Rick's Business of Audiology Blog

You are invited to have some fun while we learn!

Your Invitation is here!

Learning can be fun, or a chore. Let's make it fun. If you are an Independent Audiologist, or want to be one, then this invitation is for you.

If it is fun, and also FREE, then why not? If it is fun, FREE, and worthwhile, then that is even better. One of my mottos is: "If it isn't going to be fun, then it has better be really really useful." I am so confident you will find this fun, free, and really really useful I am willing to be the person who invites you to the playground to play.

This will give you an opportunity to experientially learn about some financial concepts including things like active vs. passive income. Some team building concepts including the difference between, accidental team members, intentional team members, and detrimental team members.

And perhaps most importantly how you define your purpose and others define their purpose, as you see it played out on your screen.

You will learn how to use online tools, like Facebook, to improve your ability to achieve your personal and professional purposes.

It will give you a forum to meet some other Independent Audiologists in other parts of the country and add them to your support team network.

It will give you the opportunity to pick my brain on topics of interest to you without paying me! (Yes, my purpose is to help you succeed and this is like an invitation into my virtual office.)

It is completely self paced and you can participate or quit at any time.

We will use a Free online business building game called Farmville on Facebook.

Please send me a friend request using Facebook. (In you aren't sure how, and at one time we all weren't sure how, then send me an e-mail or call and I will walk you through the process rick@thrivingaudiology.com or 1-866-737-6243. If you aren't a Facebook user expect it to take about 5-10 minutes.)

Then start the online game Farmville by entering Farmville in the search box on the top of the page and most likely the top search result will be Farmville with a mini green headed duck on the box logo and some 80+ million monthly active users.

I will send you an invitation to a group on Facebook where we can interact and learn about Facebook groups.

All of this for perhaps 10-30 minutes a day, on the days when you can participate.

Rick

If you have any questions please give me a call or send an e-mail.

1-866-737-6243

rick@thrivingaudiology.com

Speaking Opportunities

I am planning to allocate a couple of trips in 2010 for speaking engagements at conferences. If you know of a conference, local or national, that would be of interest please make the introductions. Or suggest them to me or me to them or whatever.

I didn't allocate time to this in 2009 and I miss the opportunity.

Rick

New Class Starts Aug 3

Professional Development and Personal Finance I

This has been on my list for some time and I have been seeking for a way to accomplish it.

My goal was to enable people to experience some of the aspects of team building, leadership, and finance, in some fun and entertaining way. People need to experience these before they need to know them. Just like you practiced a hearing evaluation before you performed it on a real patient.

I was recently introduced to a new tool. The introduction came from a spouse of one of my clients who sent me an invitation. I have never been a computer or online game player. I have always had "more important" things to do.

However I clicked on the invite sort of absent mindedly and VOILA! The teaching tool I had been seeking appeared before my eyes.

Over my vacation I was able to think about how to apply it and experiment with it to determine how it worked and how to use it. I am thrilled! The documentation is coming together easier than I hoped, as it often does when everything is working out.

I now have a great tool for experientially teaching important concepts in a "safe" environment.

I will start my first group on the first of August. If you want to join please e-mail me for information. The first group will be a discounted group as they will help me refine the process.

You can join, or get free info, by e-mailing me: rick@thrivingaudiology.com.

I am really looking forward to this helping you!

Rick

First Right of Refusal: Think before you act.

Friday's post about the business advice from vendors generated some comments. Good.

Several revolved around vendors asking for a first right of refusal on your business. This is a HUGE deal in the business world. It is potentially giving your family wealth to someone else.

Here is how I encourage you to think.

Financial Advice from Vendors - Bad Idea

Here is an article about suppliers providing financial advice.  It is worth a read.

In this short article Meidar points out the "obvious" problem of taking financial advice from the sales groups you are buying from.  Madoff's scheme to separate wealthy people from their money has made this a hot topic today in the popular press.  The idea has been around for as long as there have been people with money who are willing to wish as opposed to reason.

Three Points:

1. A lot of people have been taken this way. Slick sales people offer you a carrot, while stealing your farm. There is a saying a fool and his money are soon parted. This is often a way they part.
2. The people taken are often good at something, but not the finances. Called Marks in the industry. Audiologists as a group are very smart, honest, and trusting. The supplier company management may not be honest or trusting. It makes for an uneven playing field. If you are honest and trusting you are at risk for a smooth sales persons to woo you out of your inheritance and the family wealth you have worked so hard to create.
3. Successful people use fee for service. It removes the obvious conflict of interest.

http://www.forbes.com/2009/06/05/financial-advice-health-opinions-contributors-ubs-madoff.html

When you go to pay cash for a car, do you allow the sales person to examine all of your financial portfolio, business strategies, and take a look at all of your personal financial information before you even look at the car?

Obviously not.

I hope this helps you,

Rick

Promotion Letter Strike Out

Audiologists aren't the only people who send marketing letters that don't achieve their purpose.

My inbox today contained a letter from one of my insurance agents. I have quite a few policies with him; home, auto, boat, etc., it looked just like a statement, so I opened it.

It reads:

Dear Richard,

Let's look at your home policy.

Business is slow in my office and I want to sell you additional insurance you may never want or need.

Best Month Ever: Again

I just finished a phone call with a client who is having her best month ever. These past few days have been like that. It seems almost every month sets new highs for her in the number of people she is actually helping hear. This seems to be a great time to be in the Dispensing Business. It seems for most everyone May was a great month for helping people hear.

There is so much talk about the economy and all sorts of other problems it would be easy to think times are bad for everyone.

AAA Friday Review

This is the first time I have ever come to AAA and collected so much information. None of the booths were busy. This was great for the attendees as the representatives had lots of time to talk, and not just pop out the expected answers. This was a treat for those in attendance.

AAA Thursday Review

It would appear to me that attendance is way down. Perhaps no one wants to come to Dallas in April.

Many of the HUGE booths are mostly empty; some are almost vacant. However there are a couple of new things worth your attention: If you don't use them you ought to know what your competitors might be using.