7 Critical Mistakes Practice Owners Make and How You Can Avoid Them

Running a successful practice is no easy feat, and you know it. From overlooking important details to underestimating the complexity of certain tasks, a few missteps can cost time and money—and even sink your business in some cases. That's why we spoke with Paul Wright, an expert on health business owner mistakes so that you have the tools to avoid common pitfalls when starting up or managing your clinic. Let's get started!

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1. Failing to understand the true role of your clinic

Health business owners and future health entrepreneurs should understand that owning a business means more than just achieving freedom. Before you jump in, it's essential to recognize the role of your venture so its objectives don't become overwhelming - as Paul experienced firsthand. He chose his career path with one goal in mind: creating time he could share with family members without sacrificing quality patient care or other critical aspects of running his own practice.

“In practiceology I talk about the freedom score: How many hours in your typical week are you physical with patients? That is your freedom score. If you are doing 40 hours of face to face consulting, and trying to run a business, that doesn’t leave you much freedom for other things. If you want to be a great therapist, maybe you are better off working only as a therapist. If you want to be a health business owner, then your own clinic might be indeed what you are after. Understanding the true role of your business for you, is crucial.”

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2. Falling in love with your service

For health business owners, the key to success is not loving your product or service - it's falling in love with the market. What do community members need? Could you create a solution that helps them get what they want?

Understanding and responding to their needs shows customers that you care about providing quality products and services. “Take Physitrack for example: you don't necessarily have an obsession with exercise prescription software, but your goal has always been to help meet customer demands within this particular market space!”

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3. Falling victim to the perfectionist syndrome

Health professionals, we are all too familiar with the perfectionist syndrome. We tend to overthink and often delay launching our work before it is 'perfect'. Paul emphasises that this can be detrimental to success - so instead of striving for absolute excellence, try aiming only to please your target audience: “You don’t have to be the best in the world; you just have to be the best in their world", he says wisely.

Recognizing when pursuit of perfectionism becomes a hindrance rather than an asset is key - take control back by developing strategies or maybe even seek help from other professionals!

“You don’t have to be the best in the world; you just have to be the best in their world"

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4. Ineffective, non-existent and un-supervised internal systems

As a business owner, it's important to be well-prepared in case of any hiccups. Paul suggests that having an understanding of all internal systems is invaluable—it could mean the difference between smooth sailing and getting lost at sea! He advises making sure you know your way around admin work (anything from booking system to managing patient reports) and teaching other team members how to use these systems so everyone can stay on course no matter what comes up along the journey.

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5. Using your accountant to tell you the business P and L

“If we asked 100 clinic owners whether or not they get monthly reports from their accountants about profits and losses, it's unlikely that any hands would be raised - even though this information is integral to understanding one’s business success.” Paul emphasizes the necessity of tracking these numbers every month—not at year- or quarter-end–to stay afloat amongst an increasingly competitive market.

“Taking time out of your hectic schedule can be difficult, but it’s essential for keeping track on how well you are doing as individuals and businesses alike.”

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6. Ineffective recruitment and retention system

When it comes to today's working culture, it seems that the only constant is change. Paul emphasizes how critical having a reliable recruitment system has become for ensuring success - and not just in acquiring new employees but retaining current ones as well. He cautions us against trying too hard to be friends with our teams; instead suggesting whether we want respect or affection from them might need to remain mutually exclusive.

Difficult decisions can sometimes arise in business, and respect is essential to navigating challenging scenarios. Paul's mentor had this sage advice on the matter: "Your business is like a train; some staff members will come and go along their journey with you." Having reliable systems for recruitment ready-to-go ensures that departures are managed smoothly - leaving no passengers stranded!

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7. Not packaging your services

Let's say that you are a therapist who is great at treating migraines. You can market yourself as a migraine specialist or you can package your service. What does Paul mean?

"If you are a great therapist and you can help migraine patients, then you put together a XYZ migraine program and you tell them that we reduce 50% of migraines in 4 weeks with 8 sessions and certain home exercises. You package your service rather than just call yourself a migraine expert. Like it or not, your patients won't care what you call yourself, they care about the results," Paul concludes.

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Bonus mistakes

1. Putting a monetary value on your family time

“My outlook is straightforward - no question that family comes before work. When weighing options between treating patients to increase financial reward or attending your child's school play, the latter should always be top priority; investing in family time brings a priceless return on investment and never runs out of stock! Knowing what you value most from running a business helps set up clear boundaries, so all decisions don't have to become dilemmas.”

2. Failing to put a monetary value on your work time

As a health business owner, you have the potential to make a huge impact. However, it can be difficult to focus on what's most important and maximize your productivity! Paul suggests asking yourself this simple question: "What is the one valuable task only I can do right now?" Doing so will help ensure that all of your work yields tangible results and maximum value.

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In summary

All in all, it’s important to stay aware of these mistakes. With the right systems set up correctly and ongoing professional development you can create a successful, growing and sustainable health business while avoiding these common traps.

Remember making a few small tweaks to existing processes can make a huge difference.

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Get to know Paul

Paul Wright is a Physiotherapist and former multiple clinic owner who has helped health business owners grow their practices worldwide. His Amazon Best Seller "How to Run a One Minute Practice" and Practiceology™ program have enabled people in 57 countries to increase earnings while reducing workloads, allowing more time to enjoy life. Get his free pdf book "How to Run a One Minute Practice" or complete the free 2 min practice efficiency survey for more tips from Paul.

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