The Next Chapter

I published my first blog post on July 26, 2009. I did this as an example to show my clients the significant SEO benefit they would receive by adding content to their website. Since that initial foray into Internet exposure, I have continued writing posts every 10 to 14 days for almost nine years. I’d like to share some thoughts and observations with you that I have learned from this project.

1. Don’t be afraid to try something new. I literally had no idea how to publish a post. I had never even heard of WordPress. The mechanics were daunting. But new technologies are only new until you get used to them. They quickly become routine.

2. Don’t be afraid of failure. I always think of the famous Japanese proverb that says “get knocked down seven times – get up eight!” To fear failure is an admission that you will most likely never accomplish anything of substance. Leaving your comfort zone has to become part of your DNA.

3. Rome wasn’t built in one day. Understand that it takes time and patience and a lot of hard work to achieve some level of expertise. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell chronicles the results of successful entrepreneurs who spend 10,000 hours to refine their skills.

4. Always remain open to new ideas and different approaches and continue to learn. So whether you want to add new clinical procedures to your practice, change the direction of your practice, downsize, upsize, relocate, expand or merge – just go for it. “Continuing to do what you always do but expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.”  Albert Einstein.

5. Embrace mentors who can help you in your journey. There have been so many wonderful people that have helped me with the branding of my posts:

• Tim Healy of TNT Dental has been a friend since the day we started working together to build my first website. The man is a technical rock star and an Internet genius.

• My multiple grandchildren who seem to come out of the womb carrying an iPad and a cell phone!

• Seth Godin has been a true inspiration. Readers of my posts know how often I reference his wisdom. Seth is one of the most prolific and followed bloggers in the world. I read him religiously every day.

• Rich and Dave Madow are wonderful friends who have a well-deserved national reputation in the dental profession. They were most gracious to frequently mention me and my blog posts to their audience.

Now that I have hopefully inspired you to take on your next challenge, I did want to announce that I have decided to take a bit of a hiatus from publishing my posts. It may not be always apparent, but the average post – doing the research, writing and editing – takes me about five hours. My coaching and consulting business continues to grow,  and I now find that I really need to devote  more time to spend with clients.

So I will still reserve the right to weigh in with informative material or an opinion – but not on a regular basis. I want to thank you for your comments and useful feedback over these many years. Your support has been invaluable and thoroughly appreciated.