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November 20, 2009| dentalproductsreport.com
THE game changer How good of a leader are you? When a high school football team loses 23 games in a row, the players have heard it all—and have dug such a deep hole it seems impossible to climb out. In three years the Hillcrest Knights of Idaho Falls, Idaho, dug such a hole. During the 2005, 2006 and 2007 seasons this team played 23 games and didn’t win a single one. By the time the 2007 season came the hole was so gaping they only scored 28 points the entire season, while their opponents scored a combined 335 points against them. The team’s seniors had not seen their team win a game since they were freshmen, and as freshmen they watched the varsity win only two games. It didn’t take long before Hillcrest was every other teams’ homecoming opponent. It took a bit longer for the student body to cheer wildly just for first downs, and then a bit longer before the student body stopped attending games altogether. The stands were only dotted with saddened parents and grandparents hoping their boys could handle one more defeat. During the 2008 season, these very same seniors who had not won a game since they were freshmen shocked the state: They won the state 4A football title with an 11-1 season going up against very talented teams and defeating them with skill and poise. What changed? The players, the school, the parents and grandparents didn’t change. No new talent was recruited. In fact, the talent pool got smaller as boys who might have played decided to join the school’s state-champion cross country team instead. Only one thing changed—the coach. In 2008 the head coaching job for the Knights became available for the second time in three years and Darren Owens of southern California took the job. And Coach Owens is no stranger to this type of job; it’s the fourth time in his career he has turned around a team like the Knights. How can changing one person make such a profound impact? How is it possible that a team can go from laughing stock to champions? Owens has learned the art and science of leading—and instilling leadership inside every member of his team. One got a good sense for this leadership watching Owens as his team played in the state championship game last fall. In contrast to many head coaches, who bark orders from the sidelines or parade around with clipboard in hand, if you didn’t know who Coach Owens was you would never know he was the coach by watching the sidelines. But by the inspired way his team played you could sense that Coach Owens was in the heart and soul of every Hillcrest Knight. He was in every play, every move, every effort. He believed and prepared and developed these boys so well that they then believed in themselves. Leadership is not only a gamer changer, it is THE game changer. Without it a team is simply a group of individuals struggling to get something done but always falling short or failing completely. With leadership, that very same group transforms into a unified team capable of achieving the impossible. This is especially true in a people-oriented business like dentistry. Building on a foundation of clinical excellence, how a dental team is led impacts every part of a practice including the:
Leadership is both an art and science and it can be taught to practice leaders who are looking to go beyond the norm. My years of working with leaders tells me leadership is a skill that can be developed. It takes personal desire, humility and vision to do so. It is very much an “inside out” journey—and the end result is worth every effort. As for the Hillcrest Knights, was it a one season fluke? Today they are rated twentieth in the nation among all 4,125 4A high school football teams. And the story continues…with a record of 9-1 tonight, as this column is written, they march into the state semi finals. Leadership is indeed THE game changer. Nothing can take its place. Robert Spiel, MBA, is a professional speaker, writer, and consultant to dental practices across the United States. He founded Spiel Consulting to leverage his passion for working closely with health care professionals - guiding them toward peak performance and prosperity. A former hospital and surgical center CEO, he has 25 years experience in transformational leadership, marketing, and business finance. A member of the Speaking Consulting Network(SCN) and Chairman of the SCN Strategic Planning Committee, he is available to speak nationwide. Bob also serves on the board of Climbing for a Cause which provides dental care to children in the remote areas of Guatamala and Tibet.
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