Just Two Minutes: What Are You Actually Trying To Fix?

Bite-sized dental wisdom in under 2 minutes.

Dentists love numbers.

We love spreadsheets.
Dashboards.
Graphs with pretty colors.

And hey, I’m no different.
For a long time, I felt like I was being a good CEO just because I had my team running all the numbers each month.

But here’s the thing no one tells you:
Most of what we’re tracking isn’t helping us make better decisions.

We’re just tracking… to track.
Because it feels productive.

I used to obsess over the number of whitening boxes we sold every month.
Had it in our reports. Talked about it in meetings.
But you know what I didn’t do?

Actually give my team any training or tools on how to sell whitening.

So the number just sat there.
Month after month.

So when it comes to numbers, I only focus on a handful of metrics that actually move the needle.

Here’s what’s on my short list:

✅ Collections
What’s hitting the bank account — not just what you could’ve collected.
You don’t pay rent with “production.”

✅ Revenue per Provider Hour
Not just daily production totals.
How much money are you making per hour?
If you want to grow or bring on associates - this is the number that matters.

✅ Case Acceptance
Think of it like your treatment plan conversion rate.
If patients keep saying “I’ll think about it,” you’ve got a sales problem.

✅ New Patient Conversion to Treatment
It’s not about how many new patients you get.
It’s about how many schedule, show up, and say yes.
Marketing feels great until you realize 75% of your patients are ghosting you.

✅ Cancellations
Tracking no-shows is fine.
But if you’re not digging into why they happen or how to fix them…
It’s just another depressing number in your report.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t measure things.
Just make sure what you’re tracking actually helps you make better calls.

Because more data doesn’t equal more clarity.
Track the few things that matter.
Make better decisions. Faster.

-Dr. Alex

P.S. Stop building spreadsheets that look pretty. Build systems that actually make money.