What Happens To My Practice When Life Gets Hard? (Ep. 10)
How can you keep your practice running when life forces you to step away?
If you own a podiatry practice, you may feel like the office can’t function without you, and that taking time for a loss, an illness, or your own mental health would let your patients and staff down. Hard seasons are part of ownership, though, and pushing through alone often leaves you less present for everyone. The support that carries you through them usually has to be built before you need it.
On The Entrepreneurial Podiatrist Podcast, co-hosts Dr. Andrew Schneider and Greg Hardy, CFP®, AEP®, discuss how podiatrists in private practice can build teams that support them during personal crises. Andrew shares how his team adjusted his schedule after he told them about the emotional and mental health challenges he has faced over a number of years. Greg shares how losing his mother affected his ability to maintain his usual work pace, and how his office team supported him while he took time to process his grief.
In this episode, Andrew and Greg discuss:
- Why control, pride, cash flow worries, and concern about what patients will think can make stepping away so hard for owners
- What separates good employees who finish tasks from a team that anticipates needs and fills in on an owner’s off days
- How Andrew delegated dispensing orthotics to a medical assistant and what he learned about relying on his team
- Why involving current staff in interviews and hiring for personality can help build a caring culture
- How documentation, SOPs, access, and clear decision-making authority fit into planning for an unexpected absence
- How much personal context an owner might share with the team, and why support has to flow both ways
- And more!
Building a successful practice isn’t just about keeping patients on the schedule or maintaining revenue. It’s also about creating a team and systems you can rely on when life requires you to step away. Andrew and Greg share why investing in people, delegating responsibility, and preparing for unexpected challenges can help build a business that supports your life.
Resources:
- Email us at entrepreneurialpodiatrist@gmail.com
- aappm401k.com: For questions about the multiple-employer pension 401 plan offered through Beyond Financial Planning and the AAPPM
- Cambridge Investment Research Inc.
Connect with Dr. Andrew Schneider:
Connect with Greg Hardy, CFP®, AEP®:
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