As we continue into summer, it’s time to evaluate new opportunities in your practice and in your life. In coaching and consulting with small and large practices, I find a common weakness ... difficulty evaluating opportunity. I see a lot of “blue sky” thinking in January, boredom and distraction in February, and abandonment of plans thereafter.

When evaluating opportunities for your practice development, it’s best to think strategically. Who thinks strategically that you can model? Military generals. I often urge my clients to read the book “Clausewitz on Strategy,” published by John Wiley & Sons.

Karl Von Clausewitz was one of Napoleon’s generals, and many people say he was the driving force behind Napoleon’s success. It may seem esoteric, but this will help you learn a different model for thinking about your practice. For example, Clausewitz developed the concept of the force multiplier.

Rather than fighting on a large front, Clausewitz used the majority of his men, weapons and horses in a small, concentrated area. He chose the area that would give him maximum leverage from which to fight the rest of the battle. Having achieved the position of leverage early in the battle, the rest was easy.

Whether or not you realize it, you are fighting a battle for brand recognition of your practice. Are you getting maximum leverage out of your resources? Einstein said the same mind that created the problem cannot solve it. If you want to get more out of your practice, you will need some new ideas, new energy, new leverage, and enough resources to get the job done.

I’m no fan of blue sky thinking. I prefer that my clients model proven successes, and take on only projects that have a high success probability and a significant return on investment.

The strategic planning process is a collaborative one. Free-form, divergent thinking is necessary. This is different from the thinking process that clinicians use in their daily practice. I recommend you get out of your office, and get your decision makers and consultants working collaboratively on a plan that’s big enough to get everyone motivated.

Small goals and small plans are harder to achieve than big goals and big plans. Big, audacious, lofty goals draw the team together and build excitement. If you’re having trouble following through on your practice goals, maybe they’re just not big enough.

Another lesson learned from Clausewitz is that battle plans never survive the first encounter with the enemy. No matter what you plan, you will have to adjust, recalibrate and reassess your position. Your strategy won’t change, but your tactics will, according to prevailing circumstances.

Let’s take a concrete example. Your strategy is to become pre-eminent by educating your patients better than any of your competitors. You plan a lecture at a local church, but it is poorly attended. So, you have to change your tactic (how it’s advertised, where it’s held, the title), but you don’t abandon the overall strategy.

I recently worked with an 11-physician group that was attempting to develop its own multispecialty medical office building. It had teamed up with a developer who had originated the concept. But this group had no expert counsel of its own to guide it through the process. It had virtually no real estate development experience and no basis to question the developer’s projections.

The developer promised this group a 10% return if it invested $1 million into the project. The downside was a 50% higher lease rate than the group currently was paying and high finish-out costs.
After I spoke to the developer for about 15 minutes, I negotiated $100,000 off the overall costs for this group. I went back to the group and asked why it didn’t have an independent professional negotiating on its behalf. Group members said they were afraid they would offend the developer and lose the opportunity.

Every practice needs a strategic business adviser … one with a successful track record. Most clinicians are too busy with their practices to effectively evaluate and take down the right opportunities. Good professional help is never cheap—you pay either up front or through missed/mishandled opportunity.

Tax savings is another prime example. Why work hard on increasing gross practice revenues before taking advantage of all the tax strategies available to you? I have an adviser on my dream team who helps my clients achieve tax brackets of 20% and below even while they earn into the mid-six figures.

It turns out it is who you know that matters.

David Zahaluk, MD, is a practicing physician and the founder of “Maximum Income for Physicians,” a consulting group for physicians that offers innovative solutions to practice marketing and staff development. Visit the MIP website at www.UltimatePracticeBuilder.com for free practice-building tips, a Practice Analyzer diagnostic, and a free “Make My Practice Work Harder Than I Do” individual practice evaluation. Dr Zahaluk’s new book, “The Ultimate Practice Building Book” is available on Trafford.com and Amazon.com.

Correction: In last month’s column, the author, Angela Miller, indicated that all physician offices are required to be completely electronic by 2010. This is not true. The misunderstanding apparently derived from the US House passing such a requirement, but the US Senate did not. We regret the error, and apologize for any confusion that this may have caused.