What is the entrepreneurial Doc Dunaway up to now?

One of my most fun Conversations with Trailblazers was with Tray Dunaway MD - reformed surgeon and self-proclaimed "dotsultant" (you can listen to it or read the transcript here).

So I was tickled when he contacted me a couple of days ago to let me know about his new blog, Connecting the Dots of Healthcare.

Now it is a brave and delightfully self-deprecating man who presents himself like this in cyberspace (see the picture to the left and don't be scared away!!), if this indeed is Dr. Dunaway - we haven't met in person, but the little I know of him tells me it is he. It is a joy to know a physician who loves poking fun at himself!

Tray's musings are both funny and poignant - this post is a prize example that rings with the painful truth physicians have to confront from time to time in medical practice.

He brings to his writing years of experience as a general surgeon, consultant to many aspects of the healthcare industry in his effort to connect the dots, and his expertise as a popular and skilled professional speaker.

Long may this blog last!

What lessons did your newpaper route teach you about entrepreneurship?

Business Intelligence Lowdown has browsed the childhood experiences of a number of successful entrepreneurs and extrapolated from their stories some common themes about the lessons they learned as young children "from the lemonade stand". Even though most of the lessons are common sense, they bear repeating. After all, it IS the season for starting afresh with the best intentions.

The 101 lessons are categorized as:

• Self before service is the key here – Manage yourself first…
• Time and tide wait for no man – Manage each moment …
• The human side of resources - Master the art of managing men…
• Make every penny count - Managing money pays…
• Just do it – Managing tasks takes talent…
• Sourcing sources – Manage resources resourcefully…
• They are the reason your business exists – Manage customers confidently…
• Change is inevitable - Manage critical and chaotic crises…
• Aims and aspirations - Manage objectives objectively…

Here are a few of my favorites:

3. Ignore the naysayers. Remember the story of the frogs in the well? If you don’t…Two frogs fell into a dry well and the other frogs took it for granted that they would die in there. When both attempted to jump their way out, the frogs outside discouraged from expending their energy on a hopeless task. Listening to them, one frog gave up his attempts. But the other made it out through his determination and single-mindedness. When asked how he made it in spite of the negative attitude of his fellow frogs, the survivor replied that he was deaf, and that he had thought the other frogs were cheering him on as he tried to get out of the well. Shows what a profound effect a positive outlook can have.

34. Keep your eyes and ears attuned to the sight and sound of creative and innovative ideas; you never know when the mail-room boy might have a brainwave that could revolutionize the way you conduct your business.

57. Don’t be penny wise and pound foolish – save costs where they matter the most. Look at the far horizon rather than just the immediate savings realized. When you compromise on the quality of tools and resources used, you end up paying more in the long run. 

58. A dollar saved is a dollar earned – spend only when it’s really necessary.

63. Make quality a top priority, even in the smallest and most insignificant operations. You don’t want to be faced with the snowball effect. Remember the "For the want of a nail" lesson? A whole country is lost because a simple nail was not available in the right place at the right time.

74. Invest in technology, not the latest and most innovative, but the applications and machinery that suit your organization’s needs.

75. Update your tools as and when needed; don’t get stuck with obsolete stuff that’s good only for the junk pile.

77. Impress them (your customers) not just with goods and services, but with value added to your offerings. Differentiate your products from those of your competitors and watch your customers coming back for more.

93. Dream big, think mountains, only then can you achieve at least molehill success.

94. Dreams alone are not enough, you have to work to make them come true. Chart out a course of action that will get you closer to your goal each day.

95. And it’s not sufficient to just plan and strategize, you have to implement your designs. Put that plan into action, it’s the daily grind that matters in the realization of the dream.

96. Know who matters and who does not, and what matters and what does not. Acquaint yourself with the right people who can assist you in achieving your target faster and more effectively.

101. Put in place an R&D plan, encourage innovation and creativity to stay ahead of the demand for newer and better products and services.

One of my favorite blogs is...

...... Creating Passionate Users! Written and illustrated by the sharply intelligent and imaginative Kathy Sierra, her posts are filled with information and passionate opinions about how to connect to your "audience".

Think of your audience as your patients, your staff, your future business's clients, those to whom you are giving a presentation. Kathy wants to help you turn them into ardent fans.

Two recent blog posts stand out:

Better Beginnings: how to start a presentation, book, article... from yesterday, details how to give speaking presentations or to write in ways that grab the attention of your otherwise overstimulated and communication-challenged audience or readers. Her topic headlines include:

• Do NOT start at the beginning!
• Show, Don't Tell
• For the love of god, DO NOT start with history!
• DO NOT start with prereqs
• MYTH: you must establish credibility up front

She proceeds with a slew of thoughtful ideas about how to begin your speech or article.

And concludes with (in her words):

"Always grab the reader by the throat in the first paragraph, send your thumbs into his windpipe in the second, and hold him against the wall until the tagline." -- Paul O'Neil

That's the goal, but only the truly talented can actually do that. Me? I'll settle for getting the reader to give me just one more moment. Then another. Then another. And I value deeply (and feel lucky for) each moment y'all are willing to give me.

Reducing fear is the killer app is another great post that rings so true for us in the medical profession. The story Kathy tells to illustrate her point reflects upon the huge role the healthcare profession can play in reducing fear - in this case, she writes about a healthcare person who performs well.

As an aside, Kathy has an impressive following of readers, and by highlighting her positive experience at a particular hospital to such a large subscriber base, her post serves as great PR for the hospital.

Imagine if she, or someone like her, were blogging about your bedside manner, or office efficiency, or organization's customer service. What would she, or your blogging patients or customers, be saying about you? Such is the power of "social marketing and networking"!