Not Everything Urgent Is Important. And Not Everything Important Is Urgent.

On the leader you become when everything slows down and what actually moves the needle.

Hey friends!

Brian is back.

Eight months. Chemo. Surgery. Radiation. And now he is going back to work part time this week! His doctors are impressed, his recovery has been remarkable, and I am so so proud of him. ❤️ 

We recorded this week's episode from the Centurion Lounge in Phoenix after a weekend away at a dental conference. Our flight home was delayed so we had an hour and a half to kill and we hit record.

One of the highlights of the whole weekend was finally getting to meet Dr. Rich Constantine in person. Months of recording together and we finally got to stand in the same room. If you have been following The Making Of Evelina Smiles you already know how much this meant to us. If you have not been following along yet, go back and start from the beginning. It is one of our favorite series! If you have been with us from the start, stay tuned because Evelina Smiles has officially opened its doors and we have a lot more to share.

Hitting record in that lounge surrounded by strangers with no real agenda was a little awkward at first. But we both came away from the weekend with a different perspective and once we started talking it just came together. After nearly a year of stressing about the future I am finally excited to see what comes next.

And a big part of that shift came from something Brian said…

What This Year Taught Us About Leadership

“Not everything urgent is important and not everything important is urgent.”

Brian said that this year forced him to look at everything differently. When you only have so much energy to give you start asking yourself very quickly how you actually want to spend it. Is it on the 401k meeting debating the difference between a 0.75% rate and a 0.9% rate? Or is it on the things that actually move the needle for the practice, the patients, and the people you are leading?

He has started walking out of meetings that do not move the needle. Not because he does not care. Because he finally understands the difference between what feels urgent and what actually matters.

I think as practice owners we spend so much time putting out fires that we forget to ask whether the fire actually needed our attention in the first place. The things that are truly important are rarely screaming at us. They are quiet. Waiting for us to slow down long enough to notice them.

This year slowed us both down. And what we found in that slowdown was clarity.

What Actually Moves The Needle:

  • How you deliver patient care

  • How your team is growing and being led

  • How your business is actually performing

  • The connections and community you are building around you

What Can Wait:

  • Most of the noise

  • Most of the drama

  • Most of the things that feel urgent but are not actually moving anything forward

This Week On The Making Of 🎙️

Listen To The Full Episode On

This week Brian joins me for the first time in months and we get into all of it. His health update. Returning to work part time. The urgent versus important framework that this year forced us both to see clearly. What fulfillment actually looks like. And why we are more excited than ever about The Making Of community and what comes next.

Until next week,

💛 Dr. Ashley Joves

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