Grow a set.

Hey everyone,
I hope you had a good weekend.

I started out Saturday morning with our flag football game. We won. The team we played was not very good so we creamed them. Maybe our team will surprise me but...I doubt it. Luke played. Broken arm and all.
Then from the game me and the boys jumped in the car and drove to Gainesville for the Gator game. So it was me and my five year old and my nine year old. We were meeting someone there that had our tickets. We parked and started walking to the stadium and it started to rain.
This could have been a real disaster but it didn't rain very long or very hard.
We met up with our friend and went to the game.
Noah had a blast. I got him all the food and drinks he wanted. Problem with all the food and drinks is he has kidneys the size of cashew peanuts and soon after it was, "Daddy I have to go poopie".
Oh crap. Have you ever seen the men's bathroom at a football stadium?
But all in all we had a great time. Noah had a great birthday and the Gators are looking so so good.
I am trying to get SEC Championship tickets. If anyone out there in blog world can score me two I would love you forever.

I wrote a blog on Friday....
I don't know if you all get to see all the comments. But I get alerts when someone writes a comment. Sometimes very nice and sometimes...not so nice. I guess when you write a blog you have to take the good with the bad. But this one in particular has got my mind going for the last couple of days.

Sam writes (so eloquently)...
Why would you put up with patients that don't respect your team? They do everything they can to fill your schedule and you call them great but you can't stand up for them? Grow a set.

I have had a couple of days to calm down from my venom that I wanted to spew when I read it.
So how does one respond to this?
Maybe I write a scathing comment back.
Maybe I just ignore it.
I could have done a lot of things but this time what I thought I would do is blog on it.

Hear are my thought. First, he says, "Why don't you stand up for your team." Well I thought maybe he didn't read the blog very well because it says that I did stick up for my staff.
My next thought was that I don't think Sam is an avid reader of the blog because then he would have known how I feel about confrontation.

My next train of thought is...Isn't the Internet great?
Anyone can tell anyone how they feel and never be recognized. It is a perfect society for someone like me (and Sam) where we can say how we feel and remain anonymous.
Sam can say whatever he wants without repercussions. He can learn all about me but we never learn anything about Sam.
I mean there is a chance that Sam isn't even a dentist.
I am not saying you have to be a dentist read or comment on the blog but I think most dentist would agree that we are cut out of the same mould. I think many of us are people pleasers and mostly non confrontation. So most dentists can identify with the way I think, I think.
Next train of thought...
I was thinking that the way that Sam writes. His comments sounds very Gen X.
I don't know many 40 year old guys that would use the phrase "Grow a set".
So he probably is a young dentist.
Maybe he is the DentalTown type...you know the one that because they have a computer they have become an expert on all subjects.
Maybe Sam doesn't even own his own practice.
Maybe he doesn't know that because you own your own practice there are things you have to do that you don't want to do.
Like putting up with mean people. Like working on people that you don't like. I mean if you fired all the patients you didn't like or didn't think the same as you...well, you couldn't pay the bills.
I want be happy and I want my staff to be happy but I also know everyone likes eating.
(I know I am exaggerating, but you get my point).
I told you in previous blogs (that Sam probably hasn't read) that this economy breeds even more "service before self" kind of philosophy.

So in hind site I could of done a lot of things about this comment.
Even though I have been doing this for almost a year (wow, time flies when you are constantly writing blogs) I am still learning.
I am learning that this can be so fun at times and not so fun at other times. I guess this is like life. I guess it is a little like owning your own practice. Right Sam?

Have a great Monday,
john


ps Our office got broken into on Saturday night. They broke a glass door walked in, stole the 42 inch plasma in the reception area and walked out. We are the 5th dental office to be broken into this week, all with the same story.
One office has a surveillance camera and the dude was in and out of his office in 49 seconds. WOW!!
Ownership....great fun. Right Sam? (enough already).