“All I want is a normal, boring year.”
I caught myself joking-not-joking to a friend earlier this year. I was tired of the ups and downs, tired of weighing out ALL the options of ALL the dilemmas we face as leaders of our organizations. In the thick and thorny forest, I wish someone would just lead us on a clear path out.
If it’s your first time here, read an earlier post describing commonly heard reasons to open a business, and realities of early stage entrepreneurship.
Read a subsequent entry describing the realization that perhaps it is the expectation of ‘smooth’ operations that drives the stress of a situation, rather than the event itself.
In this blog entry, I’m sharing 9 of the most irritating, hurtful, frustrating, and taxing events that occur in clinic ownership… and in speaking with other owners, it turns out they aren’t that unusual – in fact, they’re more common than we think. Seasoned owners have learned to expect these, but for us newer clinic owners, they definitely can feel like catastrophes.
I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing all 9 of these challenges, so included are some ideas to how to prepare, process, and reframe your thinking to get you through to the other side.
Hold on tight, we’re going for a triggering ride.
1. Someone copies your idea
Whether it’s a social media post you just published, your logo, your clinic design, or even your full concept, you WILL see something and think, “huh, that looks verrrrryyyyy familiar………..”
Preparation: If you have a great idea, flesh it out with your inner circle first. Before you put it out in the world, think through some downfalls, and also what next steps may help you evolve your idea swiftly.
I don’t encourage hoarding ideas, or being highly protective of what you think might be ‘intellectual property’. Of course, in some situations like tech and pharma, confidentiality/patents/trademarks are responsible moves. But those processes can also be very costly and time-consuming (I went through the trademarking process without a successful result).
When it happens, reframe: Life is all about remixes, and this is how innovation occurs. If someone has directly copied you, then you know it’s a good idea (and you can choose whether or not to pursue action).
Most importantly, remember: if you had a great idea, you will continue having great ideas – I remind myself, “there’s more where that came from”.
2. A loyal, steadfast, star employee resigns
Your stomach drops and you think, “what will we possibly do without them?” Cue the worry vortex: if they leave then other staff will leave then clients will stop coming then we won’t make money then we can’t pay rent then we’ll go banktrupt and everyone will think I’m a failure and my family will abandon me.
Preparation:
- Stay connected to your staff. As the team grows, this definitely becomes more challenging, so we aim to have each staff member feel connected and cared for by someone in a leadership position on the team, not necessarily us
- Provide mechanisms for feedback – we still haven’t nailed the rhythm and structure of this yet, so we keep trying different variations
When this happens, reframe: All around the world every day, great people leave great companies for a variety of reasons. Also, all around the world every day, great people join great companies for a variety of reasons. It may feel like a blow, but learn from the situation to improve for future, then trust that future superstars are just waiting to find their way to you.
Then, pull up your socks and hit recruitment hard.
3. A senior staff leaves… and opens a competing business
This.feels like.the.worst. Not great if it ends on mediocre terms, and even worse if they launch within the non-compete radius.
For anyone this has happened to, I’m sorry. Unfortunately, I’ve heard this exact situation happen to many owners in physiotherapy or otherwise. You may feel betrayed and angry, like a rug has been pulled out from under you.
Preparation:
- When hiring new staff, ensure everyone is clear about the geographical and service boundaries set. Non-compete clauses are difficult to enforce, but a direct conversation asking staff members to honour the commitments made in this contract may minimize the risk of this occurring. On the last day of their employment with you, reiterate which specific clauses are still in effect, for the agreed upon timeline.
- If you get the sense that an employee is unhappy, try to have open conversations with them to address their concerns. However, you aren’t a mindreader (nor is it your responsibility to be one) so if they don’t express their needs and just say ‘everything’s fine’, there’s not much more you can do; they may very well leave
When this happens, reframe: this one’s challenging, but try cultivating an abundance mindset; focus on what IS going well.
Trust that your existing business is strong (if not, fix it!).
Trust that there are more than enough clients to keep everyone full.
Trust that there’s enough room in the world for both of you to thrive.
(Also, a little consolation: this person won’t be immune to these 9 challenges listed here, so…. best of luck to them!)
Additional tips for processing:
- It’s tempting to take legal action, but consider if it’s actually worth it – in my opinion, ‘making an example of them for other staff’ isn’t a strong enough reason on its own to pursue litigation. Consider the actual level of threat, your current priorities, your emotional capacity, your company’s financial status, your existing staff’s connection to this person, and whether or not you actually want to be engulfed in the argumentative energy of a law suit.
- Talk with a coach or counsellor to process your feelings.
Unaddressed emotions are a runaway train with possible consequences:- you make rash emotional decisions/statements
- you overshare frustrations with staff, creating toxicity
- your mental and physical health suffers
- you project your intensified trust issues from this situation onto everyone else – I heard about this happening at another company… it didn’t play out well
The biggest danger to your business won’t be your (new) competitor’s success; the greater threat is the possibility of you damaging your own company through your unresolved emotions.
4. A past employee files an Employment Standards claim
Ayyya. This is the worst kind of call to get. “Hi there, I’m calling to inform you that a claim has been filed against your company”. Terrible. In British Columbia, you don’t have a choice, you must undergo an investigation which requires many, many detailed documents.
Preparation:
- When hiring your first employees, familiarize yourself with the basics of the Employment Standards Act (ESA), especially the sections on work hours, vacations and stat pay.
- Ensure your records are organized – I cannot stress this enough. Claims agents will request highly detailed documents, and if you have a bad memory and don’t take good notes, this will be the most stressful part of the process
Reframe: ESA claim agents are meant to be a neutral party; in our case, all the people we worked with were extremely kind and patient. They demonstrated a high level of objectivity, and seemed truly motivated to help everyone settle the case.
As aggravating as this might be for you, remember claims agents are there to help, and people help people they like. Show gratitude, curiosity, and don’t be argumentative – that won’t get you anywhere.
5. Your clinic/office has a physical mishap
Think: flood, break-in, overflowing toilet, broken storefront glass, or internet/power/phone blackout. We had a BIG flood earlier this year, and it threw us for a loop.
Preparation:
- Review your insurance policies every year. I established my original policy when my contents value was less; during our flood claim, thankfully the damage didn’t exceed our limits but it was a good time to re-assess our value and update our policies.
- We really benefitted from having business interruption insurance, covering lost revenue during the restoration period. Discuss options with your insurance advisor.
- Have a reserve of available funds, whether it’s through a savings account or line of credit. Connect with your corporate banking advisor every few years – as your business revenue and credit score evolve, you could unlock financial products that were not previously available to you as a smaller business.
When this happens, reframe: this is precisely why you have insurance, and why it’s expensive to maintain every year – because these events happen. Approach conversations with insurance adjusters and accountants with the perspective that they’re there to help you, not rip you off.
Again, people help people they like.
These events are disheartening, but remember: if you can fix it with money, you can always make more money.
Tips for Processing:
- Ask for help! We shut down operations, and immediately, two buddy clinic owners offered their spaces so we could continue seeing clients (hallelujah!).
- Communicate with your staff and clients to provide updates – if possible, daily in the acute phase then spaced out as appropriate
- Maintain clear spreadsheets of schedules, lost revenues, expenses, saved costs, as the accountants will ask for that information
6. A client writes a negative public review
This one feels so awful. We’re working SO hard for SO long to provide the best care for our clients, and it feels crushing when someone has a bad enough experience to publicly complain.
Preparation/Processing:
- If you have an internal feedback system (we use JaneApp which prompts clients to provide internal reviews), use that to flag any potential upsets
- When a bad review is posted publichly, read the review, but DO NOT RESPOND right away. Seriously.
- Give it a full day, then read it again.
- When you’re ready, ‘kill them with kindness’ without over-explaining, and apologize if you were actually at fault. Defensiveness rarely works out well. Potential clients read reviews AND responses.
Reframe: Remember, not everyone will like you, and that’s okay. Not everyone will be suitable for your services, and that’s okay. You will make mistakes with clients, and that’s also okay. People can think and feel how they want. Yes, take negative reviews with a grain of salt, but be open to some truths that may help you improve your service.
7. You’re not profitable for months, quarters, or even year(s)
It can be deflating to see a negative number on your Profit And Loss statement. It’s even more deflating to admit that you were unaware of the situation.
You may be asking yourself, ‘how could someone not know they’re running a deficit, what dummies’. But remember, there’s no minimum requirement to open a business, literally ANYONE can do it. And if you have a non-business background like healthcare, corporate financial literacy can feel like a big black box that’s easier to just tiptoe around.
Preparation (from a non-accountant’s point of view):
- Get clear on your average monthly expenses, and track your progress month-to-date. If you treat clients, perhaps you can squeeze in a few more clients to break even
- There are many courses out there on improving financial literacy. Our membership with Clinic Accelerator has been valuable for connecting with other owners learning similar material.
- Truthfully, just start looking at the numbers, even if they don’t make sense. Open your profit and loss report (presumably digital), and click around – look to see how it’s organized, where expenses land, and get curious comparing months or years.
What’s the voice in your head saying? “This isn’t my strength” or “why is this so hard” or “I’m only a Physiotherapist” can manifest as a mental block to learning.
When this happens, reframe: Just like the stock market, ups and downs are normal. If you zoom out and your general trend is up, you’re ok. Unprofitable periods are normal, and in fact they can signal a healthy business if you’ve purposefully invested in training new staff, launching a new program, purchasing a new piece of equipment, or opening a new clinic.
If your general trend is down, it’s not the end of the world – but it IS time to step up and make hard decisions. You may need to raise prices, cut/expand offerings, and address staff performance issues.
Tips for Processing:
- Reach out to another clinic owner for moral support
- Can you explain why you’re in the negative? For good reasons?
- What are some obvious gaps that you can fix going forward?
- Be realistic about what phase your business is in (Start-up? Growth? Mature? Renewal?) and adjust expectations accordingly.
8. You contract an expensive professional and their work is… not great
This most commonly happens with tasks or responsibilities that are your least favourite, so you want to hire someone else to do them. Common examples of contracted experts in the rehab industry are bookkeepers, social media managers, and web designers.
Preparation/Processing:
- I believe you must possess a high level understanding of the problem at hand, including general processes and jargon. This allows you to ask intelligent questions and catch misalignments. Sometimes errors are clear, but other times, it just doesn’t feel right (like in design). If you give a professional free rein, guess what – they will exercise their judgement.
- Can you provide feedback along the way? Design checkpoints to communicate before the work advances too far down one path?
Reframe: this is a very good exercise in learning how to voice dissatisfaction, finding the sweet, sweet intersection of being kind, firm, and clear. You may realize that you aren’t clear about what you need from the contractor, in which case, step back and figure that out first.
9. You forgot about/didn’t budget for a big bill
Preach: Employer health tax. Paid sick days. Annual insurance policy renewals. WorkSafe BC. Whether you knew it was coming and just forgot, or it’s a new bill to add to the roster (surprise!), it feels like you’re bleeding money and can’t catch up.
Preparation:
- Build up a war chest of cash. A mentor suggested having at least the equivalent of 2 payrolls + 2 rents in a savings account.
- Ask your bank about getting a line of credit. Remember, you don’t pay anything until you use it, but at least it’s available to manage the cash flow.
- Similarly, negotiate an overdraft amount for your chequing account.
- If you have the wiggle room, ask the vendor if you can delay payment even one or two days.
Reframe: The typical consequence is a financial penalty or interest, so it’s not detrimental if you’re a bit late. Pay it and mark your calendar to ensure you don’t miss the same bill next year. Accept that you may need to adjust the budget for the coming months to make up for this cash output.
If you’re feeling nervously sweaty right now, I’m right there with you.
Only six years into running my business, and I’m 9/9 on the above.
Talk about ‘getting schooled’ – each episode was distressing, and yet I look back and thank each experience for the rich learning. Speak with colleagues, share experiences. You’ll be surprised how often these pop up.
These events build resilience and will power. And if you can enter into business with a bit of preparation and an acceptance that these challenges WILL arise, they’ll be less of a shock when they do come around.
Huge thank you to these gems of clinic owners for helping me brainstorm:
- Nicole Hart (Active Recovery, Victoria)
- Maegan Mak (Playworks Physio, Port Moody)
- Dan Siverston (Pure Form Physio, Langley)
Hot tip: have a clinic owner friend that you can call in an S.O.S. moment – so thankful for Anniken Chadwick (The Cheerful Pelvis, Vancouver).
And as always, couldn’t weather these storms without my operations whiz business partner Madison Williams.
Join me in the classroom of life!
Andrea Gets Schooled 
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