Chris Barrow’s Blog

“Stupid” – that’s my one-word summary of how I felt at the end of Ashley’s first day.

Because I know this stuff – I’ve been watching Ashley develop this programme for the last 9 years – and because I have

1. forgotten to use all of it in my own delivery and
2. omitted to train my support team in the wonderfully simple lead conversion process that Ashley teaches

So over dinner last night I asked Ashley to fly down to Newquay sometime soon and train us “in house” until we are word perfect.

Friday’s training was superb and, after the usual period of ice-breaking, we all got along famously (common suffering I suppose – moving out of comfort zone and all that).

Ash is just SO good at delivering this course – and my heart breaks that so many dentists don’t attend and equally that so many bring themselves and not their team members.

Our very own Emma John is here with team – as are one or two of the other delegates – but nowehere near enough.

In my opinion, the receptionists who are here are the “stars” as they need lots of courage to just show up.

My enjoyment of the programme is evidenced by my copious notes and my lack of distraction – I’m usually a nightmare on other people’s presentations – fidgeting in my seat and wanting to take over.

Not here – Ash is a master of his trade.

Great dinner with 8 last night – back at Biancos after a very welcome glass of Pinot Grigio Blush on the sea-front.

Walking back to the hotel last night we yet again ran the gauntlet of tarts and yobs – how sad that has spoiled what would otherwise be a lovely town.

The sunshine of the early evening has been replaced this morning by a low mist that envelops the coast.

Off we go again…

Â

The media are now telling us that the flood recovery systems in the UK are the biggest since World War II – and here in Torquay this morning it’s wet, windy and cold.

Later this morning I’ll be registering at Ashley Latter’s Ethical Selling programme for the first time in about 4 years and I’m looking forward to the show.

Arriving in Torquay last evening I vindicated the decision to stay away from the course hotel – and checked into a lovely little family-owned boutique hotel – with free wi-fi access throughout – so (sad pupply that I am) the good news will be lots of email time in the next 48 hours.

You can see the view here from my bedroom window – the course hotel will be an interesting 5 minute drive or 20 minute drenching walk after breakfast.

Yesterday’s burn out feels better this morning – I enjoyed a busy day at home and the journey here last night.

Torquay is a beautiful Regency sea-side resort, with a town-centre that has been drawn over to the Dark Side of pubs, bars and clubs brimming over with the dregs of British working-class low-life.

Even a short walk to a local trattoria last night (Biancos – a welcome sanctuary of good food, wine and customer service) was overshadowed by the need to nervously run the gauntlet of shaven-headed thugs and short-skirted tarts making their way into what would obviously become a traditonal night of alcolhol, dancing, smoking, eating kebabs and fighting or knee-trembling.

Bloody awful place – and I’m sure I know at least one regular reader of this blog (and local dentist) who will be quick to tell me that there are nicer parts of town – they just weren’t on show.

On the way here last night – a great bridge call with some of our Mastermind Group clients – the focus of which was how to turn a traditional NHS practice into an ethical lead generation and lead conversion business.

Then, a welcome chance to catch up with Simon Hocken and share our thoughts and progress on the joint-ventures we are considering at present.

Finally, a call to California and check-in with Kimberly Black, who is working back-stage on the development of our first dental toolkit – watch out for that in a few months.

So – beakfast will be in an hour and I’m going to answer some emails.

Hopefully tomorrow I’ll bring you a report on what’s happened at Ash’s programme – I expect to meet some old friends there.

It has taken me until 10.30am this morning to feel as if I am at the start line for the day – that’s very unusual for someone who is usually sat in front of a laptop at 6.00am, answering the first emails.

That’s due in large measure to Air South West, one of whose aircraft broke down yesterday and, at the end of the resulting ripple effect, I arrived back in Falmouth at 12.30am this morning after three days of busy business travel.

So the first problem this morning (alarm call at 6.30am – a big lay in) was waking up – stand in shower for 10 minutes – and then unpacking the detritus that I have carried with me and accumulated since leaving on Sunday afternoon.

My bag of electronics seems to get smaller in size and larger in variety. Smaller speakers for the workshops (good) but now an extra bag containing camcorder and supporting nick nacks (bad).

Maybe I need roadies?

Yesterday was my last presentation for 2007 of our second DBS core workshop – primarily on financial controls – and I’m feeling that, after 10 years, I finally have this day “nailed”. That’s how long it’s taken.

I know the numbers in UK dentistry now – and can speak with authority and answer all sorts of side-winding questions.

Our audiences this week in Belfast and Manchester have been entertained, educated and evolved – and my sense of professional self-esteem is high.

Today is a hectic prospect.

As well as phone calls scheduled with our Mastermind Group members and the usual cut and thrust of emails – I am frantically rushing around with legal documents that have been emailed to me from the USA.

After more than 2 years of frustration, I hope to complete on the sale of my Florida property next week – admittedly at about 75% of market value but , as Seth Godin would say, sometimes you have to know when quitting is the right tactic.

I’ll be so glad to get that property and it’s servicing costs off my back – a genuine relief and victory – just as soon as I can find a Notary down here in Cornwall that will witness my signatures.

Later today I’m heading to Torquay – to spend 2 days as a delegate on somebody else’s workshop!

I’m attending my good friend Ashley Latter’s Ethical Selling Programme for a refresher after about 4 years – looking forward to it – I haven’t the time to go and too much work here at my desk – but I’m not going to miss it.

No idea whether there will be internet access where we are going – so we’ll see how soon I’m back on line.

Now – head down and get some work done.

It could have been any Hilton hotel – I’ve been travelling for hours after a busy workshop, I’m tired and I have to wait 15 minutes to check in.

My room is on the 5th floor – right at the end of the corridor – so I drag my bags to the lift, along the corridor and slide the key card into the lock.

Red light.

No problem – I know about this – that’s why I asked for a second key card – in it goes.

Red light.

Yet again – what follows is a scene of mid-life cardiac inducing stress as I furiously slide both cards in and out, shouting obscenities at the door.

Regain my composure.

Calmly walk down the corridor and pick up house phone.

Call Janet on reception and ask to be let in my room.

Wait in corridor with bags – accept stares of passing guests.

Janet arrives with a new key card.

Yet again she tells me “we have this problem all the time – its the mobile phones that affect the cards.”

So change the cards Hilton – please.

Before I do some damage.

Tuesday morning in Belfast, after a superb day with David Horobin and his team at his Chapel Road Orthodontic Practice in Bexley Heath, South East London.

I flew from Newquay to Gatwick on Sunday evening and arrived at the airport to be picked up and driven in style (BMW 5 series) by Steve, husband of Jenny, David’s senior nurse/hygienist/therapist and clinical manager (phew).

It was so nice of them to sacrifice their personal time to make the journey through the most awful wet weather and then transport me in amongst six lanes of solid traffic around the M25 – what are all those people doing out at that time – have they no homes to go to?

I checked in to the Marriott Hotel, Bexley Heath and across the road for a nice, predictable, franchised Salad Nicoise in Zizzis (owned by the same company as Pizza Express) and then off to bed after watching The Who at Glastonbury for a while.

The old boys gave a great show in the rain – a wonderful advertisement for the fact that compulsory euthenasia should never be allowed – there is often life left long after we expect incontinence and senility – although I did giggle a bit when Pete Townsend introduced his 1971 track “Relay” as a “song about the internet” – yeah, right.

Monday’s trip to David’s practice is an absolute pleasure – he knew he was going to get a public ribbing from me – the practice is frozen in 1973 (and I think his web site was probably designed by the aformentioned “Who” player at the same time as he wrote his prophetic song).

David has, at least, recognised that he can either sink into a final 10 years of “just showing up” – or make an enormous leap forward at the conclusion of his career and bring the practice forward into the 21st Century.

The place certainly isn’t broken – very succesful business – and the patients love it – but with what’s happening around him in the market place he has realised that change is essential – and I’m looking forward to becoming a catalyst in that process.

As to his support team – a pleasure to be with – not a slapped face in sight and the day was fun for all of us.

Continuing his hospitality, David and his lovely wife Helen drove me down to London City Airport last night to catch my flight to Northern Ireland (Audi A6 this time – I could get used to this).

City Airport was a zoo, with numerous delayed journeys and be-suited business travellers furiously fingering away at their Blackberry’s. I hid in a corner with yet another salad and happily managed to escape, on time, with just 12 other people using a new Air France service.

A great day with David’s team – happy, open-minded and attractive people, doing their level best each and every day for an absolute gent.

Question from a client yesterday about dental practice web site design.

I still Google around towns I visit and find web sites that talk about:

1. How well qualified the principal and associates are;
2. How advanced their post-graduate clinical courses have been;
3. How clever the equipment is and
4. How much they know about teeth and gums (page on crowns, page on fillings, page on implants).

Boring – and a magnet for price-shoppers.

If I move into a geographical area and I’m looking for a new dentist, or if I have a few grand in my pocket and want a smile-makeover – what do I want to see on your web site?

• People - show me the team, tell me who they are in real life
• Premises – take me on a virtual tour and show my how nice the building and the parking and the interior is
• Promises – tell me about your customer service standards and your patient journey – that you will listen to me and talk to me – and not treat me like a unit of dental activity

People, Premises, Promises.

Examples:

Thaxted Dental Centre

The Orthodontic Centre

Riveredge

Clarence House

Â

On our monthly bridge call last night, I was asked this question:

“Chris – it takes you a year to deliver your coaching programme – but if you only had one minute to pass on some advice, what would be the things I have to get THE MOST right if I am to succeed?”

Great focusing question.

Here is the answer:

1. Clients do not set aside enough TIME to work on personal, professional and business development;
2. Clients do not have a clear and compelling VISION of where they want to be in the future;
3. Clients do not have enough MONEY to build the vision – they are always undercapitalised (in my niche market);
4. Clients do not have enough PEOPLE around them, to whom they can either outsource or delegate.

If you have enough of these commodities, your success is assured.

If you have too little – then, just like the rest of us, you are too busy making a living to make any progress.

1. Always in a rush and overwhelmed;
2. Always working to get to the end of the week intact;
3. Always short of cash flow;
4. Always doing it yourself or seeing it done badly by others.

And that has described many clients down to a tee.

In my own case – I have sorted the people and outsource or delegate to an excellent team.

I also have a compelling vision.

But I’m always short of time and money.

So if the coach has this problem – are we all doomed?

No – because the coach is doing something about it.

Watch me.

Here I am having fun with Dr. David Cohen and Nurse Danielle Castle at The Malt House in Salford, to whom I was referred with my “hot molar”.

Customer Service – 10/10

The Patient Journey – 10/10

Danielle’s skills as a nurse and carer – 10/10

David’s skill as a specilaist endodontist – 10/10

Suzie’s skill as a receptionist – 10/10

The Practice Environment – 10/10

Fantastic job – well done.

And I’m pain free after 6 months (my fault – busy schedule). The nicest £495 I could have invested in myself.

Tell all your friends – root canal treatment can be fun!

Â

So I read in yesterday’s Daily Mail (at my hotel) that winner Paul Potts intends to invest some of his £100,000 in a smile makeover.

http://talent.itv.com/page.asp?partid=355Â

And I wondered how many of you will have contacted him this week to offer a consultation?

If he opened his mouth to smile you would see that he needs help.

Or are you just going to sit there and watch his existing dentist (whoever that is) make the money, refer him – or tell him he doesn’t need any work?

Just a thought.

A Manchester-born man died on Monday – described by film director Michael Winner as “the funniest man alive”, Bernard Manning passed away at the age of 76.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6765093.stm

Although he achieved national fame in the 1970’s TV series “The Comedians”, he quickly disappeared from the media as his jokes were considered too politically incorrect for the time (and would be even now).

Accused of being a racist, a sexist, an anti-religionist, an age-ist – and every other “ist” around – he told jokes at the bleeding edge of acceptability – and yet his privately-owned Embassy Club on the outskirts of central Manchester was packed full of multi-racial audiences every night for over 30 years.

An audience that was always made up of the very ethnic and cultural minorities and majorities that were at the receiving end of his humour – they went there to laugh at themselves, at each other and at this funny man taking outrageous liberties with their most sacred cows.

I had a distant German relative who died at Auschwitz – he fell out of a watchtower.

In the 1920’s when 20 white guys chased a black guy, it was called the Klu Klux Klan – now it’s called the US Open.

I don’t want to be bi-sexual – why be rejected by men as well as women?

I bought my kids a pack of batteries for Christmas – and left a note inside saying “toys not included”.

And Manning virtually invented the Mother-in-law joke – and it’s most famous version:

My mother-in-law told me she would dance on my grave. No problem – I’m being buried at sea.

He was bold, outrageous and provocative – and the British entertainment establishment sent him into exile – and yet this was a man who raised countless thousands for charity through his work – and at the same time prompted underground stories in the town about hoarding cash so that he could avoid tax payments.

He was secretly filmed by the British TV giving a charity concert to 199 white and 1 black policeman and his racist jokes were considered so offensive that the Prime Minister had to answer questions in Parliament.

And yet he devoted endless hours to supporting local charities that provided help for his community of birth – in Ancoats, one of the poorest areas of the city.

A flawed and controversial genius – aren’t they always the best?

There is no doubt that some of his material would be considered highly offensive if broadcast openly – there was even a sign on the door of his club warning the potentially offended to stay outside.

But he was authentic and there were no surprises – I saw him a few times over the years – usually at drunken stag parties (a speciality – of his, not mine) where he would simply pick out EVERY type of person in the audience – based on age, race, appearance, gender, background, education, geography, height – you name it – he would observe it – and then tell the most mercillously funny stories.

Not for everyone’s taste – and that’s why you had to volunteer to listen.

He wasn’t a great man – didn’t change nations or history- will not be canonised – but he made a difference to some poor and under-priviledged people by tearing up the rule book.