What not to do as a leader in your clinic in 2025 (and what you should definitely do!)

[00:00:00] Katie Bell: Hello, welcome back to the Treat Your Business podcast. I am here to help you build a thriving business that works for you, not the other way round. And today I have chosen, to tackle one of the most important topics for any clinic owner, which is leadership and management. As we approach 2025, if you’re thinking about growing your team next year, maybe that you are a solopreneur and it’s about taking that next step and bringing that first person on, it might be that they just need to be a VA or an admin assistant because you’re drowning in admin.

[00:00:37] Katie Bell: Or it might be that you have got multiple people in your team, but there is a big gap. It within, a big seat in your, on your bus that needs to be filled to release you for more of the day to day stuff. Maybe you’ve realized that some people need to get off the bus. This episode, my lovely people, is for you.

[00:01:04] Katie Bell: Leadership and management are game changers in good, in clinic growth, but let’s be honest, they, it is one of the most challenging topics because, Most of us were not given, the leadership skills and management skills because we weren’t taught any of this. And nobody is born a great leader. A great leader is somebody that commits to improving always on themselves and stepping into developing the skills it takes to lead, manage, and hold a team accountable.

[00:01:40] Katie Bell: Let’s talk about what you should do, what you should not do. When it comes to leading your clinic team or growing your clinic team in 2025, let’s dive in.

[00:01:51] Katie Bell: Okay, so let me set the scene first of all, because leadership, not just in 2025, but leadership full stop is more than delegating tasks, running team meetings. It’s about creating a culture that inspires, that engages and retains great people. Growing your team is not just about adding more bodies to the payroll.

[00:02:18] Katie Bell: It’s about finding the right people and ensuring that they are in the right roles. So my first leadership principle for you as you head into 2025 Don’t hire for convenience. Hire for alignment with your values and your vision. Here lies the problem. Most of you are so busy doing the do, day to day, that you’ve not got a minute to think about who your next hire needs to be, and when that needs to happen, so we end up hiring too quickly.

[00:02:52] Katie Bell: And when I say too quickly, it’s Oh, Katie, I’ve just realized that we’ve got a waiting list of four weeks and nobody can get in with me and there’s loads of money being left on the table and there’s a lot of opportunity there. I best find a member of staff and I’m like, honey, you needed to start that process six months ago.

[00:03:08] Katie Bell: So when it comes to hiring for convenience, it’s. Don’t just do that to satisfy a short term problem, like a we’re really busy, I need to just get somebody else to help me do this and I’ll just get anybody. You’ve got to hire in alignment with your values and your purpose. If you don’t know those two things, you don’t clearly know what your values are as a company and what your bigger purpose is, you need to figure that shit out because otherwise you are going to get the wrong people.

[00:03:39] Katie Bell: And you’re probably in the wrong roles because A, you don’t need what it is actually that you need in your business first, because you’re not looking at this strategically, or we’re hiring too quickly and we’re not getting the person that fits your company culture. If your clinic values are like authenticity, then every team member from your admin superstar to your lead therapist needs to reflect that.

[00:04:07] Katie Bell: And when they don’t Just because you’re desperate, you can create more problems than it solves. And believe me, I’ve been there. Tried it, done it, don’t bother. Got the t shirt. You don’t need to do that. I’ve done it for you. What is it you should do when it comes to leading and managing your team? Here are, my top five things I think make a great leader.

[00:04:32] Katie Bell: You have to lead with vision. People want to work for a clinic that has a purpose. Your team needs to understand this and the role that they play in achieving it. When you have a clear purpose, it inspires your people to do their best work. It inspires your people to do their best work. If you don’t know what that purpose is and it’s not a tangible, measurable thing, Then

[00:05:04] Katie Bell: They’re getting on the bus, but they don’t really know where they’re going. And that will be fine for a little while, but then it will soon not become fine. So you’ve got to lead with vision. Number two, you need to prioritize communication, like regular, open communication. One of the biggest challenges we always hear in team members is that the communication is shit.

[00:05:27] Katie Bell: And it’s just because you’re so busy and you haven’t got a minute. And if you’re anything like me, I think what’s in my head, everybody else knows. And if I don’t, if I say it for the first time and you don’t get it the first time, I repeating it again because that’s my personal and I’m like, just get it, and let’s move on.

[00:05:45] Katie Bell: So you know, we have to do work on our communication skills, weekly check-ins, clear expectations, and a culture where feedback flows both ways. Keep your team engaged. Communication as a leader is more about listening than it is about talking. When you are overwhelmed, when you’re burnt out, when you feel exhausted, it’s often because you are taking the monkeys from your team members and having to tackle those monkeys yourself and you’ve just basically disempowered that member of staff.

[00:06:16] Katie Bell: You say that you’re going to solve it and they learn nothing in the process. The key is about them taking responsibility and empowering them to solve problems, not just you as the leader having to be the one to solve it all. So you’ve got to prioritize really excellent communication. Number three is about investing in your team’s growth.

[00:06:38] Katie Bell: When your team grows, so does your clinic. And here’s the kicker, investing in your team makes them more likely to stick around. So what is it that we can do? And this doesn’t have to be you. We went through a period a few years ago now where I looked at how much time has been spent on in service training in house, all of the team, being present for it.

[00:07:01] Katie Bell: And then I multiplied that by revenue lost. And I looked at, What we could be doing in that time instead. And I was in a position in the business where I was still clinical lead and I haven’t got a few minutes. I’m a wee in the middle of the day, let alone organizing and service training on the day.

[00:07:18] Katie Bell: Bleeding shoulder joint from a junior physio. You can tell my energy was not good with it. So it was like, okay, what am I doing this for? Why don’t I just give, why don’t I just look at the budget of what I’m already losing as a result of providing this? Cause it’s my time, their time. Can’t see clients in that time, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

[00:07:35] Katie Bell: And I’m going to take that budget and I’m going to split it across the team and I’m going to give them the budget to go and do external CPD. Now, that might not be what you need to do in your company, but it was a moment of, I cannot facilitate this anymore by myself and actually I need to, outsource this.

[00:07:54] Katie Bell: I need to get people outside to do it. But you’ve got to invest in your team’s growth. Recognize reward recognize and reward effort. So never underestimate the power of a thank you, a shout out for a job well done. And I have a 24 hour rule. It has to happen within 24 hours of the thing happening because people thrive, no pun intended, when they feel appreciated.

[00:08:20] Katie Bell: Recognition can be as simple as a handwritten note. I love a handwritten note. Or as formal as an employee of the month program. We have in Thrive, we have our activate member of the month and an elevate member of the month, and next year we will have an ascend member of the month because we have a brand new program launching.

[00:08:40] Katie Bell: But we, we recognize and reward effort because when do you ever get that as an adult? When does anybody ever tell you’re doing a really great job? Never. So recognize and reward effort for your team. And number five is about creating clear roles and processes because ambiguity, I can’t even say the word, right?

[00:09:04] Katie Bell: That ambiguity leads to frustration. Make sure that your team absolutely know what’s expected of them. We had a conversation yesterday in our Q4 planning meeting and I, and we talked about our departmental roles and responsibilities and where we need to be. And, my business manager said something to me.

[00:09:27] Katie Bell: About a member of staff who’s fantastic, but she said I just don’t feel like there may be, doing what I need them to do. And I’m like, are we, have we been absolutely clear on what we expect of them? And she said, you know what? I don’t think we have. Okay. And that’s what we have to fix first.

[00:09:44] Katie Bell: So we need to be clear on who, how success is measured, who they report to, what’s expected of them. Because clarity then empowers people to perform at their best.

[00:09:58] Katie Bell: Okay, so the don’ts of leadership and management. Now, the things that can derail you or derail your leadership and create chaos in your clinic is this. Number one, avoiding difficult conversations. One of the key dysfunctions of any great team is absence of conflict. What does that mean? Because conflict is bad, isn’t it?

[00:10:25] Katie Bell: No, conflict is really good in a team. If you ever sit in a meeting with me, Philippa and Nicola, wow you would, be quivering under your desks. It’s not because there is, any ag or it’s coming from the wrong place, but we, challenge each other on our decisions and there is conflict across the Because if there isn’t, Then we have an absence of trust.

[00:10:51] Katie Bell: And if we have an absence of trust, we then have an absence of fear of conflict. And there we have then, we don’t communicate well and then we have inattention to results and then we have lack of accountability and it just goes on. So avoiding difficult conversations, I know it’s really tough, but it doesn’t make your problems go away.

[00:11:11] Katie Bell: If it’s underperformance, if it’s a toxic attitude, if it’s someone who’s just not the right fit, you owe it to your clinic and to the rest of the team to sort it. But you and the business are two separate things. You need to Take yourselves out of it being a you problem. This is a, I am responsible for the business.

[00:11:30] Katie Bell: The business needs to deal with this. So you’ve got to face difficult conversations. You don’t have to be a twat, but you can do it in the right way. And there’s lots of things that we teach, particularly in our Elevate program, about having difficult conversations, stepping up as a leader. Number two is please do not micromanage.

[00:11:54] Katie Bell: If you’ve hired the right people, trust them to do their job. But you have got to get set very clear expectations first of all, and then let them deliver them. Micromanaging just wastes your time and it massively demoralizes your team. I can’t bear micromanagement. Number three, don’t ignore culture fit.

[00:12:16] Katie Bell: So you can have the most skilled therapist or admin person but they will not thrive in your clinic if they don’t align with your values and your culture. Hiring someone who clashes with this will just erode morale fast. It is that negative energy that nobody needs in their life. So we teach a 12 step hiring process for that very reason, because you are looking for a culture fit.

[00:12:41] Katie Bell: Number four, don’t over promise and under deliver. Pay, career progression, work life balance. Be honest with your team, because Broken promises lead to mistrust. Mistrust is the fastest way to lose good people. Have more open and honest conversations with the people that are that you are leading.

[00:13:02] Katie Bell: And number five is stop trying to do everything yourself. As a clinic owner, you cannot wear all the hats forever. If you’re scaling your team, it’s time to let go of the reins in some of the barriers. Delegate tasks that others can handle. Be very clear with your expectations so you can focus on being the visionary leader your clinic needs.

[00:13:23] Katie Bell: And let’s just address the elephant in the room. What do you do when someone isn’t a good fit? First, you take a deep breath because letting someone go is never easy. If you are somebody who has a genuine heart, it’s never gonna get, it’s never gonna be easy, it’s never gonna be an easy decision, but it’s sometimes the More often than not, very necessary.

[00:13:48] Katie Bell: If someone isn’t aligned with your vision, your values, your expectations, keeping them on the team will hold everybody else back. So you can’t see this as a failure, but you’ve got to see it as making space for the right people. If you believe that there is nobody out there for the job, then that is what exactly what you are going to get.

[00:14:09] Katie Bell: You have to switch your mindset here and think I am now creating space for the most perfect person who does align with my purpose, with my values, and my expectations to come into this team. Because guess what? You deserve world class people. You do not deserve bank average people, but you do deserve bank average people if you are a bank average leader.

[00:14:30] Katie Bell: If you are not committed to improving yourself, your confidence, your mindset, your business acumen, your business skills, then you will fail. You will attract that person back to you. And when it’s time to part ways, just do it respectfully. Have an honest conversation. Document everything. Be fair.

[00:14:49] Katie Bell: Follow a clear process. Get HR involved. Don’t feel like you have to figure this out for yourself. But also remember, I’m going to caveat this a bit if I’m allowed to say this, but when you speak to a HR company, God love them. They are the best, aren’t they? At helping you navigate stuff. They, in my experience, are often quite risk averse.

[00:15:12] Katie Bell: It’s always important, I think, for you to say, this is the outcome I need, like this person has got to go, so we need to find a way to do that show no, I don’t want to go through all of these stupid processes, this is the outcome that I need, and we need to do this in the quickest, easiest possible way that is fair to all parties.

[00:15:36] Katie Bell: How do we do, how do we make that happen? Rather than being airy fairy and fanny annay going, Oh maybe we could keep them for a bit. Maybe if we did this a bit better, maybe we’ll do another investigatory meeting. Maybe we’ll then do another investigatory meeting after that. Maybe then we’ll do this.

[00:15:51] Katie Bell: I appreciate this process. I appreciate these legal things that we need to go through, but you also need to think about what’s right for you as a business owner. And remember that you are absolutely not alone in this. Every clinic owner that we speak to faces these leadership challenges. And if you’re not facing leadership challenges, then A, your business is stagnant, B, you’re not playing a big enough game, and C, you need to get out your own way.

[00:16:17] Katie Bell: Because what sets successful leaders apart is their willingness to learn, their willingness to adapt and do the hard things when it’s necessary. So lead with vision, communicate well, invest in your team’s growth, don’t avoid difficult conversations, don’t micromanage. Don’t ignore your clinic culture.

[00:16:39] Katie Bell: When in doubt, align every decision with your clinic’s purpose and your clinic’s values. Ooh, I hope this episode has helped some of you. Maybe make that decision that you’ve been putting off in your business in 2024. Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss my voice next year. Bringing all the goodness every week on a Wednesday.

[00:17:02] Katie Bell: Until next time. Next week, if you are aware of the dates, it’s going to be Christmas Day. Now, I don’t for one minute think that I’m going to be the priority on Christmas Day, but just in case you’re out walking your dog, having a moment, not eating a mince pie, just trying to burn some calves because you’ve eaten your body weight in food over the last 20, however many days.

[00:17:28] Katie Bell: I am going to be showing up for you on Christmas day. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to be doing it live. I’m pre recording this ready. But it’s the 12 Lessons of Clinic Ownership, a very festive look back at 2024. I hope you join me at some point over the Christmas period. But for now, a very, Merry Christmas.