Simplicity May Simply Be The Key To Success

I get asked it all the time.  Sometimes I almost feel like I’m being guilted into providing an affirmative response.  The pitch is always about the same, so you’d think I would be accustomed to the warning signs by now. 

One pitch goes something like this – “Would you like to make more money in your practice by selling this product?”  Other offers come from individuals that provide “complementary”, but “alternative”, services and the pitch sounds more like this – “Can I rent space from you?  We’ll both benefit from cross referrals.”  The offers frequently come from massage therapists, chiropractors, and acupuncturists.  

Often these pitches sound promising and it seems like I should really answer “yes” to the requests.  I’m a big advocate of medical providers joining forces in the “back of the house” to save money.  But what about joining forces in the “front of the house” in an effort to make more money – is that really a good idea?

As for me, I make it a rule to turn down all offers of joining forces with complementary practices.  I also turn down all offers to sell complementary products (the most common pitch is for vitamins).  The only products that I do sell in my practice are directly related to PT – back supports, foam rollers, and exercise balls, primarily. 

Why do I stick with this hard and fast rule?  By turning down these offers, I am not offering commentary on how I rate the value of the other providers or products.  I am simply making a commitment to my own business. 

My philosophy is a move away from a “spaghetti” business model.  You know how that goes – you throw a bunch of options against the wall and see what sticks.   In contrast, I operate with a more pinpointed business philosophy that is committed to focusing just on what we do well and continually improving on it, while removing any distractions.

Sometimes I agonize a bit over whether to accept some of these offers, because they do sound promising.  But in the end, I am always relieved when I finally voice my decision and turn down the offers.  I know that saying “no” to the offers, however promising they may seem, is my commitment to keeping a rock-solid focus aimed at allowing our business to simply be good at the one thing that we excel at, with no dilution of focus, or of resources.

We are often given advice to diversify, to not keep all our eggs in one basket.  However, I believe that the true success of our company has come from focusing totally and completely on the one thing we do best – physical therapy.

I look to other businesses and other corporate philosophies that remain keenly committed to one goal, without distractions, as a basis for my business beliefs.  For example, Google’s corporate philosophy states that “it’s best to do one thing, really, really well”.  Probably not a bad philosophy.  After all, Google certainly seems to be doing something right.

In the book, Becoming Rich: the Wealth-Building Secrets of the World’s Master Investors Buffet, Icahn, Soros, author Mark Tier writes that Soros recommends that individuals only invest in what is understandable.  He also suggests that people not make investments that do not meet personal criteria and that they should learn to say “no” effortlessly.  Soros’ theory?  Diversification is for the birds.

These successful corporate philosophies and investor recommendations point to the same general principle – stay committed to one thing because diversification only serves to dilute our focus.  Soros’ theory on investing should transfer well to the approach we take to our business model.  Our business, after all, is most likely our largest investment. 

So, when I say “no” to selling complementary products or joining forces with complementary providers, what I am really doing is remaining committed to our basic business model – one that is focused on offering the best physical therapy services possible.  By keeping a solid focus, we not only benefit ourselves by concentrating our efforts towards one end goal, but I believe we benefit our patients as well.

I think it’s important that our patients aren’t at all confused about what we do.  At NY Sports Med and Physical Therapy we believe that physical therapy is the absolute best way to effectively recover from an injury.   Therefore, I don’t want to distract my patients with other products or services that may divert their attention away from committing to a rehabilitation program that is their best option for recovery.

If patients want to try another type of complementary medicine, we have providers that we can refer them to.  We can give them our opinions about certain products or services, if asked.  But, I don’t want those products or services in my space.  It’s distracting, and it creates a sense of doubt as to what’s really best for the patient.

Simplicity is one of the keys to the success of our practice.  Patients come to us to get over their injury and we offer them an effective solution to do just that.  We provide rehabilitation programs tailored specifically to treat their injury.  Our methods are based on tried-and-true traditional medicine and principles, while also remaining at the forefront of cutting-edge technology and techniques. 

Having available to patients a bunch of other “possible solutions” before they walk out the door is confusing.  It makes our patients wonder if what we have recommended is really the best treatment solution, or if we are also suggesting that there are other options to consider if they don’t like the first recommendation we offer.   They may even wonder if they should be trying “a little of this and a little of that”.

Richard Branson may have summed it up with his acronym “KISS”, which stands for “keep it simple, sunshine”.   When it comes to helping our patients recover from injury, I believe that keeping it simple is in the best interests of both the success of our business and the success of our patients’ recovery.   It allows us to remain focused on doing what we do best and does not confuse the patient with conflicting messages.

So I stand by my decision to say “no” to the many pitches I receive.  By doing so, it allows our practice to more effectively offer the best possible solution to our patients– our expertise in PT.  While I may be missing out on some added income from the joint arrangements in the short term, my decision is based on what is best for my practice in the long run.  Simply put, I choose to opt for a focused and simple approach to create lasting business success.