ChiroMasterMind

How in the world is bodybuilding like chiropractic? What could they have in common? On the surface they may appear totally unrelated, but look a little deeper and it all makes sense. There are principles of success applicable to every venture in life, especially ones of self improvement. Below are 5 principles to guide you. Enjoy and let me know what you think and how your life, practice and body improves.

How does the principle of building this body make you a more successful doctor?

Principle #1: KEEP A JOURNAL

Bodybuilders keep training journals to track reps, sets, pounds, and improvements, or lack of improvements. They set goals to attain and targets to hit. How can you hit a target you can’t even see? When they train for a bodybuilding competition, they know if they don’t ‘kick their own ass’ somebody else will!

You must keep a marketing journal. Track and set your goals for new patient’s, referrals, PVA’s and marketing events. Write in your joutnal everyday. Even when you don’t do anything! READ THAT AGAIN! When you don’t do anything. Why?  It stings to write down ‘nothing accomplished’ in a success journal. Now that is ‘kicking your own ass!’

Principle #2: NO PAIN, NO GAIN

Bodybuilders know that to go beyond expectations they have to knowingly put themselves into more pain. The pain of adding more weight, more intense training, strict dieting, more sets, reps, and days of lifting. You can’t simply rest on your past success. The body adapts and to make improvements you have to change your approach, go to failure, and increase your intensity. Put yourself in more PAIN.

You must step outside of your ‘comfort zone’ and do things that you find ‘painful’. Go out and market yourself more, learn public speaking, ask for referrals everyday and try new things in your office to create ‘Raving Fans.’ Everything in life you desire lies just outside your comfort zone. YES, you are going to fail! But that is the key to success. Fail and change your approach until you get the desired results.

Principle #3: COMMITMENT

Bodybuilding is not for the weak of heart. It is tough, grueling, and a lifelong commitment to self improvement. It takes sacrifice of time, energy, personal life (sometimes), and continuous learning and adaptation. Oh people may ‘workout’ a few days a week, but that is NOT bodybuilding. True bodybuilders never lose focus of their objective and when they are not in the gym, they are visualizing themselves working out. It is their primary focus.

Starting a new chiropractic practice is not for the faint of heart either. It takes a passion, for what you do. There will be sacrifices of your personal life, time and energy. But you must also keep focused on your desired outcome. You must live and breathe your office until it succeeds. The Law of Attaction’ -You become what you think about. So think about your office 24/7. Never rest on your past success because the competition is always trying to improve.

Principle #4: VISUALIZATION

Bodybuilders see their physique in their minds of how it will appear. They manifest their body by seeing it in their minds first and then applying action steps to create it. The key here is ACTION. You can visualize all you want, but if you don’t actually get your ass into the gym to workout, then there is now way you can build that body. Before every workout they visualize completing the sets and reps. Lifing that new heavy weight goal they set. They do it before they do it! Get it? Envision success or envision failure, either way you will be right!

You must visualize your day every morning before you step outside the door. Picture yourself adjusting patient’s, getting new patient’s, meeting a new contact, booking a speaking event or hitting a new PVA record. Take 15-minutes every morning to lay out your ’successful’ day in the mind. Don’t even think about turning on that TV either! Stary away from negative outside influences until you clear your mindset first.

Principle #5: SELF CONFIDENCE

Bodybuilders know that self belief and self confidence are the keys to success. You must believe you can achieve your goal. You become what you believe! Funny thing is, when your physique begins to change and you obtain succees your confidence natrually increases. The Law of Manifestation’. You create your own destiny by the choices you make (or don’t make) and your attitude towards the world.

You control your practice destiny and success. You must believe and ‘know’ you are the best doctor to help people live healthy life. Think about how many people will suffer if you don’t get out there and teach them the value of chiropractic. You believe in it-now make them believe it too! They don’t know what you know. How can you fault anyone for not seeing the value if you don’t show it to them. Take your confidence and self belief out into the world. Don’t sit in your office WAITING for ’stuff’ to happen. You make it happen.

 Apply these principles to your life and see the world change. For anything in your life to change, YOU must change first. To get motivated and see these principles first hand, go to the video store and rent the movie ‘PUMPING IRON’ with Arnold Schwarzenneger. If that does not motivate you, then you must be dead. Who knows, maybe you will get the body you always wanted PLUS your dream practice!

Dr. Perry Nickelston, DC

Clinic Director of the Pain Laser Center in Ramsey, NJ and VP of Practice Development for K-laser,USA.

www.painlasercenter.com

www.k-laserusa.com

1-866-595-7749 Ext #102

Tags: Practice Tips of the Day, General by Dr. Perry
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The quickest way to get on the “fast track” to a struggling practice and becoming another statistic is to market your services to the masses. Why? We know chiropractic can help everyone and that’s how most doctors promote it. But, by having a clearly defined model of the kinds of patients you want, your marketing strategy becomes clearer and more cost effective. That’s the name of the game.

You need to be business smart and marketing savvy to thrive in a competitive industry. There are certain strategies to help you decide how to spend your marketing time, energy and money to increase the percentage of ideal patients and ideal referrals. You can still treat whoever comes into your clinic, but if you build your practice with patients you enjoy taking care of, you’ll have more fun, be more productive and be able to handle more volume.

 The truth is that when you narrow whom you market to (niche), three magical things happen.

1. Your service becomes more desirable. People want to buy stuff that’s made just for them…that solves their unique problems.
2. Your name spreads rapidly. People in groups talk! If you’re good and you provide services for a specific niche, your name will travel fast.
3. It becomes easier and less expensive to prospect. Most niches have a list of members or list of people. Instead of spending money on mass marketing, you can spend the money on getting your message to just the right people in your niche who want to hear your message.

The following are several questions that you should ask yourself when choosing your niche.

 Question #1: Can you easily and affordably contact the niche?

Question #2: Can the niche afford your product or service?

Question #3: Does your technique lend itself certain types of people? Ex. (Kids, elderly, sports)

So how do you niche a niche? That’s easy. Here’s how. You already have a niche that is called chiropractic. Now you niche this niche. What do I mean? Become an expert on one problem or treatment, and promote yourself as the expert. An example might be shoulder injuries.  Simply advertise and promote yourself as the go to doctor for shoulder pain. Become the “Shoulder Guru”.  Since your market is shoulder pain, find out where that market hangs out and promote there. Examples might include gyms, sporting events, tennis clubs, golf courses, etc.

You will get more than enough patients to build a practice from the specialty alone, and word of mouth referrals will spread quickly. Why? Because your niche patient base hangs out with other people who have similar likes, and they usually have the same problems. Before you know it, you will have more patients than you can handle. Then you can promote those niche patients on the benefits of chiropractic for other problems.  

 Here are several suggestions for determining your niche.·       

Personal characteristics, like age, size, gender·       

Types of conditions (Back, shoulder, neck)·       

Occupations, hobbies, or common interests·       

Acute or wellness care patients 

You may come up with other aspects of ideal patients that are important to you.  Get a clear picture of ideal patients that meet your criteria. Pick out six of your favorite patients. Which categories do they fall into? It’s a pretty safe bet that is where you are going to focus your marketing energy. We are always more successful when we enjoy what we do. Why not make your chances of success greater by creating a practice environment that is enjoyable to be in every day?

 When focusing in on a market niche, it’s imperative to speak their language. In other words, you should understand the market’s “hot buttons” and be prepared to communicate with the target market.  “Hot buttons” are the emotional triggers that inspire a patient to take action. You must appeal to their emotional desire to improve the quality of their lives before you can ever hope to turn them into lifelong chiropractic advocates. It’s the “WIIFM Syndrome:  What’s in it for me?”

Once they know you have what they want, not so much what they need; they will become your patients. Most experienced doctors recognize the value of targeting a market. But when you target a broad audience, you’re only targeting people who CAN use your product or service. You have to narrow your focus if you want to target patients who WILL use your product or service. A well defined, small niche market can separate you from competition. Other start-up offices are likely to overlook this strategy, giving you the opportunity to build the type of practice you dreamed always dreamed of.  

Dr. Perry Nickelston, DC is a 1997 graduate from Palmer College of Chiropractic. He operates four laser therapy centers in New Jersey and is Vice President of Practice Development and Product Integration for K-Laser, USA. He can be reached via his website www.painlasercenter.com or 1-866-595-7749 Ext. 2. 

Tags: Practice Tips of the Day, General by Dr. Perry
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The Power of Expectation

Have you ever hit a plateau in your personal of business life? Not growing, not moving forward, everything is just average. It’s time to get off it and get on with it.

 The ten greatest two-letter words are: If it is to be it is up to me!So how do you get on with it. By changing the questions you are asking yourself. 

Questions are the laser beams of human consciousness. When the right questions are asked, their power can cut through any obstacle or challenge. What is the difference between average success and ultra success? Quite simply, successful people have developed the habit of asking better questions, and as a result, get better responses. Quality questions create a quality life. You need to burn this idea into your brain, because it’s as important as anything you will ever learn.

 Remember, it’s not only the questions you ask, but the questions you fail to ask that shapes your destiny. 

What questions are you currently asking yourself? In business, we should ask the right questions regarding what kind of patients we want: PI, cash family, etc. This shapes our marketing and our focus. This determines our strategic planning, which determines our budget, and our action plan. When we work on relationships, our questions are focused on potential challenges and the avoidance of conflict early on in the relationship. 

All human progress is preceded by new questions. What new questions could you ask yourself today which will give you the new answers that can improve your life today and tomorrow? Remember, ask and you shall recieve. If you ask a terrible question, you’ll get a terrible answer. Your brain is ready to serve you, and whatever question you give it, it will surely give you an answer. Rather you like it or not! Lousy questions yield lousy answers. Why am I always screwing up? Why am I such a…?

Useful questions yield useful answers, which build our self esteem and self confidence.  New answers come from new questions. If you are in a situation or have a challenge you’ve wrestled with for some time, try asking some new questions and listening for new answers. New questions yield brilliant new answers. 

The Hot Pen MethodThe hot pen method of goal setting consists of the following guidelines:

• Blank paper
• Ink pen
• An absolute private place
• Comfortable surroundings
• No external stimuli such as TV, radio, or other people
• Write as fast as you can, anything and everything that pops into your head
• No judgement or analysis

Prior to getting started, consider these two questions:

1. If you knew you couldn’t fail, what would you be, do, have or become?
2. If money were no object, what would you be, do, have or become?
3. Write goals for every area of your life:
   • Spiritual, family, personal, financial, community, social, career, physical

Once again, don’t think too much, just write. Don’t evaluate, judge, or get practical, or logical. Don’t try to figure it out or conform to your perceived reality. JUST WRITE. If you find you can’yt think of anything or find it difficult, it’s because you have stopped dreaming. You’ve gotten too smart, too logical, too negative, too realistic …too grown up. Or maybe, just given up. If you have the ability to conceive, you can achieve with belief.

Dr. Perry Nickelston

www.painlasercenter.com

www.k-laserusa.com

1-866-595-7749 Ext. 102

VP of Practice Development for K-laser, USA and Clinic Director of The Pain Laser Center in Ramsey, NJ. 

Tags: Practice Tips of the Day, General by Dr. Perry
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“For me life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer.” -Arnold Schwarzenegger

“I knew I was a winner back in the late sixties. I knew I was destined for great things. People will say that kind of thinking is totally immodest. I agree. Modesty is not a word that applies to me in any way - I hope it never will.” -Arnold Schwarzenegger

Great words from a lifelong inspiration. As you all know by know, I attended the Arnold Bodybuilding Classic in Columbus, Ohio recently. During this fitness extravaganza I had the honor of meeting my childhood inspiration and idol, Mr. Arnold Schwarzenegger. What a thrill!! I am still flying high from that one. His autobiography changed my life and inspired me to become successful in bodybuilding and life.

He is the textbook ‘American Dream.’ Coming to America with no money, a heavy foreign accent, dreams of greatness and a drive to succeed. Failure was not an option for him. He has become a Governor, film star, bodybuilding legend, and inspiration to millions.

So it always irritates me to hear doctors in our profession moan and groan about how ‘tough it is to make it today.’ How  their practice is slow, they can’t afford to do this or that (my personal favorite), or ‘that’ will never work in my office excuse. You can succeed with the right mindset, mental attitude, goal setting system, action plan, and the right attitude. Oh yes and actually getting off your a** and making it happen, that is called ACTION! Dream all you want, but it won’t happen until YOU make it happen.

When I educate doctors about Class 4 laser therapy and why it is essential for their pratice success, I hear every excuse in the book why they can’t do it. “I can’t afford it (bull), I don’t need it, I don’t think my patient’s will pay cash for it (bull-cash practices and wealth are a mindset), and my favorite ‘it’s too expensive!’ What? Price is temporary doctors, profit and helping people get well is forever! Get over yourself and your fears. Take action and make it happen! The only way life is going to change and get better is if YOU change! Not the economy, not the world, not your patient’s, but YOU! You are the catalyst for success in your own life.

Below is a picture of me with Arnold. After the photo I am putting down Attitude Action Steps you can take right now to change your life. I give these to the doctors who tell me they can’t afford to invest in Class 4 K-laser. Opens their eyes to say the least! Open yours now.

”
1. Admit it’s no one’s fault but yours. (Success and failures)

2. Understand you always have (had) a choice.

3. If you think you are successful. You are. If you think you are not. You’re not.

4. Study the thoughts and writings of successful people (Like me, lol)

5. Help others without expectation or measuring. 6. Think about your winning and losing words to yourself.

1-866-595-7749 Ext. 102

Tags: Practice Tips of the Day, Class 4 Laser Therapy, General by Dr. Perry
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The feedback from my first post regarding the Arnold Expo was so positive that I decided to add some additional photos from the day. Listed below are some pictures that speak for themselves. These are some the competitors who stood out from the crowd. Any doctor into fitness and treating athletes should go to this event. Especially if you treat athletes with laser therapy like me. They are a perfect match. Listed below the pictures will be my tip of the week. Enjoy.

How can Class 4 laser expand my practice?

Your patient base opens dramatically because of lasers ability to help so many types of conditions. What other modality could you use to help the pain associated with cuts, burns, wounds, scars, post surgery pain, post joint replacement surgery, skin conditions and soft tissue tears? When these people get better, they tell everybody. It’s a therapy that sells itself. Better yet, your satisfied patient’s sell it for you. No expensive advertisement can come close to that practice building power. 

I don’t think people will pay cash for laser treatment.

If you go in with that attitude, then no they won’t. If you don’t put a value on your services, somebody else will. Most doctors are not successful because of self created mental barriers. They predispose themselves to failure. Wealth is a state of mind.  People will pay for results; they pay for what they want, not for what they need. Read that again until it sinks in your brain. Make them want it! Make them believe they can’t afford NOT to do it. Nobody needs to pay $600 for an Xbox 360, they simply want to. That’s marketing! All you need now is the right laser to back up your marketing.

Dr. Perry Nickelston

www.k-laserusa.com

www.painlasercenter.com

1-866-595-7749 Ext. 102

Tags: Practice Tips of the Day, Class 4 Laser Therapy, General by Dr. Perry
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“Class 4 Laser Myths Exposed!”
Don’t believe the hype, believe the science.
 

Myth #1: They Are Too Expensive

Compared to what? The most expensive laser you can purchase is one that fails to deliver results! Class 4 lasers manufactured by a reputable company deliver results; it’s all based in the science of therapeutic dosage. The #1 cause of failure in laser therapy treatment is insufficient dosage. Inadequate power is the primary factor in low dosage. Class 3 lasers have lower power, so penetration is decreased and success rates decline. Higher power means less treatment time and less stress on the laser diodes, adding to the life of the laser. Class 3 lasers require multiple laser heads adding to the bottom line expense of the laser. Advertising laser therapy and not getting results is EXPENSIVE! You only have one chance to impress a patient, make sure you have the Class IV power to back it up.  

Myth #2: You Can Burn A Patient

Yes, if you are a complete idiot! You can also burn a patient with ultrasound and muscle stimulation if you use them incorrectly. A properly trained physician or clinician will never burn a patient. This is why you should receive your laser training from a qualified clinician, not a sales rep. You have to be present during treatments (PTC)-Present Time Consciousness, with no distractions; devoting your time to the patient. Treatment times are significantly reduced with Class 4 lasers so the risk of injury is miniscule. Proper training is essential.

Myth #3: They Are Too Costly To Maintain

Any medical equipment used incorrectly can be costly to maintain. Proper training is essential for the life of laser equipment. What is more costly, a cheap “bargain” laser that breaks every few months or durable high end models with proven performance and results? Don’t make a purchase decision on price alone. Price is temporary, profit is forever. Look at the fine print on laser manufacturer warranties. Make sure you have a lifetime warranty on your laser diodes. If a product is good, the dealer will have no doubts about selling it on sale-or-return basis, with written confirmation of this.

Dr. Perry Nickelston, DC VP Practice Devlopment for K-Laser USA and Director of The Pain Laser Center in Ramsey, NJ. 1-866-595-7749 Ext 102

www.k-laserusa.com

www.painlasercenter.com

Tags: Class 4 Laser Therapy, General by Dr. Perry
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 Whys is this topic on my chiro blog? Because most people with chronic back pain are overweight and clinically obese. Duh! That’s why. You need to offer them advice and guidance to a positive end result. If you don’t a more successful doctor will. How is that for a reality kick in the pants? Here a 6 ways to begin.

1. Eat Five or Six Small Meals.
Despite compelling information arguing to the contrary, many people still consume most of their food in two or three large meals every day, often going for hours at a time eating nothing in between. Sure, you can lose weight and fat on a reduced-calorie trio of meals, but you can’t train your body to burn fat efficiently, which is key to maintaining weight loss.  A nutritious meal or snack every three hours or so provides a number of metabolism-enhancing benefits, stabilizes your blood-sugar levels, ensures adequate nutrients are constantly on hand, and helps control hunger-induced cravings for sweets and fats. It also leads to more effective glycogen storage in the liver and muscle tissues; thus, your body won’t cannibalize muscle as an energy source during training.

2. Drink The Right Amount Of Water

Did you know that being dehydrated makes you fatter?  Why?  Muscle Glycogen (stored sugar energy created from ingested carbohydrates) is stored along with water.  For every gram of Glycogen in the muscle there should be three of water.  Dehydration forces Glucose to remain in the bloodstream instead of muscle until it reaches the liver for overflow storage.  When the liver is full, the Glycogen (sugar) has no place to go but your FAT cells.  Not good!!  So how much should you drink? (.55 x your bodyweight in pounds = # ounces day                                                                                                                                    

3. Never Skip Breakfast

I guarantee if you skip breakfast you will NEVER get a lean, toned sexy physique!  Let me repeat, NEVER!  Why? Just like Mom used to say, breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Gotta love Mom!  Breakfast sets the tone for your metabolic rate the entire day.  Skipping this meal sets your metabolism low and Insulin will spike with the first large meal you ingest.  Then get ready for the sugar high crash and burn feeling.  Your largest carbohydrate meal should be eaten at breakfast.  Load up on the complex carbs and remember to combine them with protein.

4. Cheat On Your Diet
Once in a while you should let loose and give yourself a break from the rigors of dieting and scale watching. In fact, it’s helpful in losing weight. That’s because continual dieting eventually leads to roadblocks where the body responds by slowing its metabolic rate. Strict dieting also takes its toll on you mentally, and can leave you feeling deprived. That’s a bad combination! Taking in a couple of high calorie meals once every 7-10 days not only provides a mental break from dieting, but helps you side-step roadblocks by preventing the body from entering a starvation state where the metabolic rate slows.

5. Do Smart Cardio
What happens to someone who performs 1-2 hours of cardio a day? (We know you’re out there!) They send their body into a tailspin, a state where the “starvation hormones” secreted by the body skyrocket (it’s your body’s survival mechanism, a response to too much exercise!) causing fat cells to try to hoard their energy! Moderate cardio is the way to go. Four to five 20-30 minutes sessions per week is all that it takes. Any more than that and you run the risk of losing precious muscle tissue, which negatively affects your metabolic rate and your ability to burn fat.

6. Start Weight Training

Some people avoid weight training because they don’t want to bulk up. However, strength training is a critical element to maintain a healthy weight and strengthen your body.  The average person who strength trains two to three times a week for eight weeks gains 2.75 pounds of lean weight…and loses 10.5 pounds of fat.  Muscle is a metabolically active tissue that requires calories for support.  Meaning, the more muscle you have the more body fat you burn at rest. Always do cardio work AFTER weights, NEVER before!  Why? You burn about 300% more body fat. 

Tags: Integrative Treatment Strategies, General by Dr. Perry
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Hey everybody! Did you miss me? I have been in Columbus, Ohio attending the Arnold Schwarzenneger Fitness Expo on behalf of K-laser, USA. We were Gold Sponsors of the ICA (International Chiropratic Assocation) event and got VIP access to all the great shows. If you have never gone, I highly recommend it. There are over 17,000 athletes attending this event. That is more than the Olympics! Over 150,000 people walk through the door during the weekend. It is officially the largest Fitness Event in the World. I got to meet Arnold and have a picture with him too. Highlight of my life. His autobiography changed my life. Read it and learn about success through determination and goal setting. Priceless advice.

I was there treating atheletes with the K-laser. As you should know, lasers are a great tool for helping athletic injuries. If you don’t have one, you are in big trouble. Take time to invest in a high quality laser. Remember, price is temporary and profit is forever! Anytime you help people and provide value to the marketplace you will prosper. Business 101.

I will attaching photos all week for you to see. Here is the first two of me with Lou Ferrigno and Frank Zane . Everybody knows Lou as the Incredible Hulk and from Pumping Iron. Great guy with tons of knowledge on health and fitness. Huge arms too! That’s me on the right. lol. Frank Zane had the most symmetrical physique in the 70’s. Super nice guy.

Until next time. Oh yeah I almost forgot the practice tip of the day. 

NEVER leave your practice without business cards!  An effective card is arguably the most valuable tool you can have in building a business. For those just starting a practice, sometimes it’s the only tool. Nothing is worse than being in a situation where you say, ‘I wish I had my business cards with me.” When you give out cards, make sure you give out two at a time. People have a tendency to misplace cards, so give them a second chance to find you.

Networking etiquette 101; don’t give out a card until someone gives you theirs first, they ask for one of yours, or you ask for theirs. Business cards should have some type of offer on the back. Use that space to promote your uniqueness. My most successful offer was a FREE Laser Therapy treatment. Get the best business card money can buy…It’s your image and it makes an impact every time you give one –either wow, positive, mediocre, or negative. When you give out your card, if someone doesn’t look at it and say “Nice card,” get it redone.

Dr. Perry Nickelston, DC VP Practice Devlopment for K-Laser USA and Director of The Pain Laser Center in Ramsey, NJ. 1-866-595-7749 Ext 102

www.k-laserusa.com

www.painlasercenter.com

Tags: Practice Tips of the Day, General by Dr. Perry
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