Integrity - Nothing works without it - Dental Practice Management

Nothing works without integrity. Nothing. When you drop your integrity, you lose power. When you lack integrity, you sabotage your satisfaction. When your integrity slumps, you directly undermine your peace of mind. It's invariant, without integrity nothings works.

"The truth of the matter is you always know the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it. "

- General Norman Schwartzkopf

Integrity is simple, but it is not easy. Integrity is "honoring your word as yourself." Most of us consider that we have integrity, but in actuality we have 'situational' integrity. There are times when we do and there are times when we don't.

The definition of integrity is "whole and complete with nothing left out." Whole and complete with nothing left out is not elastic, a sliding scale, or 'most' of the time. Integrity can't be fractional. You either do or you don't.

Integrity means absolute, unbending, all the time.

Under the strain of the current economic conditions, how many of us are absolute in our integrity? With our patients, with our staff, with our practice finances, and with ourselves?

Without integrity nothing works. So at this time, in the middle of the pressures of this recession, when there is much more difficulty in attracting and retaining new patients, when patients are saying "No" or "Not now" to your treatment recommendations, when cash flow is tight to teetering, when every day is a struggle to fill the book, where does your integrity stand now?

The majority of dentists have integrity as one of their top five core values. But the real test of a core value is to abide by it even if it means greater risk, loss of income, and greater distress.


"Integrity is the essence of everything successful."

- Buckminster Fuller

Are you doing dental procedures you are not fully trained to deliver (implants, endodontics, orthodontics, reconstructions)? Are you presenting treatment that isn't as necessary as you are making it out to be? Are you pressing patients to undergo treatment rather than having them choose the treatment? Are you operating with and inside integrity?

Are you managing your staff through domination or manipulation? Are you less than totally straight with them about the conditions of the practice or what they need to do to keep their jobs? Are you gossiping, playing one against another, not being truthful with them? Are you operating with and inside integrity?

Are you telling your spouse the undiluted truth? Are you painting a rosier picture so your spouse will not get concerned and interrogate you daily? Are you painting a sky-is-falling picture so you can get sympathy and get you off the hook from being responsible? In your communication with your spouse are you operating with and inside integrity?

Are you doing what is clearly required for your practice to remain viable? Or are you in denial, hoping things will soon get better and return to the way they were? Denial, hope, blame, fault, shame, drive you to reduce your commitment to integrity, but every time you sell out on your integrity, you will take a hit.

There is always a consequence to not being your word. There is always a price to pay when you justify why you operate without integrity. There is always a cost to telling white lies. Yes, the payoff might be immediate, but the costs are deep and long.

Sure, there are times when you make a promise and are unable to fulfill it. But when you have integrity, you are responsible and inform those involved that you can't deliver on your promise and renegotiate your promise.

No one is perfect. Promises will be made and broken. But when you're being your word, when you operate with and inside integrity, you own up to and make it right.

"In times like these men should utter nothing for which they would not be willingly responsible through time and in eternity."

- Abraham Lincoln

Reprinted with permission from Dr. Marc Cooper at The Mastery Company