Diederik Gelderman

[diederikgelderman]

Welcome to Turbo Charge Your Practice. This is Diederik Gelderman.

I have become fascinated by productivity and how the super-achievers manage to get through the things that they do with so little apparent effort. People like Buffett, Branson, Gates, Steve Jobs and Steven Covey. They seem to be supermen, superheroes in their abilities to be get through stuff. 

Most of my life I have been one of these overachieving, overdoing type of people. The difference between me and you and those above, is that we are doing it and doing it and working 70 - 100 hours a week and not achieving what these guys are doing in 20 - 30.

So, the four things that they do are the vital functions, vital priorities, vital metrics and vital transformations. 

If you were in a car accident, and went to the hospital or the emergency ward, what do you want the doctors in that emergency ward to concentrate on? Your extremity issues or the vital issues? 

In Veterinary practice, we have vital functions, vital priorities, vital metrics, and vital transformations. And yet most practice owners, practice managers, people that run the business, concentrate on the extremity issues. 

And that is the big difference between the Bransons, the Buffets, the Jobs’ of the world and us. Buffet, Brandon, Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Steven Covey, all those people, Gates, Trump, all concentrate on the vital issues of their business not the extremity issues. 

Concentrating on the vital issues is much, much, much more important and it’s also harder to do. 

Just a little bit off topic and also on topic. 

I am hosting a PRODUCTIVITY workshop in Sydney on 20 and 21 February 2015. 

Day 1 insane productivity. I have taken all these strategies from these top guys and girls and put them together in a 1-day format for you. 

On day 2, insane practice growth - specific practice building strategies. 

So Day 1 underpins Day 2 – because I want to be 100% sure that you will go home and IMPLEMENT!

https://dgelderman.leadpages.net/ch2/ 

Your Vital Functions. Do you know what your vital functions are? You should only have 2 or 3. What are your 3 key functions? 

These are the vital things that you do for running and growing your veterinary practice that no-one else in your practice can do. 

Now, I am going to challenge you to write down your 3 key functions and then by using a stop watch, measure EXACTLY how much time you spend EXCLUSIVELY carrying out your Vital Functions every day – for one week.

ONLY when you are doing your vital functions, click that stopwatch to start and when you finish doing your vital functions, click it to stop.  

You are going to get shocked at how little time you actually spend on your key vital functions. If you spend 30 minutes (daily) on those key vital functions, I will be surprised. 

Let’s now talk about the concept of vital priorities. Vital functions are the big overarching things we have just talked about. Vital priorities are your three priorities that drive you to achieving those vital functions. 

I will finish up on this topic in the next couple of videos. But I suggest you try Buffet’s method of goal setting or you can call it ‘the Buffet method of prioritisation’. 

Step 1: Write down every single goal that you have. Write them down. Everyone can do that. 

Step 2: Number the top three. Pick out three and put 1, 2, 3 next to them. You can do that. 

Step 3: This is where Buffet differs. Write down THE three and take all the other ones and throw them out. So you think “Diederik, Hey, Hang on. I can’t do that. I can’t do that. I want to have the rest of them sitting on the side here, so that I can show them a little bit of love occasionally. If I’m bored with these top 3, then I can do something else. I can work on it”. 

No You Can’t….

That’s why Buffet is Buffet. That’s why Richard Branson is Branson. They all use that method. 

Top 3. Throw out the rest. 

We’re going to leave it here for today; the challenge for you is the stopwatch test and getting your 3 priorities, your 3 goals and throwing out all the rest. 

Come to that February 21/21 workshop, learn the strategies from these super-achievers. It is a very limited workshop because it will be a hands-on workshop. 

It’s $349. That’s peanuts for the outcome you will get.  

Day 1, insane productivity. 

Day 2, insane practice growth.

See you there or see you on the next video. Bye.

[diederikgelderman]

Here’s what you’re going to learn today; 

How to understand your practice finances quickly and easily

How to manage your practice finances in less than 1 hour a month

How to target and achieve the profitability that is easily achievable (20%)

How to create a ‘financial system’ that you can teach to anybody (to make yourself redundant

We’ll achieve those outcomes by; 

Effective delegation

Getting Automating and Integration to work for you

Get a thorough understanding of the basics

Understanding your role

Effective Delegation

You went into practice to be a Veterinarian, just a Veterinarian and to do clinical work! And you ended up owning / running / managing a Veterinary practice – this is not exactly what you were trained for nor are you typically good at it.

Most Veterinarians tell me that they intensely dislike this side of their practice and typically they and you really want to go back to being a Veterinarian.

Well it is possible! It’s very doable through delegation. Remember this: ‘you have the most amount of control when you have no control at all’.

But we don’t want to let go of many of the things in our practice for many reasons;

It’s hard to train someone to do it right

It’s hard to find the right person to do the job

They don’t do it the way I want it done

They’re too slow

It’s my baby and I’m responsible

Etc.

These are all training issues and they’re all EASILY solved. 

But firstly, the idea of life, the idea of work is to do the work you love and to delegate the rest. So you need to find someone that loves to do what you hate so that you only have to do the things that you love. You want to move from labour to leadership.  

All you’ve got to do is inspect what you expect and let someone else perform that role so that you are then freed up to focus on your vital functions; the things that contribute the most to the practice.  

Everything you do is keeping you from what you should be doing.  

Automation & Integration

Resources to do this are so commonly available and so easy these days. Doing this alone will save you HOURS a week. Here are some examples

Practice software which integrates into financial management software 

Accounting software which once set up will automate at least 80% of your data entry. 

Bookkeeping services – you pay someone $35ph to release you to do higher end work which brings in four or five times the amount of money you pay the bookkeeper

Automated wages packages – finger-print swipe or password protected login systems 

Get a Basic Understanding of ‘the finances and the financials of your practice’

You need to develop a simple, effective and manageable system that gives you the data that you need in order to maximise your practice’s financial outcomes. This data needs to give you a robust, solid overview of what you need to ‘correct’ and the ‘correctional’ strategies that are needed. And you need to be able to oversee and to do this in 1 hour a month or less.

Your role is also to choose and correlate data that is meaningful, relevant and pertinent to your practice and your practices’ vision and goals. 

Your Role 

Your role is to be the practice leader, to be the Veterinarian and to do what you do best.

Your role is also to manage your practice effectively for optimal financial outcomes for all the stakeholders; you, your Team, your family and your clients.

Your role is to devote one hour per month to go through, analyse and above all ACTION those reports and ensure that your practice ship is focused on the goals and targets that you’ve set. Proactive not reactive

If you like this material and want to get this system happening in your own practice, then there is a really easy way to do it. All you have to do is join me in the Your Practice Finances Made Easy On-Line Training

Your Practice Finances Made Easy On-Line Training shows you exactly and in detail how to set your practice up financially for success and it goes through everything that you need to know in order to do so. With even more detail and information on KPIs than we’ve shared today.

Email me for details on [email protected]

[diederikgelderman]

Here’s what you’re going to learn today; 

How to understand your practice finances quickly and easily

How to manage your practice finances in less than 1 hour a month

How to target and achieve the profitability that is easily achievable (20%)

How to create a ‘financial system’ that you can teach to anybody (to make yourself redundant

We’ll achieve those outcomes by; 

Effective delegation

Getting Automating and Integration to work for you

Get a thorough understanding of the basics

Understanding your role

Effective Delegation

You went into practice to be a Veterinarian, just a Veterinarian and to do clinical work! And you ended up owning / running / managing a Veterinary practice – this is not exactly what you were trained for nor are you typically good at it.

Most Veterinarians tell me that they intensely dislike this side of their practice and typically they and you really want to go back to being a Veterinarian.

Well it is possible! It’s very doable through delegation. Remember this: ‘you have the most amount of control when you have no control at all’.

But we don’t want to let go of many of the things in our practice for many reasons;

It’s hard to train someone to do it right

It’s hard to find the right person to do the job

They don’t do it the way I want it done

They’re too slow

It’s my baby and I’m responsible

Etc.

These are all training issues and they’re all EASILY solved. 

But firstly, the idea of life, the idea of work is to do the work you love and to delegate the rest. So you need to find someone that loves to do what you hate so that you only have to do the things that you love. You want to move from labour to leadership.  

All you’ve got to do is inspect what you expect and let someone else perform that role so that you are then freed up to focus on your vital functions; the things that contribute the most to the practice.  

Everything you do is keeping you from what you should be doing.  

Automation & Integration

Resources to do this are so commonly available and so easy these days. Doing this alone will save you HOURS a week. Here are some examples

Practice software which integrates into financial management software 

Accounting software which once set up will automate at least 80% of your data entry. 

Bookkeeping services – you pay someone $35ph to release you to do higher end work which brings in four or five times the amount of money you pay the bookkeeper

Automated wages packages – finger-print swipe or password protected login systems 

Get a Basic Understanding of ‘the finances and the financials of your practice’

You need to develop a simple, effective and manageable system that gives you the data that you need in order to maximise your practice’s financial outcomes. This data needs to give you a robust, solid overview of what you need to ‘correct’ and the ‘correctional’ strategies that are needed. And you need to be able to oversee and to do this in 1 hour a month or less.

Your role is also to choose and correlate data that is meaningful, relevant and pertinent to your practice and your practices’ vision and goals. 

Your Role 

Your role is to be the practice leader, to be the Veterinarian and to do what you do best.

  Your role is also to manage your practice effectively for optimal financial outcomes for all the stakeholders; you, your Team, your family and your clients.

Your role is to devote one hour per month to go through, analyse and above all ACTION those reports and ensure that your practice ship is focused on the goals and targets that you’ve set. Proactive not reactive

If you like this material and want to get this system happening in your own practice, then there is a really easy way to do it. All you have to do is join me in the Your Practice Finances Made Easy On-Line Training

Your Practice Finances Made Easy On-Line Training shows you exactly and in detail how to set your practice up financially for success and it goes through everything that you need to know in order to do so. With even more detail and information on KPIs than we’ve shared today.

Email me for details on [email protected]

[diederikgelderman]

Profit is NOT a Dirty Word

WHY SHOULD WE TALK ABOUT PROFIT– I’m here to look after PETS!

Many Veterinarians are never focused on profitability. Firstly they don’t know what their current profitability is and secondly they don’t target an amount or a degree of profitability. So, at the end of the year they just accepted the profitability figure (or let’s be honest here – the LACK of profitability figure) – that their accountant hands to them. 

YES – clinical work and good clinical outcomes and well cared for pets is critical, it’s paramount. And the bottom line is that GOOD Veterinary Medicine is profitable.

Let’s be honest – many non-professional, just blue collar workers earn more than we do. Most other small businesses earn more than we do to – and let’s not even look at dentists, lawyers, accountants and other professions with a similar level of training and skills

An important point: it’s not about the money – it’s what you can do with the money; send your kids to the school you want, hire a relief Vet so you can go to the ball game on Saturday, pay your team well, donate money or more importantly, time, to your favourite charities, to in fact Have A Life

The State Of The Industry

Some Numbers To Be Aware Of: 

25% of practices break even or lose money and have to be propped up by their owners or by the owner’s families. They exist ALL over the world.

The average practice profitability world-wide is 7%-8%. Compare this to a shop-keeper or the owners of a franchise like McDonalds and the like whose profit levels are MUCH higher. 

75% of Veterinarians will retire on less than the median wage

80% of Veterinarians run out of money to live on before they die

What’s Achievable? 

12% is EASILY without much real effort. 

20% is also readily achieved with a bit of concentrated effort and focus 

The Keys To Practice Profitability

Missed Charges 

Discounts

Shopped Fee Prices

Charge For Everything (subtly different to missed charges

Practice Model – the first EXTRA

What is your practice model? In fact have you thought about this and determined it and created your market niche?

The extremes are low touch/low tech and high touch/high tech. This is where the profitability is. 

All the competition and heartache and price competition and price gouging is in the middle grouping where there is no perceived (or in fact real) differentiation – both from the clients’ and the practices’ perspective.

Monitor and Master Your KPIs – the second EXTRA

Refer to the last video

Understanding Your Costs

You need to know the COST of supplying staff

And the COST of supplying services to your clients. 

‘Marry’ income and expense centres. 

Ensure that your costs of running a particular part of your ‘practice’ is balanced off by the income generated directly from that same area. 

Examples of Income Centres and Cost or Expense Centres

Pathology, Travelling, Imaging / U-S, Food, OTC, Drugs / Medications

The Fine Distinctions That make ALL The Difference

Pay yourself first. 

Treat it like a business 

Set your income and expense targets and your annual PROFIT targets ahead of time and go for it 

Set up a separate bank account for compliance payments and segregate them out of your business

Imagine how good you’ll feel when you know that everything (wrt your practice profitability) is ship shape in your practice – think of how relaxed you’d be and how well you’ll sleep at night.

Think of how good it would feel to DIVEST yourself of all your financial worries; to be able to take time off for those special family events, to be able to send your kids to the school that you want to, to do something as simple as being able to put braces on Billy’s teeth

[diederikgelderman]

do you wear a seatbelt when you're driving your car....

A car seat belt is a little like a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in a Veterinary Practice. 

Do you ‘buckle-up’ your practice KPIs every month? If not why not….  Would you like to quickly, easily and PAINLESSLY manage the KEY DRIVERS of your practice – the Key Performance Indicators (every month).  Today’s NEW video shows you a quick and easy way to do it.

You can listen to the Podcast here...

  OR read the transcription here...  Enjoy  Diederik Gelderman  P.S. Today’s video is a continuation from where we left off a few days ago, and in it, you’ll discover:

How to decide which KPIs to use

How often you should measure your KPIs

Who should measure them

The actions you need to take

  There’s no charge and you can watch it here :-)  P.P.S. If you have any questions or need any help, let me know!  I’d love to hear from you.