our practices.

But the work itself does not manufacture trust.

We cannot create trust wholly on our own efforts.

People are not bare earth, and we can’t turn someone else into whatever we want.

You may get a first impression with someone, but it’s never on a blank canvas.

When you build trust with people, it’s not like when you build a structure. 

With people, the ‘land’ we build on (the other person) is moving and responsive and contributing their own building materials and ideas.

Action with people is always inter-action.

That’s why some people like to talk about earning trust.

When you earn something, it is something that you receive.

You receive your wages after a day of labor. You don’t just spend your time trying to personally manufacture hundred-dollar bills by yourself - you trade your time and efforts for the money.

Earning captures something important that building does not. While it does require work on our part, it’s not something that we can create by ourselves.

We are not 100% in control of it.

This also highlights the degree to which this trust-building process can feel unfair.

I did everything I was supposed to do! Why don’t you trust me??

That sounds a lot like:

I did the work! Why won’t you pay for my labor??

And where one can go to court to fight for the payment you deserve, there is no court where you can go to get the trust you “deserve” for doing everything right.

People are not vending machines. Just because you put in a dollar doesn’t mean you’ll be guaranteed a soda, and there’s no one to complain to when you don’t.

When you hire someone, you set out a sort of contract. Do these particular things for me and I will compensate you in this particular way.

But with trust, the rules of the game, so to speak, are less clear.

This lack of clarity is precisely where the three pillars of trust come in: integrity, ability, and benevolence.

When we work on demonstrating these three areas, we build trustworthiness - or, in other words, we do the work to put ourselves in a position to be granted trust by others.

All of this is basically to say the following:

We don’t grant trust to ourselves, but we can work on earning that trust by building our trustworthiness.

And we do that in all kinds of ways, from simply showing up consistently day after day, to summarizing the conversation we just had with the patient in front of the patient so that they feel heard, to framing our exams in terms that our patient set out for us.

There is no magic bullet to trust. We can’t force others to trust us.

But we can control our actions and work to make ourselves as worthy of trust as possible.

That sounds like a good goal to me.

Thinking about DSOs or Private Equity?

I realized I’ve been burying the lead on this webinar.

If you’re thinking about selling to a DSO or exploring options with private equity, this is a must-watch!

You can skip the beginning (about the first ten minutes) where I review market conditions and trends, but I think the comparisons between doctor-to-doctor sales, DSO deals, and private equity opportunities are really worth a watch.

I love doctor-to-doctor sales, and we will continue doing them for a very long time. I think that this is usually the best deal for most dentists.

However, if you are curious about selling to a corporate group and absolutely maximizing the value of your practice, then I think we are offering the absolute best way to put the most money into your pocket.

And we’re the only group doing this exact model.

So, if you’re curious, check out this webinar.

And if you want to chat more, reply to this email, call or text our office at (855) 337-4337, or call or text me directly at (805) 748-7439.

And with that, I hope you enjoyed the 37th edition of The Build-Up Weekly!

With best wishes to you and your families,

Trevor Kimball, PhD

p.s. please use the link below to share our newsletter. 🙂 

These Six Mistakes Can Cost You Six Figures

Download our free guide “6 Mistakes to Avoid for a Successful Practice Sale” here. It’s material that I’ve covered in this newsletter before, but - if you’re contemplating a practice sale - the advice in this guide is crucial.

And if you’re ready to have a conversation with a practice sales professional, get connected with your local Integrity Practice Sales broker here.

It’s worth having a conversation, no matter your current transition plans.

You never know what you’ll discover together