Learn & Lead
"Upward, and Onward!"
This month, it was decided the focus of our newsletter would be about leadership. This is somewhat odd timing or perhaps perfect timing because after 14 years of leading/managing DHMS/MDS AND CDE, it’s with a heavy heart and excitement that I am resigning as CEO. At the corporate office, we’ve known for a couple of years that this time was coming so we have worked diligently to build our managers into leaders, and ensure a scalable enterprise by refining our processes and efficiencies. We have a fantastic leader in Sean Ryan, Gen. Ret. taking over operations.
My new role within the company will be focused on strategic relationships, mentoring our leadership team, ensuring alignment on company vision, focus on developing in stabilizing her start up’s, and contributing towards our continued growth. Secondly, we are in the early phases of starting a foundation which will provide healthcare and dental care to those with the greatest need. The most exciting part about this is the opportunity for me to contribute to the company in a much different way and to hone an entirely new set of skills. Many members of our leadership team attended the Global Leadership Summit in August and walked away with an amazing amount of information. Here are some of the highlights that spoke most profoundly to me.
Leadership-“You do not have to be in charge to lead. Leadership is about trust and relationships. “To me, this says everybody in every company has the potential to lead.
Top tier leaders are “Level 5 leaders” and here are their traits. They have profound humility and furious resolve. Humble leaders can and do learn from anyone. They cast a Vision for the future and lead people to do things they never thought they could. When the leader gets better, everyone gets better and the Vision for the future gets stronger. My goal and hope for the next couple of years is that I will become a level five leader!
If I am successful in this effort, our staff and contractors will:
1. Feel valued
2. Feel inspired
3. Feel empowered
Thank you all for believing in me and our companies. I cherish the great memories, successes and failures we have all celebrated together.
Upward and onward!
A Personal Touch
Do you or someone you know want to work alongside A players in a fast paced industry?
We have a few open positions at our home office location in Cedar Park, TX:
- CDE Tech
- Online Presences and Marketing Manager
- Controller
- Temporary Collections Contractor
If interested in any of these open positions, please contact me at hr@usdentalsolutions.com.
Shoot Every Arrow
When the King of Israel met with an Ailing Prophet, Elisha, he was told to grab some arrows and strike the ground before him. He did so 3 times but had more arrows in his quiver (His pouch). History records the dire results of his partial efforts.
The theme of the book is not to give up too soon, lest we miss out on greater things. We need to shoot every arrow from our quiver and lead our lives as if our time to shoot them is limited. God does not expect mediocrity from us. In all areas of our life, fire all your arrows and leave no opportunities in your quiver. Life is hard but stay the course. Through the hardships you endure, you become exponentially stronger.
In business, we can “Do our jobs” and get by. It is those that shoot the extra arrows which will make a difference and show the greatest leadership. Save nothing in your quiver! Even if others don’t shoot their arrows, be the example. Your efforts may seem fruitless, but eventually, as your arrows begin to come back, others will follow your example.
You will face considerable challenges. And there can rarely be a backup plan. Expect to give it your all, even your very last arrow.
That’s how you’ll discover your greatest joys and conquer your greatest battles
– with a full heart and an empty quiver!
~Debbie
(I have a copy of the book if anyone would like to borrow it!)
Leadership Article
- You don’t need a title to be a leader
- Be a leader that unites, not divides
- You can make excuses or you can make a difference
- Leaders need to have profound humility and furious resolve
- The path to success is paved on well-handled mistakes
- Fear establishes boundaries of your freedom; greatness is on the other side of your fear
- You are not defined by your pain/failure and it is not the end of your story
- Great Leaders use POWER to EMPOWER other power
- If you just delegate tasks then you only create followers; if you delegate authority then you create other leaders
- You might have the right airplane, but the wrong wind. You have to find the right wind!
- Don’t just focus on beating the competitors in your industry, focus on being the best in your industry and providing the best to your customers
- Overconfidence is a curse and does not lead to growth
- Problems are opportunities to embrace and learn something new or when you see a problem train your brain to see it as a opportunity
- Leaders need to discern future threats and future opportunities
- Leaders need to see “MORE” than others and see it “BEFORE” others
- Focus on the “WHY” you started a business or work at your job, but be flexible on the “HOW” to achieve your goals
I wanted to share some insight on the “WHY” of Mobile Dental Solutions as it is not always glamorous working in Nursing homes.
WHY #2– When patients are taking so many different medications it affects their teeth. If they lose weight it can also affect the fit of their dentures. We help keep their teeth healthy and ensure their dentures fit properly so they can go on relishing in their favorite foods. 😊
WHY #3– Quality of life is important at any stage of life. We are making a difference by ensuring that senior dental patients still feel confident and proud of their teeth, so that they may keep on smiling. 😊
The ”WHY” of our business has not changed of the years, the “HOW” of providing the best mobile dental services has changed many times as I am sure it will continue to change with innovation and technology. But we will not loose site of the “WHY” while chasing the “HOW.”
~Grace Lemon
Influence to Inspire Passion
Capital Dental Equipment is the size of many dental practices-eight, but soon to be ten, people. While I have the title of Vice President, every member of our team has the opportunity to become a leader. A leader can be defined as someone…
who has influence.
who can be trusted.
who can make a difference.
Every employee at CDE has a great deal of influence on our business and can make an incredible difference in our culture and the ability to service our clients.
Let’s take a look at what goes on at CDE. We follow our Sales Team’s leadership in determining what products we purchase and sell.
First our Sales Team takes a call. It might be someone interested in selling their Pan/Ceph. The Sales Team member makes the determination as to how much we can pay for the unit based upon a number of factors. What costs might be associated with refurbishing the unit? What are the crating and shipping costs? What are the service technicians anticipated travel time and expenses? What are the potential warranty costs? How much we can sell it for after the unit is fully refurbished? How many other similar systems do we have? Finally, does it make sense for us to proceed? People making these decisions clearly have influence and must be extremely trust worthy.
Our logistics person schedules all of our inbound and outbound shipments. She also arranges our technicians’ schedules and makes travel arrangements. A missed shipment or late arrival creates a negative chain of events for our company and our clients. Another person with influence.
Once we have a unit, our technicians go through it with a fine tooth comb. They decide when a system is in perfect shape and ready for shipment. More people with influence.
Our warehouse manager is in charge of crating and uncrating shipments. He sets up each unit so that our service technicians can perform needed improvements so that the unit can be sold in “like new” condition. Another person with influence.
At this years’ Global Leadership Summit, Craig Groeschel laid out these keys to being a great leader.
Need a Heart to Care; you must love people and appreciate them and their contributions more than you think that you should.
Makes people feel inspired and has the passion to inspire.
Passion + Inspiration = Obsession
Willingness to Empower; Delegate authority not tasks. Only make decisions that only you can make.
PEOPLE WILL FORGET WHAT YOU SAY. PEOPLE WILL FORGET WHAT YOU DO. PEOPLE WILL NEVER FORGET HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL.
As a growing company, we rely on each of our team members to become leaders.
Imagine working in that environment. It truly can increase everyone’s drive to see the business and themselves become more successful.