5 steps for breaking through self-imposed limitations

When is the last time you said, or heard, the phrase "I've tried everything -- nothing works!" What is your typical reaction to hearing it? Do you throw your hands up and say, "Oh well, you tried?" Unless you have a process for breaking through that barrier, you likely respond just that way. And nothing gets resolved.

Jay Geier is the president and founder of the Scheduling Institute.

I want to introduce you to some familiar friends -- or foes, actually: self-imposed limitations. We all hang out with them -- more often than we should.

To appreciate this concept, we first have to understand and accept that we all have God-given potential or inherent capabilities. We also need to understand that no one is living up to that full potential -- not you, not me, not your staff, and not mine. And it's the self-imposed limitations that keep us from fulfilling that potential.

What exactly is a self-imposed limitation? It's an excuse, really. It could be time, money, energy or upbringing. It is whatever you think is holding you back, keeping you from living up to your potential -- the thing that halts forward progress in your life.

5 steps

Since our potential is in constant battle with our self-imposed limitations, we need to have a strategic process in place to plow through them instead of get hung up by them. Here are five steps to take when encountering self-imposed limitations for yourself and your staff and then six ways to implement them into your routine immediately:

1. For you: Always take responsibility -- acknowledge that you aren't living up to your full potential. For your staff: Trust that everyone has self-imposed limitations that keep them from their potential.
2. Hit the brakes when you start to say or hear "I've tried everything ... ." No one has tried everything. There is always more to consider.
3. For you: Write down your process of resolving an issue. As soon as you analyze your process, it exposes weaknesses and you will begin to see areas for improvement. For your staff: Ask them questions about their process. Questions cause people to break down their self imposed limitations and rethink their approach.
4. Ask yourself or your team "How can I/you improve this process?" and make modifications without relying on the constraints of time or money.
5. Develop an accountability system. Use your spouse or your team. Be better at self-accountability than self-imposed limits.

6 ways

So now that you have the steps to take, start to put them into action. It's analysis time.

1. Think about all of the things that are "sticking" you right now. What's holding you back? What's not getting done? What's limiting your potential? What's limiting your team's?
2. Write down what is holding you back and then write down every potential solution possible. Consider what the payoff will be once you do break down that barrier.
3. Get out of your silo. Pull someone else or others into a brainstorm session on how to breakthrough your barriers.
4. Leverage the team to get your breakthrough. You've hired smart, creative people for a reason. Use them to help you think outside those limitations.
5. A barrier is an excuse. When you can see it for what it is, it is easier to tackle and overcome.
6. Implement your new plan and track its progress.

If you can't get a handle on and begin to overcome your limitations, there's no way you'll be able to help others. You simply won't have the capacity. And the last time I checked, dentists are in the business of helping others.

And speaking of your patients, let's say you have one who can't smile, but she isn't going to fix it because she is afraid of potential pain -- a self-imposed limitation. What are you going to do when she resists treatment because of that fear? Are you going to say, "I'd be afraid too if I were you," or "You're right to be afraid -- I'd get out of here!"

Of course not! But if you can't get over your own self-imposed limitations, how are you going to help patients get over theirs? And what is your system going to be?

Use the steps I outlined above and start breaking through those limitations today.

Jay Geier is the president and founder of the Scheduling Institute. For more information on the institute's trainings, visit www.sionsitesolutions.com.

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