Sometimes showing up is the key to dental success?

In my opinion, success involves a lot of hard work, done day after day over a long haul. No one achieves legendary results in a day. It helps not only to work hard but also to observe the results of our efforts. some will not work out as well as others. Don't get too discouraged.  If something is not working we need to try something different.  Eventually, if we are both diligent and observant our ventures are more likely to succeed. Years of effort are often rewarded.

As Sally Fields said " I guess they like me!"

I also have found it's also important to be open to criticism.  Although it is hard to listen to, some of the greatest progress I have made in my career has been made only after I have made changes to my "standard operating procedures".  It is important if things don't turn out as well  that we ebe open to listening to constructive criticism.  Failures in dentistry, unexpected complications and even angry patients can teach us valuable lessons only if we can be open to learn lessons that will help us avoid similar negative outcomes in the future.  The saying, sometimes attributed to Albert Einstein ," Doing things over and over that aren't working is the definition of insanity" implies that mistakes provide us with an opportunity to learn.

When I was in college in my junior year one of my professors kept giving me C's on my papers. I went to him and complained about my poor grades and he suggested I rewrite some of them. Each time I brought him a revision he showed me in clear terms how I could improve it through better organization and elaboration. I must confess that although I really  mad at him at the time, he helped me more than any other teacher. His criticism showed me the way to improve my skills as a writer and editor and I owe him a debt of gratitude.

Luck has a role to play in success in dental practice.  Opportunity may come knocking and opening the right doors definitely plays a part in an individual's success. In my own case I was  offered the opportunity to buy a number of dental practices at very reasonable prices. These "dental opportunities" presented themselves to me partly because I was in the right place at the right time and partly because the persons offering me their practices respected and trusted me to take good care of their patients and honor the financial arrangements we had negotiated.

To sum it up, I do not believe that in life the rate of our progress is steady. Clearly we will our share of  have failures and less than stellar results but these can be an opportunity for growth if  we are open to learning from them. Good ideas are helpful, but when they are poorly executed they tend to lead no where, while  sustained hard work often leads to greater success. My advice to young dental practitioners is to not get discouraged if they don't initially achieve the degree of success they dream of. Continuing effort to learn and improve will tend to pay off in the long run.

from Ask Dr. Spindel - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/2018/12/sometimes-showing-up-is-key-to-dental.html - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/