Fine differences

I just spent an interesting day watching qualifying matches at the Australian Open Tennis Tournament. These are matches between players who are trying to make it into the main draw because their ranking does not allow automatic access. Typically they are ranked 140 in the world or lower.

The bottom line from watching them is that they are all absolutely incredible players. Just amazing, especially to a normal club player like me.

Yet, the difference between the living that these players earn and that earned by the top 50 in the world is night and day. Top players make a fortune while the "qualifiers" barely make ends meet.

In dentistry we see the same thing. Top dentists easily gross over $1M (or $1.5M) per year while mediocre ones gross $300K. Yet, if you watched them on a given day they would both look much the same – just like the lower ranked tennis players.

Just like in tennis the differences are subtle. I'll give you my take on what separates elite dentists from the ordinary ones.

Firstly, top dentists are good at explaining treatment to patients and getting case acceptance. They do it efficiently, clearly and in a way that doesn't alienate patients. The also rans take a long time, confuse patients and get lots of fee resistance.

Next, top dentist work efficiently – they get the job done with minimum fuss in a reasonable time frame. The also rans take ages to get things done.

Finally, in a good practice the systems are streamlined and allow the dentist to focus on the patients. The also rans have chaotic systems that frequently take them away from the dentistry and makes them do non-essential tasks.

Fortunately the skills needed to be a top performing dentist can be learnt. You don't need prodigious eye-hand coordination or the reflexes of a mongoose on amphetamines.

Subtle changes can make a big difference in your performance.