Names, The Iron Cowboy, and Little Leo

I sat in the reception area of my dental office, waiting for my semi-annual cleaning at 8 am. I LOVE my dentist, and, like many others, I think their office struggles with a few things right now. For starters, I was there at 7:47 for my 8 am appointment, and at 7:57, I watched the assistant come around the corner and say, “Are you ready to huddle?” to the ADMIN team. Hmmm…

At 8:02, a face I didn’t recognize (new RDH) came out
“Kristie?”
“Yes. That’s me!”
“Come on back.”

For the next 50 minutes, I had an exceptional dental cleaning. Probably one of the best I had in my life. And yet, this hygienist missed one of the most fundamental opportunities to connect.
She never introduced herself.
For that matter, neither did ANYONE at the practice.
And there were a lot of new faces.

Is every member of your team introducing themselves to patients they don’t know?

This isn’t rocket science. Good heavens. This isn’t even something you’d find in an Advanced Marketing textbook. It’s one of the most basic rules of customer service, and yet, I’m starting to notice it EVERWHERE, not just in my own dentist’s office.

Need some advice in less than 30 seconds?
Here’s James Lawrence, The Iron Cowboy, on “impossible experiences” and what to do when you are in the middle of something excruciatingly hard.

The Best Thing I’ve Read This Week
“The Brief, Wondrous Life of Little Leo” is written by Lewann Babler in Outside Magazine and tells the story of her son, Leo. It’s one of the most compelling stories I’ve read about love, unselfishness, parenting, and how I know children and parents don’t end up together “by accident.”